Opponents spreading misinformation on SilverLine social impact survey: V.K. Ramachandran

Kerala State Planning Board vice chairman says it is not always possible to reconcile the costs incurred by the families impacted by the SilverLine semi-high-speed rail project with the collective benefits

It is not always possible to reconcile the costs incurred by the families impacted by the SilverLine semi-high-speed rail project with the collective benefits of the venture, according to V. K. Ramachandran, development economist and vice chairman of the Kerala State Planning Board (KSPB).

"The government recognises the fact that costs-benefits factor capture the net benefits at the societal level and not at the individual level. Nevertheless, this conundrum is reconciled globally by all governments by internationally accepted principles of compensation (market prices for land), rehabilitation (livelihood options) and resettlement (alternative housing )," Prof. Ramachandran told The Hindu in response to a query on how the project would benefit the people, especially those who are set to lose their land and houses.

Prof. Ramachandran said the market prices of land in rural areas will be multiplied by up to two depending on the distance from urban area. “In addition, a solatium of 100% will be added to the market value. The compensation to impacted households further include other components related housing, livelihood protection and so on. These will be determined for each individual households based on the Social Impact Assessment (SIA) study. Unfortunately, motivated opponents to this project are spreading misinformation regarding the process of the study as well as the components of compensation,” he said.

The State planning board chief said the conventional cost-benefit analysis not always captures the transformative potential of such infrastructure. “This is more so in a developing economy of our nature, which is at the early stages of building such climate-adoptive infrastructure. The expertise and services of professional consulting organisations are utilised to prepare the detailed project report (DPR) and work out the costs-benefits for the project. These are publicly available information,” he said.

Prof. Ramachandran said these estimates will be further scrutinised by the expert committee on the social impact study as per requirements under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 and the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Kerala) Rules, 2015.

“From an environmental perspective, we need to optimise the extent of land use changes along with reduction in carbon emissions. The SilverLine project scores higher on these parameters compared to road. It also brings in enormous convenience to passengers by enhancing the speed of mobility. This will help enhance the share of public transportation,” he said.