Atchuthapuram-Anakapalli road project affected people seek monetary compensation, not TDR bonds

Anakapalli-Atchuthapuram road widening project oustees submitting a representation to Elamanchili MLA Sundarapu Vijay Kumar regarding their demands.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

As many as 1,200 farmers and businessmen, who will lose their lands as part of the 14-km road widening from Anakapalli to Atchutapuram in the district, are saying that they do not want Transferable Development Right (TDR) bonds as compensation for acquisition of their lands. Instead, they demand monetary compensation as per the Land Acquisition Act, 2013.

The road widening will be undertaken at an estimated cost of ₹347 crore. IT Minister Nara Lokesh laid foundation stone for the project on March 31, 2025.

The affected people warn that if the government goes ahead with the project without conceding their demand they will not allow the work to begin. They brought the issue to the notice of officials, local MLA (Elemanchili) Sundarapu Vijay Kumar and the district in-charge Minister Kollu Ravindra.

Boddeda Ramachandra Rao, who is leading the protest, said people who will lose land (ranging from 10 to 200 square yards) in the project, are not against the project, but don’t want TDR bonds.

“We only want cash. What should we do with TDR bonds? We can use the money for our financial needs. Moreover, after the Tanuku TDR scam, we do not believe in TDR bonds. We came to know that some farmers in Chittoor district are presently facing problems with the TDR bonds.”

Gram Sabhas

Mr. Rao said that the district administration has recently started holding Gram Sabhas in Atchuthapuram, Anakapalli and Munagapaka mandals with a team of Visakhapatnam Metropolitan Region Development Authority (VMRDA) officials to educate them about TDR bonds. He said they are also not clear about the role of the VMRDA in the project.

“We all expressed our opinions against TDR bonds in Gram Sabhas. Mr. Lokesh laid the foundation stone on March 31, 2025. We tried to bring this matter to his notice, but we did not get a chance. Recently, we brought this matter to the attention of our district in-charge Minister Kollu Ravindra. We have not received any response from him till today,” Mr. Ramachandra Rao told The Hindu on April 12.

When contacted, VMRDA Commissioner K.S. Viswanathan said, “Here, the role of the VMRDA is to explain about TDR bonds as per the government’s instructions. We are not taking up the road-widening project.”

Explaining the TDR bonds, Confederation of Real Estate Developers Associations of India (CREDA) Visakhapatnam president E. Ashok Kumar said that TDR bond is nothing but land in the form of an authorised certificate. This means, the government issues TDR bonds like demand drafts in banking sector. The government introduced the TDR system 15 years ago, but it is not popular among the people. Whenever the government feels that there is a shortage of funds for paying compensation, the government issues TDR bonds to people who lose their lands in government projects like roads etc. The value of TDR bonds will be at least four times the regular value, and these can be sold anywhere (any place within in the State to interested people, mostly builders), he added. For example, a TDR bond issued to a person in Visakhapatnam is valid to be sold to a person in Vijayawada.

“Generally, builders like us are interested in purchasing TDR bonds, which can be used to build additional floors or setbacks. In some cases, we may not have the option of purchasing additional land required to build additional floors for our existing or greenfield projects. In such a case, the government allows people including builders the opportunity to purchase TDR bonds and scale up or expand the projects. TDR bonds play a vital role in promoting infrastructure development while ensuring fair compensation to landowners,” Mr. Ashok Kumar said.