Airport link road alignment changed due to legal complications

The Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (Yeida) has decided to change the alignment of a 100-metre wide and 10.6-kilometre long road linking Jewar airport with Yamuna Expressway, after farmers refused to give up their respective land for this vital route, officials said on Friday. With the change in alignment, Yeida will construct the road within the stipulated timeframe as the government has already acquired the land, officials associated with the matter said.

The State Support Agreement signed between the Uttar Pradesh government and the concessionaire, Swiss company Zurich International AG, stipulates that connectivity roads must be completed by December 2023 before the Noida International Airport at Jewar begins operations by September 2024, according to officials.

Arun Vir Singh, chief executive officer of Yeida, said, “We will construct connecting roads on the north and east sides of the airport so that connectivity between the airport and Yamuna Expressway can be improved on time. Due to land issues for the 100-metre wide roads, we have decided to construct two 75-metre wide roads on the land that we have already acquired. We aim to complete these two essential links by the end of December 2023.”

The initial plan to acquire land for the two roads as part of phase 2 met with objections from most of the farmers who claimed inadequate compensation for their land. The acquisition of 1365 hectares of land under phase 2 would have included the two roads. However, since land acquisition is a time-consuming process, Yeida decided to directly buy the land for the roads, which was also met with rejection from farmers.

Ajay Kumar, a farmer from Modelpur village, said that they want better rehabilitation and compensation that is double the prevailing circle rate before agreeing to give their land. The Yeida officials said that as of now, there is only one narrow road that connects Jewar Airport with Yamuna Expressway. The new roads are mandatory for improving connectivity for future use, said officials.

The airport is being built on 1334 hectares of land, and the trial run for the project is expected to take place in December and January.
“We are closely monitoring the airport and connectivity projects. We will complete the two link road works successfully before the trial begins,” said Yeida CEO Singh.