Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar addressed the challenges surrounding compensation for farmers affected by the Krishna Upper Stage 3 Project during a press conference at Vidhana Soudha. He stated that the government is struggling to clear pending contractor bills and is financially constrained. Fulfilling court-ordered compensation, estimated at ₹2 lakh crore, is currently unfeasible, he clarified.
Shivakumar emphasized that the government is working on a compensation formula that balances farmers' interests without overburdening the state. However, he warned that if farmers reject the proposed amounts and do not acknowledge the government’s financial constraints, continuing the project could become impossible.Court rulings have imposed significant financial burdens on the government. For instance, a court ordered ₹23 crore compensation per acre for land in Bagalkot and ₹11.92 crore for land acquired for canal construction in Kasaba Bijapur.
In other cases, courts have mandated compensation ranging from ₹74 lakh to ₹1.20 crore per acre, while officials had estimated values between ₹8 lakh and ₹16 lakh per acre. This discrepancy is causing a major headache for the government.Of the farmers who lost land under the project, 28,972 have rejected the government’s compensation offer and approached the courts, hiring around 46 lawyers to pursue their cases. Shivakumar has directed Law Minister H.K. Patil and the Advocate General to provide a detailed report on these legal proceedings.
The project requires a total of 1,33,867 acres of land, of which 29,568 acres have been notified for acquisition. So far, 44,947 acres have been acquired, with 59,354 acres still pending. The project is expected to submerge approximately 20 villages.