AURIC Aurangabad (Bidkin): Land Acquisition — Model, Rates, Villages and Current Status

How land is acquired

AURIC's Bidkin land has been acquired through the standard statutory route rather than a private land-pooling scheme. The district Land Acquisition machinery follows the Land Acquisition Act process: Part II provides for (Section 4 to 17) preliminary investigation such as publication of preliminary notifications; hearing of objections under Section 5-A; declaration of intended acquisition under Section-6; making and measuring of land under Section 8, serving of notice to interested persons under Section 9 for submitting their claims, etc. An Award is then drawn up by the Land Acquisition Officer and compensation is paid; in case of disputes after the payment of compensation between cultivators and title is not correct then such type compensation is deposited under section 30 of the Land Acquisition Act 1894 in the name of the District Civil Judge and matter is disposed by the District Judge.

In practice, rates have not simply been imposed — each phase involved rounds of negotiation between the district administration and village farmer groups before a rate was accepted and possession taken, effectively a hybrid of statutory acquisition and negotiated consent on price.

Villages covered, by phase

For Phase 2, 2,351 hectares of land is needed across Bidkin, Nandalgaon, Nilajgaon, Banni Tanda and Bangla Tanda. The Phase 3 plan reported in 2015 covered a wider stretch: a total of 6061 hectares land from 18 villages of Aurangabad and Paithan tehsils will be acquired as per the new land acquisition Act.

Compensation rates

Rates have moved through negotiation rather than a single fixed schedule:

• Phase 1, Karmad: the administration first offered a lower figure; after farmer opposition after negotiations, they were agreed to give their land at the rate of Rs 23 lakh per acre.
• Phase 2, Bidkin and four adjoining villages: farmers initially rejected a lower offer — farmers rejecting the offer of Rs 18 lakh per acre for the land to be acquired for the proposed Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) under second phase — before the government had approved Rs 23 lakh per acre rate for the land in these villages.

Beyond the base per-acre rate, compensation packages also accounted for improvements on the land: the farmers will get money as per the area of land, construction if any on the land, number of trees, orchard, borewell and others to be noted by the officials. For the current 8,000-acre round, per-acre rates have not yet been finalised: the administration must now negotiate rates with farmer-landowners and pay compensation before taking possession.

Budget and disbursement

Compensation funds have historically been released to the district administration in tranches rather than as a single payment.

• Phase 1 (Karmad): around Rs 291.71 crore are needed for compensating farmers, which have been sanctioned by the high-powered committee of the DMIC at a meeting held in Mumbai.
• Phase 2 (Bidkin and four villages): the state government had sanctioned Rs 1,314 crore in all for the farmers of Bidkin, Banni Tanda, Bangal Tanda, Nilajgaon and Nandalgaon villages, released and distributed in multiple instalments over time rather than in one go.

Separately from land compensation, infrastructure works at the industrial park itself have been budgeted at hundreds of crores — reporting from 2015 referenced roughly 802 cr to be spent on basic amenities such as underground power supply and water pipelines from the Jayakwadi reservoir.

Disputes and farmer negotiations

Land acquisition for the Shendra-Bidkin project has not gone through without friction. In February 2012, farmers and activists affiliated to different social organizations joined hands ... to oppose land acquisition by the government for the proposed Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor, under which 10,000 hectares land would be acquired for setting up four mega industrial projects in the district, with organisers noting Narmada Bachao Andolan leader Medha Patkar has been invited to address the meet at Bidkin. Karmad farmers initially refused to hand over land before a compromise rate was agreed, and Bidkin-area farmers rejected an early Rs 18 lakh/acre offer before a higher rate was settled (see Compensation rates above).

More recent reporting suggests the friction has eased. One account notes that the Maharashtra government proceeded with acquiring approximately 10,000 acres, much of it from private landowners, leading to public notices for compensation eligibility as recently as August 2024 for project-affected farmers in the Bidkin area, and that by September 2025, state officials acknowledged that project progress owed much to farmers' land contributions, with ongoing expansions requiring additional acquisitions of up to 5,000 acres, though without reports of renewed large-scale disputes.

Current stage (as of February 2026)

AURIC's Bidkin node is now largely built out on its original footprint and is drawing a fresh round of acquisition to meet investor demand. As of February 2026: major companies including Toyota Kirloskar Motors, Ather Energy, JSW, and Piramal Pharma have already invested in the Bidkin industrial zone under the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC), with total investments reaching Rs 88,000 crore. Existing plots are exhausted: demand for 2,500 acres has poured in from various industries, but no industrial plots remain available, prompting the administration to initiate Phase 3 land acquisition.

This has prompted a new acquisition drive announced by the state government: ten months after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced fresh acquisition of 8,000 acres for the Auric Bidkin DMIC project, the Auric administration is still examining its feasibility. The notification stage is complete but rate-setting and payment are pending: the Phase 3 land has already been notified. The administration must now negotiate rates with farmer-landowners and pay compensation before taking possession. Separately, within the already-acquired footprint, AURIC recently freed up more industrial-ready land by conversion: with industrial demand continuing to rise, the additional 520 acres have now been reclassified to ensure the availability of large land parcels for future investors, and officials report 332 plots covering nearly 3,434 acres have been allotted so far. Of these, around 3,284 acres have been allocated for industrial use.