The land survey for the Karnataka government’s proposed AI-powered integrated township near Bengaluru ended in dramatic scenes Monday after women protesters armed with brooms chased away government officials and police personnel in Mandagahalli village of Ramanagara district. The tension has reignited the bitter fight over the ambitious township project of the state with police filing an FIR against 11 farmers.
The proposed AI-powered integrated township will cover around 7,404 acres of land of nine villages in Ramanagara district, near Bidadi. The Karnataka government claims the project is aimed at creating a modern technology-driven urban hub but local farmers have strongly opposed the land acquisition, saying it threatens their livelihoods and agricultural land.
Survey Team Faces Strong Resistance
The government officials arrived at Mandagahalli village on Monday to conduct a land survey as part of the acquisition process. But they were met by hundreds of protesting villagers, including women, elderly residents and children who blocked roads leading into the village and prevented the survey team from entering.
Tension grew as officials and police personnel tried to carry out the survey. A group of women with brooms confronted the officials and police and the two sides were forced to walk away from each other in heated exchanges. Video of the incident was quickly shared on social media, and farmers' protest was widely shared.
According to media reports, many police officers suffered minor injuries during the clash. Since the incident, Bidadi Police filed an FIR against 11 farmers for obstructing government officials from carrying out their duties and assaulting public servants.
Farmers Continue Protest Against Land Acquisition
The resistance is the latest chapter in a protest that has gone on for more than 500 days. Farmers from the affected villages resist the government's move to sell their land for the proposed township and have continuously asked them not to take part in it.
Police said they held several rounds of talks with the protesters before trying to conduct the survey, but it turned out nothing was agreed. Protesters kept raising slogans against the project and said no survey or acquisition would be made without landowners' consent.
With the situation getting tighter and tighter, government officials finally abandoned the survey and left the village.
Government Defends AI Township Project
The Karnataka government has defended the proposed AI-powered integrated township, stating that the land acquisition is being carried out under the provisions of the “Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013”.
As a result, they said those affected landowners will receive monetary compensation in accordance with the law, and 9,693 square feet of developed land for every acre will be paid out according to the law for every acre that is bought or the same market value.
The government says that the project is going to create jobs, attract investment and put Karnataka on the map as an international hub for artificial intelligence and technology.
Political Row Intensifies
Karnataka has been rocked by political unrest.
The union minister and JD(S) leader H.D. Kumaraswamy accused the Congress-led state government of trying to force the project on unwilling farmers. He said that the administration was using police machinery against peaceful protesters and urged law enforcement officers not to become instruments of what he described as “anti-farmer policies.”
JD(S) youth leader Nikhil Kumaraswamy also criticised the survey operation, describing it as “dictatorial” and “without consulting the affected farmers.” He calls for the government to withdraw the township proposal immediately.
The BJP also joined the criticism with Karnataka BJP president B.Y. Vijayendra accusing Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar of putting real estate interests ahead of farmers'.
Standoff Continues
The clash at Mandagahalli has only aggravated the tension between the Karnataka government and farmers. While the state is keeping faith in the AI-powered township project, villagers are not ready for a change in the manner in which the proposed land acquisition is going to be conducted under AI; they have said they will continue the protests until the proposed land acquisition is stopped.
With legal action now initiated against several protesters and political tensions mounting, the dispute will remain a major issue in Karnataka’s political and development landscape in the coming weeks.
