The contractor for the government’s southern land bridge megaproject will be required to set up a fund to compensate people who will be affected, according to Transport Minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit.
The minister said on Thursday that cabinet ministers learned during their recent visit to Ranong province that some local people feared they might not receive compensation for land they occupied without formal land rights documents. Others whose livelihoods might face negative impacts are also worried.
The land bridge, with an estimated investment cost of one trillion baht, is intended to link Ranong on the Andaman coast with Chumphon on the Gulf of Thailand. The plan calls for ports and related infrastructure at each end, joined by a highway and rail network.
“Some people do not have land rights documents and are unsure if they will be compensated if the land they are using is expropriated,” said Mr Suriya. “They are also concerned about their high-income agriculture such as durian orchards.”
As a result, he said, he would propose that the land bridge contractor set up a fund for such compensation.
The Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning will be asked to survey people who would be affected during the construction of the project and afterward. The survey would enable the parties concerned to assess the size of the fund, he said.
Mr Suriya said the first phase of the project would cost about 500 billion baht and during the initial stage, the government would be responsible for land expropriation only.
“The private sector will invest in ports, rail and motorways and additionally the compensation fund,” he said.
The government has already presented the land bridge project to investors in many countries and attracted interest from China and the United Arab Emirates, the minister said.
“We are confident that the land bridge project is feasible,” he added.