The Nagpur Third Outer Ring Road project has faced renewed opposition from farmers at Meta Umri village in Hingna taluka, where landowners objected to a land survey and demanded formal clarity on compensation before acquisition proceedings continue.
The ₹13,700-crore project, planned over 148 km around Nagpur, was approved by the Maharashtra government on September 3, 2025. It is intended to improve connectivity around the city, but the process of identifying and acquiring agricultural land has become a point of dispute between affected farmers and the district administration.
According to the Shetkari Sangharsh Samiti, farmers gathered at Meta Umri on Thursday and opposed the survey being conducted on their land. The group alleged that the administration had begun the exercise without disclosing the compensation criteria that would apply to affected landowners.
The dispute follows similar resistance at Bori Rani village in Parseoni taluka, where farmers had earlier forced authorities to stop a survey. Representatives of the Shetkari Sangharsh Samiti and the Baliraja Shetkari Sanghatana from different talukas subsequently met the district collector to raise concerns over land acquisition for the road.
The farmers said the district collector had assured them during that meeting that compensation criteria would be announced before further surveys were carried out. They also said the administration had promised that force would not be used during the survey process.
“Despite these assurances, the administration initiated the survey at Meta Umri without clarifying compensation norms. We are not against development, but farmers must receive fair compensation for their land,” the Shetkari Sangharsh Samiti said, according to the report.
The affected landowners are seeking details on how their land will be valued, which market rates will be considered and what compensation will be payable before the acquisition process advances. They have also asked the district administration to consult farmers directly rather than proceeding with surveys without first resolving the compensation issue.
The opposition places the land survey at the centre of the project’s immediate implementation challenge. While the road has been approved as a large-scale connectivity project, the latest protests indicate that local acceptance and clarity over acquisition terms remain unresolved in at least two villages along the proposed alignment.
The Shetkari Sangharsh Samiti has demanded immediate intervention by the district administration, discussions with affected landowners and suspension of further surveys until the compensation criteria are formally announced. The group has also warned that protests could intensify if it believes the administration has not honoured its assurances.
