Bullet train Gujarat HC junks over 120 pleas against land acquisition

The Gujarat High Court on Thursday dismissed over 120 petitions filed by farmers challenging the acquisition of their land for the ambitious Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project. A division bench led by Justice A S Dave held that the compensation offered to farmers by the state government is fair. The bench, however, said the aggrieved farmers can approach the government to seek higher compensation. The bench upheld the validity of the Land Acquisition Act, amended by the Gujarat government in 2016 and subsequently approved by the President. The court was also of the opinion that the provision of not conducting social impact assessment under the amended Act does not fall into the category of “excessive delegation”, as contended by the agitating farmers. The bullet train corridor will have 12 stations across its 508-km stretch between Ahmedabad and Mumbai.