Raw Story

What you need to know about the Rs 2,000 crore Delhi High Court judgement on land deal

A court in Delhi has decided to give out a Rs 2 lakh crore land deal to the builder of a new highway linking the national capital to the southern state of Kerala.

Justice Mukul Mudgal said the project was a part of the government’s plan to build the Delhi-Kerala High Speed Train (DHST) and would be worth Rs 4,000 to 5,000 per square metre.

He was speaking at a hearing on Friday on the plea of the builders of the Rs 5,100 crore Delhi-Lanka Expressway to get approval from the court for the project.

The Delhi High court has said the government will need a public-private partnership (PPP) model to finalise the deal.

Mudgal said a preliminary review report has indicated that the DPR is of the following three models:The government has said that the Rs 1,000-crore project will help ease traffic congestion and ease congestion on the existing roads, while providing a link to the planned HST.

However, a group of civil society groups, including the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), has opposed the government for failing to provide any information about the DPR.

The AIDWA said that given the high stakes involved, there should be more transparency and a public forum to scrutinise the project’s details.

The Supreme Court has said it will review the project in 2018.