The Supreme Court is set to pronounce its verdict on Tuesday on a plea against the Madras High Court's order of 2019 that quashed acquisition of land for Rs 10,000-crore Chennai-Salem eight-lane expressway under the 'Bharatmala Pariyojana'.
A bench headed by Justice AM Khanwilkar upheld the notification of acquiring land and allowed the Central government to issue a fresh notification of land acquisition only after complying with all the environmental norms.
The 277.30 km highway faced stiff opposition from activists, farmers and residents alleging loss of agricultural land and damage to forest, flora and fauna. The project, approved in February 2018, was expected to cut down travel time between Chennai and Salem.
On April 8, 2019, a division bench of the Madras High Court had quashed the land acquisition after holding that environmental clearance was mandatory since the project would have an adverse impact on the environment, including water bodies. This judgement was passed by the High Court on a batch of petitions filed by advocates, farmers and politicians. The Chennai-Salem eight-lane greenfield expressway project was proposed on a stretch of 277.300-km passes through agricultural as well as reserve forest land. The project is part of the Centre's ambitious 'Bharatmala Pariyojana - I', which involves laying of around 35,000 km of national highways before 2022.
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