Another Govt Imposed Project on Karwar - with a Happy Ending...

Fishermen on Monday owed to oppose handing over of the beach land to the Coast Guard and construction of a helipad there. They declared that they would launch a struggle to protect their right to use the seashore. They took out a silent procession in Karwar under the banner of Harikantra-Karvi Fisheries Cooperative Society. In a memorandum submitted to the Deputy Commissioner, the fishermen said that they had been carrying out fishing activities for generations on the Karwar beach. The beach was being used to dry fish, and keep their boats and nets. The memorandum referred to the report of Swaminathan committee which favoured strict enforcement of CRZ rules. Even the Supreme Court had directed the Government to provide protection to people who lived in the forests and on the beaches and banks of rivers, it said.
http://www.sahilonline.org/english/news.php?cid=1&nid=10071

Several social and fishermen organizations have threatened to launch an agitation against handing over part of Karwar beach to the Indian Coast Guard. Members of 10 organizations on Friday said when thousands of acres of unused acquired land are with the defence ministry in Karwar, what was the necessity of handing over civilian area, that too without taking Karwar residents into confidence? They demanded that the order be cancelled immediately.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Karwar-fishermen-up-in-arms/articleshow/7288025.cms


Members of the fishermen community on Monday took out a huge procession in Karwar to protest against the construction of the Coast Guard office and helipad on Karwar beach. Fishermen under the banner of Harikantra Karvi Fisheries Co-operative Society began their silent protest march from Mitra Samaj ground and culminated at deputy commissioner's office. The protesters also wore a black ribbon as a mark of protest. In a memorandum to the deputy commissioner, the fishermen said they have been conducting traditional fishing activities for generations at the Karwar beach. Apart from fishing activities, the beach is used to park boats and store their nets. Most of the fishermen use the beach to dry their fish before selling it, they said. They said some vested interests were creating one problem or the other to the community by bringing new projects to the beaches and opposed the move of the district administration, which had sanctioned a part of the beach land to some private companies and the Coast Guard. The memorandum cited the report of Swaminathan Committee which had demanded the strict enforcement of the CRZ rules. Even the Supreme Court in its judgment in 2000, had directed the government to provide protection to the people who live in forests and near the sea and beaches and on the banks of the rivers, thereby protecting the bio-diversity and natural resources. The fishermen `alleged' that by handing over 16 acres of the beach to the Coast Guard, the fishermen community will be left in the lurch. The Coast Guard has put up the boards on the beach prohibiting the entry of the people on the land and has violated the fundamental rights of the fishermen, the memorandum said. Deputy commissioner B N Krishnaiah received the memorandum and assured them that he would take the issue to the notice of the government. Fishermen leaders Gaja Surangekar, Prasad Karwarkar, P M Tandel and Ravindra Pawar addressed the protesters.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hubli/Fishermen-hold-protest-against-land-allotment/articleshow/7356136.cms


Indian government notifies new coastal regulation zone

In a move that could protect the livelihood of seven million fishing families, promote economic activity in the coastal region and preserve coastal ecology, the Ministry of Environment and Forest notified the Coastal Regulation Zone notification, 2011. The new notification replaces CRZ 1991. The minister for environment and forests, Mr Jairam Ramesh said that “In the latest notification the ‘no development zone' is being reduced from 200 meters from the high tide line to 100 meters only to meet the increased demands of housing of fishing and other traditional coastal communities. This is one of the major differences between CRZ 2011 and CRZ 1991.” Responding to a question, the minister said that any economic activity including power plants, ports and industrial enterprises could be permitted in the coastal area. He said that “India must get used to power plants being located in water areas. They require imported coal, gas and even uranium … all this necessitates that power plants be allowed in water areas.” Economic activity will, however, not be allowed in the no development zone in the high tide line. The new CRZ has special provision for Goa, Kerala, Greater Mumbai and critically vulnerable coastal areas such as Karwar and Kundapur in Karnataka, Vembanad in Kerala, Coringa, East Godavari and Krishna Delta in Andhra Pradesh and Gulf of Mannar in Tamil Nadu among others. For the first time a separate draft island protection zone notification has been issued for protection of islands of Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep. Refuting charges that the latest CRZ Act was meant to benefit anyone, the Minister said that “violations of CRZ 1991 are not being condoned. What happened in Adarsh (society in Mumbai) and others will continue to be dealt with.” The Minister said that the Ministry will next week issue directives to Coastal Zone Management Authority in the various States and Union Territories to identify all CRZ violations within the next four months and initiate necessary action within four months thereafter. Mr Ramesh also announced that the Ministry was considering setting up of a River Regulation Zone to ensure that river beds are not destroyed by construction activity.

http://www.steelguru.com/indian_news/Indian_government_notifies_new_coastal_regulation_zone/185789.html



India’s 7,500km-long coastline will be governed by a new coastal regulation zone (CRZ) notification from Friday that seeks to balance the interests of fishing communities and business. Jairam Ramesh, minister for environment and forests, said the new notification will reconcile livelihoods with coastal ecology and the promotion of economic activity. In recent months, Ramesh has been in conflict with various ministries and industry over his strict implementation of environmental laws. He said the CRZ notification 2011 demonstrates a better balance between the environment and development.


http://www.livemint.com/2011/01/07222258/Coast-gets-new-code.html?atype=tp

Under the new guidelines, the entire coastline has been divided into four zones.

In zone I, which are ecologically sensitive areas such as mangrove areas of Sunderbans or turtle nesting sites, horse shoe crabs habitats and nesting grounds of birds no development activity will be allowed.

The zone II, where development has taken place close to the coasts, repair or reconstruction of old buildings and construction on landward side of existing roads will be allowed.

The third zone would be up to 200 meters of high tide line, where no new development will be allowed, except fishermen, who will be allowed development up to 100 meters of the high tide line. Repair of old structures and construction public utility services will be allowed. The zone also includes area between 200 to 500 meters of high tide line where new regulated development will be allowed.

The fourth zone would be the areas relatively undisturbed, which does not fall in zone I or II, and are mostly in rural areas. Here, all activities impugning on the area and tidal influenced water bodies will be regulated except those necessary for fishermen to carry on their traditional work.

However, the new regulations provide relaxation to special areas such as Goa, Kerala and Greater Mumbai, where environment protection has to be balanced with existing development. Here construction of roads and repair or reconstruction of old buildings will be allowed. The development works will be carried out as per town planning regulations. The state coastal zone management authorities will be required to development coastal zone management plans for these areas.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Coastal-regulations-devised/Article1-647638.aspx


Coast Guard removes board from Karwar beach - The Hindu

Bowing to pressure and agitation by fishermen, the Coast Guard on Tuesday removed the signboards put up by it on the Karwar beach.

The Coast Guard had a few days ago put up signboards on the Karwar beach, declaring that the land belonged to the Defence Department and the area was prohibited for the general public. This had kicked up a row with the public protesting against the intrusion of the Defence establishment in a civilian area. The Coast Guard had now clarified that it had availed the land on the beach legally and it would not create any problems for the public and fishermen who used the beaches. Meanwhile, some miscreants had defaced the signboards by painting it black. On Monday, the fishermen in Karwar took out a procession against the taking over of the beach by the Coast Guard authorities. The Uttara Kannada district administration had reportedly informed the Coast Guard to go slow on the issue, as public agitation and law and order problems were expected. Although the boards were removed, it was not clear whether the Coast Guard would change its idea of building the office in Karwar. Meanwhile, in a press release, the Coast Guard clarified that providing protection to fishermen and providing assistance to them at sea while in distress and to preserve and protect the maritime environment were all its duties. For fulfilling these duties, Coast Guard needs land. The Cost Guard clarified that the Rabindranath Tagore Beach did not fall under the 9.36 acres of land allotted to it by the Government. It had no plans to impinge upon the rights of the local fishermen. The presence of Coast Guard Station would cause no hindrance to the normal activities of the public on the beach. The Coast Guard Station in Mangalore was situated along the Panambur beach and Coast Guard had never caused any interruptions to fishermen or the public. Most stations of the Coast Guard functioned alongside fishing harbours or on beaches since it was the primary duty of Coast Guard to safeguard property and life at sea. It said the fishermen of Karwar need not worry about losing their livelihoods because of setting up of Coast Guard station. The beach would be out of Coast Guard's purview of operations since Coast Guard ships and boats would be berthed at Naval harbour and Karwar Port. The presence of Coast Guard Station near the fishing area or the beach would be highly helpful to the fishermen community and also to the general public in terms of coastal security.

http://www.hindu.com/2011/01/26/stories/2011012657180300.htm

Coast Guard cautions people against trespassing near Karwar beach Land transfer

Coast Guard cautions people against trespassing near Karwar beach Land transfer

The action of the Uttara Kannada district administration of handing over the middle part of the Karwar beach to the Defence department has kicked up a new controversy. The Defence department has put up a board restricting entry to the beach.

Fourteen acres of revenue land on Karwar beach was handed over to the Coast Guard to build an office there, said K.. Narasimhamurthy, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Uttara Kannada.

What surprised people was the secrecy maintained by the Revenue Department officials on the whole process, said Rajesh Nayak, president of the Karwar Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) unit. After acquisition of the major part of the beaches in Karwar for the Seabird project, the people of Karwar were left with a small stretch of the beach. The Revenue Department officials should have consulted the public, fishermen and the social and political organisations before handing it over. What was the reason for secrecy that they maintained in the whole deal, said Mr. Nayak. Gaja Surangekar, a fishermen leader, said the district administration had cheated the fishermen who had been using the beaches for fishing for centuries. He said that the people came to know about the transfer of land only on Tuesday when the signboards were put up. “We will launch an agitation and never allow them to snatch our right to use the sea shore,” he said.

Ratan Durgekar, a morning jogger on the beach, criticised the officials of the district administration. He said when thousands of acres of land acquired for project Seabird still remained unused in Karwar, what was the necessity to hand over a new piece of land in the civilian area to the Defence department? He said the people living around the Seabird project area faced several restrictions. A Defence office in civilian area would create more problems for the citizens of Karwar. The Tourism Department was showcasing Karwar beach to attract tourists. About Rs. 5 crore project was prepared by the district administration itself to develop the beach. Officials of the National Highway Department, who worked on the four-lanes highway that passed through the same area were unaware of land transfer. The area where the signboard was put by the Coast Guard covered forestland.

A senior Forest Department official pleaded his ignorance about this. He said that part of land on the beach belonged to the Forest Department and survey no. 108 on the beach was a forest as per records.

The projects like “green wall” on Karwar beach was taken up by the Forest Department to stop the sea erosion, sea breeze and sand accumulation on the road. Now the Defence area in forestland might create problems to implement these projects, he said.

Many beach lovers, environmentalists and fishermen organisations have threatened to launch agitation against the district administration for handing over the beach area to the Coast Guard.

Naval Base at Karwar - The Untold Agony in the Achievements...

India is finally going in for a major expansion of its newest naval base at Karwar in coastal Karnataka, which provides it "strategic depth" on the western seaboard and will house aircraft carriers and nuclear submarines in the future.

This comes after a long delay since the ambitious `Project Seabird' to build the futuristic Karwar naval base was first approved by the government way back in 1985 at an initial cost of Rs 350 crore. Budgetary constraints derailed the project for a decade before a truncated Phase-I was approved in 1995, with the work finally commencing in 1999 with a Rs 2,500 crore fund allocation.

"Phase-I is now fully complete. We have 10 warships based there. Now, the detailed project report for Phase-II is in the final stages. After approval by the Cabinet Committee on Security, construction will begin next year,'' Navy chief Admiral Nirmal Verma told TOI. Navy will be able to berth 25 to 30 big warships at Karwar after Phase-II gets over by 2017, he added. The base will also house a wide variety of smaller ships, including 10 of the 80 fast-interceptor craft of Sagar Prahari Bal, the specialised force being raised for coastal security after the 26/11 terror attacks on Mumbai.  
Source - Times of India

INS Kadamba

INS Seabird

Project Seabird was a program to establish a new Naval Base, the INS Kadamba. This base would be India's first base exclusively for naval ships and the largest. Prior to its existence, naval ships shared space with commercial vessels at the two major ports in Mumbai and Visakhampatnam as well as smaller enclaves in Kochi, Goa and other small ports. A new Naval Base on the western coast was sanctioned in 1985 primarily on strategic consideration for completion by 1995 to provide additional infrastructure for the growing Naval Fleet. Karwar in Karnataka was chosen as the location of this base. The base would is under the jurisdiction of the Western Naval Command.

The Naval base was inaugurated by Defence Minister, Mr Pranab Mukherjee on 05 May 2005. The then Prime Minister Late Shri Rajiv Gandhi laid the foundation stone on 24 Oct 1986. The project was originally conceived by Admiral OS Dawson (Retd), PVSM, AVSM, ADC, who was Chief of Naval Staff from 28 Feb 82 to 30 Nov 84.

The West Coast was chosen for the location of the new base since the eastern base at Visakhapatnam, which could berth 50 ships, was considered adequate for India’s security needs in the east. Mumbai, on the west coast, was too congested due the substantial number of merchant vessels that docked there regularly, often forcing naval ships to wait a day before they could dock. Shallow waters along the channel in Mumbai prevent the berthing of aircraft carriers, which would have to lie in anchorage. Expansion of the Mumbai base was impossible and nearby buildings such as the Bombay Stock Exchange presented a security risk. Furthermore, Mumbai was a mere 580 nautical miles (900 kilometers) from Karachi whereas the Karwar base would be around 900 nautical miles (1,450 kilometers) from Karachi, thus being further away from potential attacks such as via missiles. The topography of the Karwar base was also considered valuable by the Navy. Features include sufficient and even water depth permitting easy berthing and navigation, hilly forested terrain to camouflage ground installations and the low occurrence of siltation.

The project was beset with abnormal delays. Despite revision of completion schedule from 1995 to 2005, the execution of marine works commenced after 14 years in 1999 raising doubts about the completion of the project even as per the revised schedule.

The cost of the project estimated at Rs 350 crore (Rs 3.5 billion) in 1985 increased to Rs 959 crore in 1990 on finalisation of detailed project report and further escalated to Rs 1294 crore in 1995, though the scope of the project was considerably reduced. The Ministry accepted consultancy services for supervision, contract management and quality assurance at higher rates than that quoted by foreign consultant in July 1990, resulting in extra expenditure of Rs 7 crore. Incomplete and inadequate studies by Central Water Power Research Station entrusted with site selection studies prolonged the studies for more than eight years. Tardy progress in implementation of approved rehabilitation package for the affected families despite budgetary allocations for this project led to its revision time and again and ultimately its financial impact increased by Rs 78.20 crore. Investment of Rs 2.64 crore on creation of assets, established to match the proposed commencement of marine works in June 1998 remained unproductive due to non-acquisition of land and conclusion of marine works contract.

The Ministry sanctioned in July 1986, acquisition of 6933 acres of State Government revenue and forest land and 5421 acres of private land at a cost of Rs 22 crore. But subsequent developments like (a) minimising human displacement (b) restriction on construction within 200 metres from high tide line, (c) planning of Konkan Railway line through the station and (d) reduced scope of the project necessitated reassessment of land to be acquired. Out of 8175 acres land decided to be finally acquired, 324 acres had not been acquired as of January 2000.

The INS Kadamba was commission on May 31, 2005. As of then, Project Seabird was being executed on 4480 hectares (11200 acres) of land, which was a mix of forest, revenue and private land. More than 4000 families living in 13 villages have been relocated to seven Rehabilitation Centers. Out of the acquired 3500 hectares of forest land, only 400 hectares have been used for construction. As per the existing policy, 800 hectares of compensatory afforestation has been done. In addition, about 900 hectares of afforestation has been carried out within the Naval area after taking over. Some sources have estimated the cost the total project cost at US$800 million.

Due to budget limitations, the Navy halved the original Phase I of Project Seabird. Phase II which will last from 2005 to 2010 will double most of the existing facilities. In addition, a naval air station will also be constructed where large ship-based helicopters will be stationed. The Navy ultimately plans to berth 50 vessels at Karwar.

Currently, the Navy plans to station the operating fleet of the Western Naval Command at Karwar while sending ships for repair and maintenance to Mumbai.

One of the unique feature of the base is the ship-lift and ship-transfer system for dry docking of the ship at the Naval Ship Repair Yard. The ship-lift is capable of lifting upto 10,000 tonnes and measures 175m x 28m. A ship-lift is a large elevator platform that can be lowered into water and lift a ship vertically to the yard-level so that the ship can be moved onto a dry repair berth on land. The ship-lift will be able to lift all other Indian Navy vessels except aircraft carriers and supply vessels. Currently there are 2 jetties available for ship-berthing. Ultimately, 11 piers will be available which will be able to accommodate 42 ships. Ships will be placed by end 2005 to enable the Western Naval Command with operational flexibilities.

Source

Land Acquisition/Rehabilitation of Displaced Persons

The land required for execution of Project Seabird was approx. 4480 hectares, which was a mix of forest, revenue and private land. Over 4000 families living in 13 villages were required to be rehabilitated. The rehabilitation of the project affected families commenced in 1995 and this process went through various stages of negotiations, agitations, resistance, discussions and meetings with the involvement of local, state and national level political level leadership, including the High Court of Karnataka and National Human Rights Commission. Finally, at a meeting between the then Raksha Mantri and the CM of Karnataka in 1999, a comprehensive rehabilitation package was settled at a cost of Rs 126 crores as opposed to the original estimate of only Rs 9 crores. The actual work at site was to have been completed within 10 years (1995-2005), but could only commence in 2000 after the project affected families were rehabilitated in seven Rehabilitation Centers. The Project is being executed in a holistic manner with the involvement of all agencies. 

Source

Non-payment of Compensation – Movable Assets of Govt Office Attached

The court personnel attached the movable assets found in the office of the special land acquisition officer of the Seabird Naval Base here, located in the office of the district deputy commissioner, on Monday March 8. The court had ordered for the attachment of the movable assets of the office, as per an execution petition filed by the persons aggrieved at the non-payment of compensation for their lands acquired for the naval base.
Land belonging to the late Vishnu Siddappa Naik, the late Datta Siddappa Naik, and their brother, Mohan Siddappa Naik, located in Chendia Aligadda village, had been acquired by the land acquisition officer in the year 1989.  The land owners, dissatisfied with the price offered for their lands, had approached the court for enhancement of compensation, which was granted by the civil court here. Thereafter, the government had filed a special leave petition in the High Court to approach the Supreme Court against the court order, which was declined. The appeal filed by the estate officer of the department of defence in the court against the court order, is yet to be admitted by the Supreme Court.
The court bailiffs took away chairs, tables, fans, Xerox machine, and cupboards found in the office. Employees of the office, who initially resisted the move, had to move out of the office as they could not function in the office that was being emptied. Advocate for the displaced persons, P S Bhat, said that the court took this step, as the land acquisition officer failed to pay compensation as per the court order, even after several requests were made to him on this issue.
Source - Daijiworld.com

Compensation, a mirage for Seabird land losers in Karwar - Deccan Herald
It is 24 years since the government acquired 2,500 acres of private land from people in Karwar and Ankola taluks to build ‘Seabird,’ the biggest naval base in Asia.
However, compensation has become a mirage for the people who lost their home and hearth for the naval base. The land acquisition process for the project costing Rs 25,000 crore began in 1986. But the compensation distribution has run into a controversy. As a result nearly 25,000 people of 8,000 families have become homeless.

These people had sacrificed their land to strengthen the defence system of the country. However, they are yet to be compensated. The Government had paid just Rs 150 per gunta. Those who lost the land went to the court saying that the sum was too meagre.

The Additional Civil court (Senior Division) directed the government to pay Rs 11,500 per gunta. According to the court order, Geethabai Dayanand Naik, who had given up her land, was given a compensation amount of Rs 4.90 lakh.  However, the Defence department appealed to the High Court against the lower court order stating that it was not possible for the government to give such a huge amount. The High Court upheld the order of the civil court. The Department has now filed a special leave petition in the Supreme Court. It will take a long time for the hearing to come up in the Supreme Court.

The majority of the families who have lost land either belong to the fisher community or are farmers. As the seashores are a part of the naval base project, the fishermen are worried about their future. The farmers rehabilitated in a barren land are not able to continue with their agriculture activities. 
Source - http://www.deccanherald.com/content/61202/compensation-mirage-seabird-land-losers.html
More - http://onespot.wsj.com/india-news/2010/03/30/a/603926757-compensation-a-mirage-for-seabird/
Despair of the displaced

The displaced families complain that the land in the rehabilitation centres is not fit for cultivation and that the government has not been able to provide them an alternative livelihood.

PROJECT SEABIRD has, by and large, overcome its initial setbacks, but many of the families that lost their land and/or livelihood as a result of the building of the naval base are yet to find their feet.

According to revenue records, 4,111 families, including 3,315 engaged in farming on less than one acre of own land and 856 of fisherfolk, living in 12 villages have been affected by the project. However, Prabhakar Rane, a former Karnataka Minister who is honorary president of the Seabird Naval Base and Konkan Railway Evacuees Forum, disputes the figure. He says there are more than 10,000 project-displaced families, comprising around 40,000 people.

The 11-year delay between the final land acquisition notification in 1989 and the actual shifting of people from the project site added to the problems associated with rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R). During this period of uncertainty, families expanded and land prices climbed. The displaced families were unhappy with the R&R package that the Karnataka government offered initially. In 1989, many of them approached the Karnataka High Court, which forbade the evacuation of people until "proper rehabilitation measures" were undertaken.

In August 1998, the Defence Ministry and the State government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on a Rs.126-crore rehabilitation package, and the court allowed the project to proceed. Under the package, the head of every displaced family received Rs.50,000 and a house site in one of the newly created rehabilitation centres (RCs), while two adult sons and one unmarried daughter above the age of 35 got Rs.70,000. (The site was in addition to the compensation plus 30 per cent solatium and 12 per cent interest received for the extent of land lost.) Seven RCs were created - at Chittakula, Amadalli and Harwada for fishermen and at Todur, Hattikeri, Belekeri and Mudageri for agriculturists.

The displaced families want the R&R package to be extended to all sons and a maintenance allowance for the 12 years that they remained without their lands and jobs. The families are unhappy with the RCs, most of which do not have proper roads and a regular water supply system. Most important, the families want the State government to provide an alternative livelihood, which even government officials agree they have not been able to do. The few government-sponsored employment generation schemes (like carpentry, poultry and mushroom farming) have not found favour with the displaced people. They hope the government or the Navy will provide them with jobs as security guards, drivers or secretaries.

Said Nagubeechu Gowda, whose family lost land in NK Bail, Berede and Bavekeri villages and has now been rehabilitated at the Belekeri RC: "Earlier we cultivated paddy and even cash crops like coconut, groundnut and cashew, but here the land is not fertile, we cannot cultivate anything. There is no water either for drinking or for irrigation. Many of the wells have dried up." Added Sukri Gowda, a farmhand who has also been rehabilitated at the Belekeri RC: "There is hardly any agricultural activity close to the RC. We cannot even collect firewood because the Navy has taken over most of the forest areas."

Source - Frontline

Seabird officer issued notice

The additional civil court (senior grade) here has issued a showcause notice to the land acquisition officer of Seabird Naval Base project, asking him why he should not be arrested for not complying with the court order.

A case was filed about 10 years ago by one Janaki Teka Naik of Amadalli village, asking for more compensation for her land acquired by the naval base. But after her death when the court case was still in progress, her son Devidas Naik continued with the case. On February 7, 2008, the court ordered the land acquisition officer to deposit 25% of the amount of the additional compensation to be paid to Devidas.

As per the direction of the court, the officer presented a cheque of Rs 29,57,928 in the court on October 18, 2008. The cheque was sent to State Bank of India's Bangalore branch for realization. But due to the negligence of the bank staff, the cheque was not realized even after nine months, according to a written statement issued by Pradeep Naik, the advocate representing Devidas in the case. Repeated requests of Devidas and his family made to the land acquisition officer, bank officials and defence officials did not yield any results. Considering this as a serious offence, the court issued the showcause notice to the land acquisition officer.

Source - Times of India, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_8012/is_20090716/ai_n39597262/