Akhil Tadshettiwar demands Karanji MIDC be started or farmers paid current market rate for land

The Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) industrial area at Karanji in Gondpipri taluka is in the news once again. Akhil Tadshettiwar has demanded that the Karanji MIDC be made operational immediately. Failing that, he has said, fair compensation should be paid for the acquired land at today's market rate.

Farmers' land was taken in the expectation that industries would come to the area and local youth would get jobs. The farmers too had hoped that the Karanji MIDC would bring industrial development to the area, give young people work and speed up the village's economic progress. However, even after the land was given up, industrial projects have not started as expected. This has caused resentment among farmers and local residents, and the farmers have been left disappointed. Land was taken in the name of the MIDC, but the question now being raised is when real development will begin.

Drawing the administration's attention to the matter, Tadshettiwar has demanded that the Karanji MIDC issue be resolved. He says concrete steps should be taken to set up industries in the area. His position is that the MIDC should not be limited to starting a small unit or a factory making "kim pudi". There should be industrial development on a large scale, and local youth should be given employment opportunities.

Land is not merely property for the farmers; it is the main source of their families' livelihood. The question being asked is who will make good the financial loss of the farmers concerned if the project does not start even after they gave up their land in the hope of industrial development. It has therefore been demanded that the administration take a clear stand on the matter and do justice to the farmers.

Land has been lost in the name of the MIDC, but the wait for development and jobs continues. Farmers and local residents want the administration to take their demands seriously. They expect the Karanji MIDC to be genuinely made operational to speed up industrial development, or else the question of compensation for the acquired land to be settled fairly.