CHENNAI: In a significant judgment, the Madras High Court has held that environmental clearance for projects undertaken by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is required only before the commencement of construction, and not at the stage of land acquisition.
Justice Krishnan Ramasamy delivered the ruling while dismissing petitions filed by Anand Mandgi, who challenged the acquisition of his land at Bairamangalam village in Thenkanikottai taluk of Krishnagiri district for the formation of NH 948A.
A notification under Section 3A(1) of the National Highways Act, 1956, was issued on July 12, 2018, followed by a declaration under Section 3D(1) on March 8, 2019, after due enquiry. The petitioner contended that the declaration was invalid as no environmental clearance had been obtained prior to its issuance.
Rejecting the argument, the court relied on the Supreme Court’s ruling in the PV Krishnamurthy case, which held that the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification, 2006 does not curtail the Union government’s powers to initiate land acquisition under Section 3A. The judge noted that the 2006 notification does not mandate prior environmental or forest clearance for such proceedings.
The court further clarified that even after the issuance of a Section 3D declaration, construction or land development does not commence immediately. While there is no legal bar on completing land acquisition and entrusting land to NHAI without environmental clearance, such approval must be secured before any construction activity begins.
Noting that 28.05 km of the project has already been completed at a cost of Rs 709 crore, with only 0.2 km remaining, the court observed that quashing the proceedings at this stage would cause substantial loss to the exchequer. It added that the petitions were driven by private interest, which cannot outweigh public interest.