Andhra offers 8k acres for aerospace park; K’taka hits back by dangling ecosystem carrot | Bengaluru News
Bengaluru: In a dramatic turn of events following Karnataka govt’s decision to withdraw land acquisition for the proposed aerospace park near Devanahalli, a political and industrial tug-of-war has erupted after neighbouring Andhra Pradesh seized the moment to woo potential investors.Industries minister MB Patil Wednesday hit out at Andhra Pradesh’s IT minister Nara Lokesh after he offered aerospace companies 8,000 acres of ready-to-use land just outside Bengaluru. Patil said Karnataka is not ceding ground — figuratively or literally.“Dear @naralokesh, Karnataka doesn’t just offer land — it offers India’s No.1 aerospace & defence ecosystem. We’ve built the country’s strongest aerospace base over the decades, contributing 65% of India’s aerospace output and ranking No. 1 nationally, 3rd globally … Nothing is slipping off (sic),” Patil said on X.In another post, he said, “Karnataka will be the first state to reach a $1 trillion economy. And it’s not just aerospace; many new industries continue to choose Karnataka, and existing ones keep expanding here. We’ll always ensure the LAND and ecosystem needed to support both growth and new investments. (sic).”Lokesh had fired the first salvo in the microblogging war, posting: “Dear Aerospace industry, sorry to hear about this. I have a better idea for you. Why don’t you look at Andhra Pradesh instead? We have an attractive aerospace policy for you, with best-in-class incentives and over 8000 acres of ready-to-use land (just outside Bengaluru)! Hope to see you soon to talk across the table. (sic).”The exchange heightened concerns that Karnataka could lose a major industrial project, with some drawing parallels to the 2008 Tata Nano factory fiasco when West Bengal’s loss became Gujarat’s gain.However, Patil reiterated that the project is not shelved. “Several farmers have volunteered to part with their land,” he said, noting that the state has already secured consent for 554 acres of the required 1,777 acres in Channarayapatna hobli, Devanahalli taluk.Patil told TOI: “Farmers will voluntarily offer land as they will understand the good intent of the govt. On the other hand, there are vested interests including land developers who want to take undue advantage of the situation. We will never allow them to mislead farmers.”Sources say a revised land pooling scheme is in the works, which includes enhanced compensation, a 60% share in developed plots, jobs for farmers’ families, and tax exemptions.Backing Patil, home minister G Parameshwara said: “If we are unable to give land in Devanahalli, we will provide it at some other place. We will not let investors go to other states.”Labour minister Santosh Lad, added solidarity, saying: “The project isn’t scrapped. For the past five decades, we have been No.1 in GDP. We will find a solution,” while senior Congressman TB Jayachandra suggested an alternative: “There is 20,000 acres of land for the aerospace project in Vasanthanarasapura Industrial Area in Tumakuru. I request investors to come to Tumakuru.”However, farmer representatives remained sceptical. “The CM has committed to scrap the land acquisition notification. We want the govt to issue a gazette notification on this following the cabinet meeting on Thursday. We will revive our protests if the cabinet fails,” said T Yashawanta, state general secretary, Karnataka Prantha Raitha Sangha.
