Bengaluru: Farmers stage protest against land acquisition for Foxconn

Farmer representatives opposed the acquisition, citing the lack of compensation and their dependence on the agricultural land for livelihood.

Farmers in Devanahalli near Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru staged a protest on May 3 against the land acquisition for Foxconn while the fencing was being laid.

Farmer representatives opposed the acquisition, citing the lack of compensation and their dependence on the agricultural land for livelihood.

Srinivas S, a farmer told Moneycontrol, "We have not received a single paisa from Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB) or Foxconn so far, but they are acquiring our land forcefully. We are protesting against it."

The KIADB has acquired 867.37 acres of land across Aravanahalli, Doddagollahalli, Chapparadahalli, and Byradenahalli villages. Out of this land, 300 acres have been allotted to Foxconn. M Mahesh, Chief Executive Officer, KIADB, said they will lay fencing with the assistance of the land acquisition officer and police personnel for the land allotted to Foxconn in Doddagollahalli and Chapparadahalli villages.

Also read: Foxconn purchases 300 acres of land near Bengaluru airport for Rs 300 crore after MoU with Karnataka govt

"The compensation amount related to the 300 acres allotted to Foxconn in Kundana village of Devanahalli taluk will be deposited in the court," said Mahesh.

"The third additional senior civil judge and JMFC (Judicial Magistrate of First Class), Devanahalli, has issued a stay order directing not to distribute the compensation directly to the land owners. The compensation amount will be deposited in court," said Mahesh.

While farmers have threatened to intensify protests if their demands are not met, KIADB officials said that the delay in compensation was due to family land disputes of land owners. They assure that compensation will be disbursed in accordance with the court order.

S Selvakumar, Additional Chief Secretary of Industries and Commerce in Karnataka, told Moneycontrol, "It's not a major issue, but a few farmers have staged protests stating that they have not received compensation. However, we have already deposited the amount in court. They caused problems during the construction of the boundary wall, but KIADB has assured them that they can seek compensation through legal channels."

In October 2023 and January 2024, Karnataka's Large and Medium Industries Minister M B Patil held meetings with farmers and government officials regarding the land acquisition. However, the issue has not yet been resolved.

In May 2023, Hon Hai Precision Industry (Foxconn) acquired the land for Rs 300 crore ($37 million). Officials said the manufacturing facility is being set up within the Information Technology Investment Region (ITIR) industrial area at Doddaballapur in Devanahalli Taluk.

Foxconn is making an investment of Rs 8,500 crore for the manufacturing unit, which is expected to generate over one lakh employment opportunities within the state in the next 10 years.

According to the plan, production at the plant is scheduled to commence by April 2024, with investments spread over three phases. However, it missed the deadline. It is expected that Foxconn will invest Rs 3,000 crore in Phase 1 (2023-2024), followed by Rs 4,000 crore in Phase 2 (2025-2026), and Rs 1,000 crore in Phase 3 (2026-2027). The manufacturing targets include one lakh units of iPhones by December 2025, 50 lakh units by December 2026, one crore by December 2027, and two crore by December 2028.

On March 20, the Karnataka government signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Foxconn, wherein the company committed to investing Rs 8,000 crore for a mobile manufacturing unit, which would provide employment opportunities for 50,000 people in the state.