Title - Railways and BMRCL reach compromise over land lease

The wrangle between the Railways and Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd., (BMRCL) over leasing railway land for Namma Metro underground works has reportedly been settled with the former agreeing to permit BMRCL to continue with the work after making part payment of additional lease rental.According to BMRCL Chairman and Union Urban Development Secretary Sudhir Krishna, the railways has agreed to permit underground construction work around Majestic areas pending final settlement of the dispute.Mr. Krishna, who was in Germany on Wednesday, told The Hindu over phone that BMRCL would make a part payment of balance licence fee as demanded by SWR. BMRCL has paid Rs. 94 crore to the South Western Railway (SWR) even as the SWR has sought Rs. 125.7 crore as balance fee. Mr. Krishna said a meeting was held between the officials of the board and BMRCL in Delhi on Monday to sort out the issue. BMRCL has agreed to pay Rs. 21 crore as part payment, a source said. SWR General Manager A.K. Mital told The Hindu that he has not received any official communication from the Board so far. “We too are for speedy completion of the underground metro work. However, certain formalities have to be completed (to part with railway land) as per Board's directive,” he said.

On Tuesday last, the SWR evicted BMRCL's men and machinery from its land off Platform Road when the latter attempted to go ahead with the construction.

The SWR had said BMRCL has not paid the balance fee and the Railway Board had not given any direction to allow construction without receiving any payment.

BMRCL requires railway lands at three locations — Mahatma Gandhi Railway Colony for construction of the “City Railway Station” underground station; Supervisors' Training Centre for tunnelling and off Platform Road for construction of the down-ramp for North-South corridor's tunnel.

The SWR has allowed BMRCL to go ahead with work at M.G. Railway Colony, whereas work at two other sites is yet to start for want of payment of balance licence fee.

In all, SWR will be offering 22,908 sq m land permanently and 9,346 land temporarily for the Namma Metro work in these locations.

Policy issue

Sources in SWR said BMRCL in Monday's meeting pressed more for a change in Board's policy to lease out railway land to government department/ corporations for public purpose than on the calculation method adopted to decide the lease rental. While the initial calculation had pegged the total lease rental at Rs. 219 crore, revised calculations put this amount at Rs. 175 crore.

Way-leave facility

BMRCL had been arguing that the SWR should not consider portions of tunnel and cut-and-cover stations as permanent ceding of railway land and they should be treated as way-leave facility. As such, the lease amount payable would be just Rs. 44 crore, it had claimed.

However, sources in the SWR disputed this claim and said the land above tunnels and underground stations cannot be used to construct multi-storeyed buildings and hence should be treated as permanent ceding.