The job at hand now is to acquire the land and provide its possession to the Railways and the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC). For, the Railways needs around 21,305 acres for two projects: building the 104-km track between Giridih and Koderma, and the 127-km track plus the 13 railway stations between Koderma and Barkakana via Hazaribagh. Moreover, the NTPC requires 1,250 acres for its 2000 MW Barh Thermal Power Plant at Barh in Patna and around 2,500 acres for its 2,000-MW North Karnpara Thermal Power Plant at Tandwa in Chatradistrict.

While addressing a public meeting at Koderma yesterday, Vajpayee said that these projects would prove a milestone in the development of infrastructure and suggested they be completed within a time frame. True, if these projects take off, two district headquarters -- Hazaribagh and Giridih -- would get the rail link vital for economic mobility, and even the power-starved State would come a long way in meeting its increasing demand for power.

Yet, Bihar's track record does not give any hope. Several Union Government projects such as National Hydro-electric Power Corporation's 732 MW Koel Karo Project (1980), Central Coalfields Limited Ashok Project (1992) and Union Defence Ministry's Neterhat Field Piring Projection (1995) have been hanging fire for years due to the failure of the State to acquire and provide land.

Though the Railways and the NTPC have received clearance for their projects from Governor Sunder Singh Bhandari, it may not come to anything if the President's Rule is revoked. TheState Government had acquired land for setting up the Heavy Engineering Corporation, MECON Ltd, Copoil, Damodar Valley Corporation and the Swarnerekha hydro-electric projects. But, thousands of people who were displaced due to these projects, were either not rehabilitated or were paid paltry sums as compensation.

Since any move to displace people is likely to be resisted and such decisions are often termed unpopular, the State Governments have been reluctant to stick their necks out. No wonder, Rashtriya Janata Dal President Laloo Prasad Yadav, who ruled the State from 1990-98, said that these were ``hawai projects''. He should know.