What land is being acquired and where
The land is being taken for doubling the railway line between Villupuram and Dindigul. The notices list 206 survey numbers spread over 27 villages.
The villages fall in 7 districts: Ariyalur, Cuddalore, Dindigul, Kallakurichi, Thiruchirappalli, Viluppuram and Virudhunagar. Within these districts, 9 taluks are involved: Dindigul East, Kallakurichi, Lalgudi, Sendurai, Titagudi, Ulundurpet, Vedasandur, Villupuram and Vridhachalam.
Most of the land is concentrated in a few villages. Kollapatty in Vedasandur taluk has 44 survey numbers, V.Maruthur in Villupuram taluk has 43, and Vinaitheerthapuram in Kallakurichi taluk has 32. Many other villages have only one to three survey numbers listed.
A listed survey number does not always mean the whole field is being taken. Railway doubling usually needs a strip beside the existing line, so the notice may cover only a part or a particular subdivision. The exact extent is given in the schedule to each Gazette notice.
The notices, the law and the present stage
All 16 notices were issued under the Tamil Nadu Acquisition of Land for Industrial Purposes Act, 1997 and published in the state Gazette. No notice for this project was issued under the National Highways Act or the 2013 central Act.
Under section 3 of the 1997 Act, the Government publishes a notice in the Gazette stating that it requires the land for the stated purpose. Before that notice is published, the owner must be given an opportunity to show cause why the land should not be acquired. Once the notice is published, the land vests in the Government free from encumbrances. This makes the 1997 Act quicker than the 2013 Act, which runs through a preliminary notification and a later declaration.
The notices were issued in batches. There were 3 in 2017, 4 in 2018, 1 in 2020, 3 in 2021, 4 in 2022 and 1 in 2023. The largest single notice, dated 1 March 2018, covered 8 villages.
Four notices were later corrected: those dated 4 October 2017, 6 October 2017, 10 November 2017 and 20 December 2022. If your village is covered by one of these, read the correction along with the original notice, because survey numbers, extents or owner details may have changed.
None of the 16 notices has been fully withdrawn, and no village in the list shows any withdrawn survey number. The records here do not say whether possession has been taken or compensation has been paid in any village. Confirm that with the land acquisition office at the District Collectorate concerned.
Villages list by district and taluk
Dindigul district: Kollapatty (44 survey numbers), Ayyalur (9) and Morepatty (9) in Vedasandur taluk, and Mullipadi (1) in Dindigul East taluk.
Viluppuram district: V.Maruthur (43), Kandamanadi (2), Kolathur (2) and Kandampakkam (1) in Villupuram taluk. Thirumundeechvaram (8), Thenmangalam (6), Alangkuppam (1) and Anaivari (1) in Ulundurpet taluk.
Kallakurichi district: Vinaitheerthapuram (32) in Kallakurichi taluk. Sengurichi (8), Pu.Killanur (4), Pathoor (3), Edaiyalam (2), Gingeekuppam (1) and Vandipalayam (1) in Ulundurpet taluk.
Cuddalore district: Konur (8), Nanthimangalam (8) and Thirumalai Agaram (3) in Titagudi taluk. Sathakudal (Melpathi) (5) and Manavalanallur (1) in Vridhachalam taluk.
Other districts: Asaveerankudikadu (1) in Sendurai taluk, Ariyalur district. Iyanreddiyapatti (1) in Lalgudi taluk, Thiruchirappalli district. Pullampadi (1), recorded under Lalgudi taluk and Virudhunagar district.
Ulundurpet taluk villages appear under both Viluppuram and Kallakurichi districts in the notices. When you apply for records, check with the taluk office which district now holds the file for your village.
What to do if your land is listed
First, get a copy of the Gazette notice that covers your village, and any later correction. Match the survey number and subdivision, the extent and the name of the owner shown in the schedule with your patta, chitta and A register extract.
If only part of your field is listed, find out the exact extent being taken and how the remaining land will be treated in the revenue records. A subdivision of the survey number usually follows acquisition.
Keep your ownership papers ready to claim compensation: sale deeds, patta, encumbrance certificate and, where the owner has died, legal heirship papers. Compensation under the 1997 Act is determined by the authorised officer of the Government, and the amount for your land will be set out in the award or order for your village. These records do not contain any compensation figure.
If you are buying land in any of these 27 villages, check the survey number against the notices before you pay an advance. Since land covered by a published notice vests in the Government, a seller cannot pass good title to the acquired portion. An encumbrance certificate may not reveal the acquisition, so ask for the Gazette notice and confirm with the taluk office.
If your name or extent is wrong in the notice, or you have a dispute about ownership, raise it in writing with the land acquisition office before compensation is disbursed, and take advice from a lawyer on the remedy available.