What land is being acquired and where
The land is being acquired for the expansion of Chennai Airport. The notifications list 159 survey numbers in all.
The land lies in three taluks: Alandur, Kundrathur and Pallavaram. The districts named in the notifications are Chengalpattu, Chennai and Kancheepuram.
Most of the land is in Kolapakkam. Kolapakkam appears twice in the records: once under Kundrathur taluk, Kancheepuram district, with 102 survey numbers, and once under Alandur taluk, Chennai district, with 36 survey numbers.
District and taluk names are shown as they appear in each notification. These names may not match the revenue jurisdiction that applies to the land today. Always check the current taluk office for your survey number.
The notices, the law and their stage
All five notifications were issued under the Tamil Nadu Acquisition of Land for Industrial Purposes Act, 1997. All five were published in the State Gazette. Each notification covers one village.
The dates are 22 December 2011, 21 March 2012, 18 August 2017, 7 February 2018 and 2 November 2021.
Under this Act, the Government acquires land by publishing a notice under section 3(1). Before it publishes that notice, the Act requires the owner and other interested persons to be given an opportunity to show cause. Once the notice is published, the land vests in the Government, free from encumbrances. The 1997 Act does not have the separate preliminary notification and final declaration stages found in the 2013 Act.
In the records available, none of the five notifications has been withdrawn, and none has been marked as corrected later. These records do not show whether possession has been taken or whether compensation has been paid for any particular survey number. Confirm those points with the land acquisition officer concerned.
Villages covered by the notifications
Kolapakkam, Kundrathur taluk, Kancheepuram district: 102 survey numbers.
Kolapakkam, Alandur taluk, Chennai district: 36 survey numbers.
Cowl Bazaar, Alandur taluk, Kancheepuram district: 14 survey numbers.
Pallavaram, Alandur taluk, Kancheepuram district: 4 survey numbers.
Kowlbazar, Pallavaram taluk, Chengalpattu district: 3 survey numbers.
Cowl Bazaar and Kowlbazar are spelt differently in the records and are shown under different taluks and districts. Search for your land under both spellings. No survey number in any of these villages is recorded as withdrawn.
What to do if your land is listed
First, match your survey number and subdivision exactly against the Gazette notification for your village. A notice may cover only part of a survey number, so check the extent stated in the notice against your patta and FMB sketch.
Next, obtain a certified copy of the notification. Ask the taluk office or the land acquisition officer whether an award has been passed, whether possession has been taken, and whether compensation has been deposited or paid.
Compensation under the 1997 Act is fixed either by agreement with the owner or by the authorised officer, applying the principles laid down in the Act. Keep your title deeds, patta, encumbrance certificate and tax receipts ready, because you will need them to establish your claim.
If you are buying land in any of these villages, insist on a survey number search against all five notifications before you pay any advance. Land that has vested in the Government cannot pass to you through a private sale. Take independent legal advice on any dispute or deadline that applies to your case.