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Kurumbampet-Odiampet Link Road project in Puducherry delayed over land acquisition issue

Reported by

Viswanathan Shridhar

Legal Review by

Anmol Gupta

Edited by

Anupa Sagar Kujur

Updated by

Published on

November 23, 2023

November 29, 2023

Edited on

November 23, 2023

State

Puducherry

Sector

Infrastructure

People Affected by Conflict

Households Affected by Conflict

13

Land Area Affected (in Hectares)

1

ha

Starting Year

2019

Location of Conflict

Villianur

Odiampet and Kurumbampet Revenue Villages

Puducherry

Reason or Cause of Conflict

Roads

Land Conflict Summary

The Puducherry government's 4.5-km Link Road project connecting Odiampet and Kurumbampet Revenue Villages to National Highways has hit a roadblock amid land acquisition issues.
For the Kurumbampet-Odiampet Link Road project, land had to be acquired from a total of 62 households, of which 53 landowners agreed to the compensation and rehabilitation scheme announced by the government. The acquired land was handed over to the Highways Department and preparatory works commenced. However, nine families refused to give up their lands (0.76 hectares) and moved a petition. 
The nine landowners appealed the Madras High Court against the land acquisition citing lapse in timelines involved in the sequential processing of notice issuing, acquiring, compensating and utilising for the project. They also raised the issue of notice being sent to names of the deceased. The Madras High Court, however, directed the government departments to go ahead and acquire the lands and proceed with the project. It noted that even though the "acquisition proceedings is said to have been lapsed on technical grounds", the remaining land (0.76 hectares) should also be acquired to enable the formation of the road.
The road is currently being built on the land acquired with support of all the government departments and reinforced through the direction from court. 
The nine families, however, are yet to hand over the land to the officials. 
Er. A Vallavan, Executive Engineer, told LCW that they are still in talks with the families to resolve the dispute and they are trying to persuade them to give up their land so that they can go ahead with the project.

Fact Sheet

Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Complaint against procedural violations

Demand for more compensation than promised

Refusal to give up land for the project

Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Region Classification

Urban

Type of Land

Private

Type of Common Land

What was the action taken by the police?

How many people did the police detain or arrest?

What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?

If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?

Legislation under which the accused was charged

Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?

In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?

Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?

Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?

Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)

Status of Project

Project underway despite protests

Original Project Deadline

2015

Whether the Project has been Delayed

Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users

Residential area

Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict

Source/Reference

Total investment involved (in Crores):

23.6

Type of investment:

Cost of Project

Year of Estimation

Page Number In Investment Document:

Has the Conflict Ended?

No

When did it end?

Why did the conflict end?

Legal Data

Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict

Legislations/Policies Involved

Land Acquisition Act, 1894
Section 6 [Government to publish a notification that land is being acquired for public purpose]; Section 11A [Collector to make an award for land acquisition within a period of two years from the date when notification was issued. If no award is made, the acquisition will lapse] Section 17 [In cases of urgency, the Government can take possession of acquired land even if no award has been passed.] Section 17(3A) [Before taking possession under section 17, the Collector must pay 80% of the compensation to the landowners whose land is being acquired]
Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Jharkhand Amendment) Act, 2017
Section 24(2) [In case of land acquisition proceedings initiated under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, where an award under the said Section 11 has been made five years or more prior to the commencement of this Act but the compensation has not been paid, the said proceedings shall be deemed to have lapsed]
  1. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

  2. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

  3. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

  4. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

  5. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

  6. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

  7. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute

What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?

What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?

Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:

Controversial land acquisition by the government

Non-implementation/violation of LARR Act

Legal Status:

In Court

Status of Case In Court

Disposed

Whether any adjudicatory body was approached

No

Name of the adjudicatory body

Name(s) of the Court(s)

Madras High Court

Case Number

WP 7070/2010, WA 279/2016, WP 26830/2019, and WA 3942/2019

Main Reasoning/Decision of court

The final notification for land acquisition was issued on November 30, 2006. The award was passed on November 16, 2009, after which the nine landowners had filed the writ petition (WP 7070/2010). On April 13, 2010, the High Court passed an interim order staying the land acquisition proceedings. The order was later modified in September 2015 so as to clarify that the stay was intended only for the nine landowners who had filed the case, and not the rest of the 62. Possession of the land of the remaining landowners was taken in September 2015. On January 28, 2016, the Court passed an order deciding that the land acquisition had lapsed. The Court reasoned that the 1894 Act stated that 80% of the compensation must be disbursed and the same was not done. However, balancing the interests of the nine landowners who had approached court with the public interest involved in the project, the Court stated that possession should be taken to proceed with the road project. However, the nine landowners would be entitled to getting fair compensation through a fresh notification. The landowners filed an appeal against the January 2016 order (WA 279/2016), contesting the direction to surrender their land despite proving that the acquisition had lapsed. On March 16, 2016, the Division Bench of the High Court allowed their appeal and set aside the January 2016 order. Thereafter, the government initiated fresh acquisition proceedings under the LARR Act, 2013. The nine petitioners filed a writ petition against these actions (WP 26830/2019), which was dismissed by the High Court in 2019. Another appeal was filed (WA3943/2019), in which an interim order was filed in favour of the landowners. In the meanwhile, the other landowners proceeded to file cases to avail of the same benefits as the nine landowners. However, the court declined to entertain the same due to the delay in filing the petitions.

Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:

No items found.

Whether criminal law was used against protestors:

Reported Details of the Violation:

Date of Violation

Location of Violation

Additional Information

Nature of Protest

Complaints/petitions/letters/memorandums to officials

Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:

Villianur District Administration, Revenue and Land Acquistion Officer, Puducherry National Highways Department, Public Works Department, Government of Puducherry

PSUs Involved in the Conflict:

Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?

Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached

Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:

Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?

Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:

Information on the use of criminal law

What was the action taken by the police?

How many people did the police detain or arrest?

What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?

If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?

Legislation under which the accused was charged

Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?

In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?

Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?

Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?

Resources

Resources Related to Conflict

  • News Articles Related to the Conflict:
  • Documents Related to the Conflict:
  • Links Related to the Conflict:

Images

Image Credit:  

Image Credit:  

Video

The Puducherry government's 4.5-km Link Road project connecting Odiampet and Kurumbampet Revenue Villages to National Highways has hit a roadblock amid land acquisition issues.
For the Kurumbampet-Odiampet Link Road project, land had to be acquired from a total of 62 households, of which 53 landowners agreed to the compensation and rehabilitation scheme announced by the government. The acquired land was handed over to the Highways Department and preparatory works commenced. However, nine families refused to give up their lands (0.76 hectares) and moved a petition. 
The nine landowners appealed the Madras High Court against the land acquisition citing lapse in timelines involved in the sequential processing of notice issuing, acquiring, compensating and utilising for the project. They also raised the issue of notice being sent to names of the deceased. The Madras High Court, however, directed the government departments to go ahead and acquire the lands and proceed with the project. It noted that even though the "acquisition proceedings is said to have been lapsed on technical grounds", the remaining land (0.76 hectares) should also be acquired to enable the formation of the road.
The road is currently being built on the land acquired with support of all the government departments and reinforced through the direction from court. 
The nine families, however, are yet to hand over the land to the officials. 
Er. A Vallavan, Executive Engineer, told LCW that they are still in talks with the families to resolve the dispute and they are trying to persuade them to give up their land so that they can go ahead with the project.

Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Complaint against procedural violations

Demand for more compensation than promised

Refusal to give up land for the project

Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Region Classification

Urban

Type of Land

Private

Type of Common Land

Total investment involved (in Crores):

23.6

Type of investment:

Cost of Project

Year of Estimation

Page Number In Investment Document:

Has the Conflict Ended?

No

When did it end?

Why did the conflict end?

Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict

Legislations/Policies Involved

Land Acquisition Act, 1894
Section 6 [Government to publish a notification that land is being acquired for public purpose]; Section 11A [Collector to make an award for land acquisition within a period of two years from the date when notification was issued. If no award is made, the acquisition will lapse] Section 17 [In cases of urgency, the Government can take possession of acquired land even if no award has been passed.] Section 17(3A) [Before taking possession under section 17, the Collector must pay 80% of the compensation to the landowners whose land is being acquired]
Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Jharkhand Amendment) Act, 2017
Section 24(2) [In case of land acquisition proceedings initiated under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, where an award under the said Section 11 has been made five years or more prior to the commencement of this Act but the compensation has not been paid, the said proceedings shall be deemed to have lapsed]
  1. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

  2. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

  3. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

  4. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

  5. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

  6. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

  7. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute

What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?

What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?

Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:

Controversial land acquisition by the government

Non-implementation/violation of LARR Act

Legal Status:

In Court

Status of Case In Court

Disposed

Whether any adjudicatory body was approached

No

Name of the adjudicatory body

Name(s) of the Court(s)

Madras High Court

Case Number

WP 7070/2010, WA 279/2016, WP 26830/2019, and WA 3942/2019

Main Reasoning/Decision of court

The final notification for land acquisition was issued on November 30, 2006. The award was passed on November 16, 2009, after which the nine landowners had filed the writ petition (WP 7070/2010). On April 13, 2010, the High Court passed an interim order staying the land acquisition proceedings. The order was later modified in September 2015 so as to clarify that the stay was intended only for the nine landowners who had filed the case, and not the rest of the 62. Possession of the land of the remaining landowners was taken in September 2015. On January 28, 2016, the Court passed an order deciding that the land acquisition had lapsed. The Court reasoned that the 1894 Act stated that 80% of the compensation must be disbursed and the same was not done. However, balancing the interests of the nine landowners who had approached court with the public interest involved in the project, the Court stated that possession should be taken to proceed with the road project. However, the nine landowners would be entitled to getting fair compensation through a fresh notification. The landowners filed an appeal against the January 2016 order (WA 279/2016), contesting the direction to surrender their land despite proving that the acquisition had lapsed. On March 16, 2016, the Division Bench of the High Court allowed their appeal and set aside the January 2016 order. Thereafter, the government initiated fresh acquisition proceedings under the LARR Act, 2013. The nine petitioners filed a writ petition against these actions (WP 26830/2019), which was dismissed by the High Court in 2019. Another appeal was filed (WA3943/2019), in which an interim order was filed in favour of the landowners. In the meanwhile, the other landowners proceeded to file cases to avail of the same benefits as the nine landowners. However, the court declined to entertain the same due to the delay in filing the petitions.

Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:

No items found.

Whether criminal law was used against protestors:

Reported Details of the Violation:

Date of Violation

Location of Violation

Nature of Protest

Complaints/petitions/letters/memorandums to officials

Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:

Villianur District Administration, Revenue and Land Acquistion Officer, Puducherry National Highways Department, Public Works Department, Government of Puducherry

PSUs Involved in the Conflict:

Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?

Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached

Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:

Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?

Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:

Resources Related to Conflict

  • News Articles Related to the Conflict:
  • Documents Related to the Conflict:
  • Links Related to the Conflict:

Image Credit:  

Image Credit:  

Documented By

Text Link

Reviewed By

Text Link

Updated By

Text Link

Edited By

Text LinkLand Conflict Watch

Other Land Conflicts in Puducherry

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