What land is being acquired for NH 716B and where
NH 716B is a national highway project. The land for it is being acquired by the Central Government under the National Highways Act 1956, and the notices are published in the central gazette.
The acquisition covers 2892 survey numbers spread across 29 villages. Of these, 28 villages are in Tiruvallur district, in Pallipet taluk and Uthukottai taluk. One village, Nerkundram, is in Maduravoyal taluk of Chennai district.
A survey number appearing in a notice does not always mean the whole of that survey number is taken. Notices usually list the subdivision and the extent being acquired, so the area affected in your plot must be read from the notice schedule itself.
The notices and their stage
There are 15 notices in all. They are of two kinds: notifications of intention under section 3A and declarations of acquisition under section 3D of the National Highways Act 1956.
A section 3A notification states that the Central Government intends to acquire the listed land for a national highway. It names the land by village and survey number. After it is published, any person interested in the land may file objections under section 3C before the competent authority within three weeks from the date of publication.
A section 3D declaration comes after objections are heard. Once a 3D declaration is published in the gazette, the land vests absolutely in the Central Government, free from all encumbrances. In plain terms, ownership passes to the Government at that point, and what remains for the owner is the claim for compensation.
The first notice in this project is a section 3A notification dated 9 March 2020. Further 3A notifications followed in March and April 2020, December 2021, May and September 2024, and March 2025. Section 3D declarations were published in January and February 2021, November 2022, July and November 2024, and most recently on 9 May 2025, covering 16 villages.
Of the 15 notices, 8 are section 3D declarations. No notice has been withdrawn, and none has been recorded as corrected later. If a 3D declaration is not published within one year of a 3A notification, the 3A notification lapses under the Act, so each owner should check whether a 3D declaration has followed for their own village and survey number.
NH 716B land acquisition villages list
Pallipet taluk, Tiruvallur district (8 villages): Kumarajapettai (255 survey numbers), Kellpudi (194), Venkatarajakuppam (185), Samathawada (150), Mallpudi (149), Perumanallur (136), Thirumalrajapettai (79) and Puniyam (31).
Uthukottai taluk, Tiruvallur district (20 villages): Tholavedu (232 survey numbers), Pondavakkam (213), Vadamadurai (208), Panapakkam (164), Sennankaranai (132), Perandur (129), Puducheri (126), Mambakkam (104), Pennalurpet (104), Paruthimenikuppam (81), Alapakkam (56), Kannigaiper (50), Vadathillai (36), Perittivakkam (16), Sengathakulam (16), Athivakkam (12), Mambalkkam (12), Krishnapuram Kandigai (11), Chennakesavapuram (6) and Tharatchi (3).
Maduravoyal taluk, Chennai district (1 village): Nerkundram (2 survey numbers).
The taluk name is spelt both as Uthukottai and Uthukkottai in the notices; these refer to the same taluk. Village names are given as they appear in the records, so search the gazette under the spelling used there. Mambakkam and Mambalkkam appear as separate entries and should be checked separately.
What to do if your land is listed
First, obtain the gazette notice for your village and check the schedule for your survey number, subdivision and the extent shown against it. Compare this with your patta, chitta and field measurement sketch.
Second, find out whether a section 3D declaration has been published for your land. If it has, the land has already vested in the Central Government and the question is no longer whether it will be taken but how much compensation is payable.
Third, approach the competent authority for land acquisition named in the notice. Compensation under section 3G is determined by the competent authority, now in line with the principles of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act. File your claim with title documents and proof of any structures, trees or crops on the land.
If you do not accept the amount determined, you may apply to the arbitrator appointed by the Central Government under section 3G. The amount is to be deposited with the competent authority under section 3H before possession is taken.
If you are a buyer, do not purchase any survey number in these villages without checking it against the notices. Land covered by a 3D declaration already belongs to the Central Government, and a sale of it gives the buyer no title to the land.