In a stern admonition, the Punjab and Haryana High Court castigated the Punjab government over stalled projects of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) due to non-receipt of land. The court has also directed the Director General of Police (DGP) to ensure that strict measures are taken against individuals who, despite the issuance of compensation, obstruct the possession of land. The Chief Secretary has been ordered to submit a report on the acquisition within two weeks.
The issue came to the fore through a petition filed by NHAI in the High Court, challenging the land acquisition process for the Bharatmala project, which includes the Memadpur (Ambala) to Banur (IT City Chowk) to Kharar (Chandigarh) corridor. NHAI reported that critical projects like the Delhi-Katra Expressway, Ludhiana-Rupnagar to Kharar Highway, and the Ludhiana-Bathinda Highway are pending due to non-availability of land.
In October of last year, the High Court had ordered NHAI to provide a list of incomplete/pending projects to the relevant authority and directed the Chief Secretary to take action within a week. Furthermore, the court sought to ensure that NHAI should gain possession of the land within two months.*
Recently, NHAI informed the court that despite previous orders, land possession in Punjab has not been facilitated. The court was informed that for 26 national highway projects covering 897 kilometers, costing ₹34,193 crores, 100% land possession has not been achieved yet. Additionally, for 10 national highway projects covering 391 kilometers, costing ₹13,190 crores, 80% of the required land has not been secured.
Some contracts have been canceled due to the unavailability of land, leading to compensation payments of 1% of the contract amount to the contractor. Despite depositing ₹4,104 crores, the government has failed to secure possession of the land compensated for various cases.
