Times of India: Navi Mumbai: Saturday, 25 March 2023.
After the recent incident of corruption at Cidco head-office in Belapur, where an official was caught demanding Rs 7 lakh bribe from a project affected person (PAP) in order to forward his application for the compensation due, an RTI activist has found out that Cidco has not updated its list of total PAPs who are yet to be given compensatory plot allotments.
The RTI inquiry shows that while the Navi Mumbai airport project is progressing swiftly, the waiting list of PAPs to be compensated is unclear. RTI activist Anil Galgali told TOI: “Had Cidco been more transparent about this matter, by showcasing all this info about plot allotments to PAPs and the fresh waiting list on their website, corrupt officials would not be able to harass the semi-literate PAPs by seeking bribes from them to award their rightful compensation.”
“There is confusion among the PAPs as to when they will get their compensatory plots from Cidco, since there is no proper updated information available for the public. This confusion leads to anxiety among the PAPs, some of whom succumb to the prospect for giving bribes to officials in order to quickly get their compensation”, said Galgali, who has also written to senior Cidco officers, and the deputy chief minister. A Cidco official told TOI that it is an “ongoing process” on the issue of updating the list of PAPs who are to be compensated for the land taken from their villages for the airport project.
After the recent incident of corruption at Cidco head-office in Belapur, where an official was caught demanding Rs 7 lakh bribe from a project affected person (PAP) in order to forward his application for the compensation due, an RTI activist has found out that Cidco has not updated its list of total PAPs who are yet to be given compensatory plot allotments.
The RTI inquiry shows that while the Navi Mumbai airport project is progressing swiftly, the waiting list of PAPs to be compensated is unclear. RTI activist Anil Galgali told TOI: “Had Cidco been more transparent about this matter, by showcasing all this info about plot allotments to PAPs and the fresh waiting list on their website, corrupt officials would not be able to harass the semi-literate PAPs by seeking bribes from them to award their rightful compensation.”
“There is confusion among the PAPs as to when they will get their compensatory plots from Cidco, since there is no proper updated information available for the public. This confusion leads to anxiety among the PAPs, some of whom succumb to the prospect for giving bribes to officials in order to quickly get their compensation”, said Galgali, who has also written to senior Cidco officers, and the deputy chief minister. A Cidco official told TOI that it is an “ongoing process” on the issue of updating the list of PAPs who are to be compensated for the land taken from their villages for the airport project.
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