Farmers of Rajarhat’s Chapna mouza on Sunday turned away four officials of the state power utility who had gone there for a preliminary work on the installation of three high-tension electricity towers.

This was the 14th time since 2007 that residents of the mouza, unhappy over the state compensation for the land taken over for developing New Town, had prevented officials from setting up the towers.

The three towers are to supply electricity to all parts of New Town from the power station set up in Akandakeshari mouza. At present, Action Area I gets power from Salt Lake while generators are the only source of electricity in Action areas II and III.

On Sunday morning, around 600 farmers led by the Krishi Jami Jibika Bachao Committee formed a human chain on one bank of Bagjola canal.

The villagers asked the officials of the West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company and the accompanying cops — who were stationed on the canal’s other bank — to leave without starting work on the proposed installation.

The government team waited for an hour before turning back.

“We mobilised the villagers as soon as we heard that the officials were on their way to Chapna,” said Iman Ali Mollah, a farmer and resident of the mouza which falls under the Patharghata gram panchayat.

Around 90 per cent of the residents of the area have refused the compensation for their land which on paper the government has taken over.

A power utility official said the team had gone to Chapna on Sunday following “persistent pressure” from Hidco to finalise the basement installation of the towers. Hidco, the implementing authority of New Town, is in a hurry as it had to stop land allotment in Action areas II and III because of the delay in developing the civic infrastructure.