Chennai-Salem expressway: Supreme Court gives Indian government partial nod — land still needs to be acquired

• The Supreme Court has upheld the notification issued for acquiring land for the ₹10,000 crore Chennai-Salem eight-lane greenfield expressway project.
• The SC verdict allows the Indian government and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to issue notifications for the land they wish to acquire for the project.
• However, further proceedings will determine whether or not the actual acquisition of the land will occur.

The ₹10,000 crore Chennai-Salem expressway project, which has been at the center of controversy in the poll-bound state of Tamil Nadu, got the nod to proceed from the Supreme Court on December 8.

The apex institution has ruled that the central government and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) can acquire the land they require for this massive endeavour. But, it’s not a complete green light.


The judgement only means that the authorities can issue notifications of their intent to buy the land without any environmental clearance. Fresh proceedings will be initiated to determine the actual acquisition of the land by the central government and the NHAI.

The verdict, in part, reverses the Madras High Court’s judgement concerning the notification of land acquisition for the eight-lane expressway.

Concerns around the Chennai-Salem expressway project
Even though the project got approval back in February 2018, it has faced delays in the face of protests and legal battles.

Activists and farmers in five districts — including Tiruvannamalai and Salem — have been up in arms over the proposed 277.30-kilometre highway, alleging that it would be a monumental loss of agricultural land and the biodiversity in the area.

When the Madras High Court looked a little closer, they found that the proposal itself for a ‘copy-paste’ job with references to Bangalore and a town in China, which had nothing to do with the Chennai-Salem expressway.

It also found that the NHAI’s selection process for project consultants was faulty. The final contender was given the project without any written orders or tender.

The bench also disagreed with the pitch of the assertion that the expressway would help the common man in its 117-page verdict. Since there are only around four to six exits along the entire stretch of the highway, the locals have nothing to gain. If anything, the project would make it harder for them to zip between small towns, according to the Madras High Court.

“The projection made by NHAI, as to the benefits of the project highway appears to be illusory,” it said.

According to the government, the Chennai-Salem ‘Greenfield Corridor’ under the Bharatmala Pariyojana, would cut down the travel time between Chennai and Salem. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami claims that the corridor is required to fuel growth in the western districts of the state.

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