NHAI Land Compensation to Follow 2013 Act if Unpaid: P&H HC

P&H HC Enforces 2013 Land Act for Unpaid NHAI Acquisitions

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed that compensation for land acquisition by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) must be determined under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, where majority landowners have not been paid under the older 1894 Act.

The Court set aside an unreasoned arbitration award and emphasized that prolonged non-payment triggers the applicability of the 2013 Act under Section 24(2), which nullifies pending acquisitions unless 80% of landowners were compensated within five years of notification. The bench reiterated the Supreme Court’s ruling in Indore Development Authority v. Manoharlal.

This reaffirms the safeguard in Section 24(2) as substantive, not procedural. Authorities must now re-initiate acquisition processes with revised valuation, rehabilitation, and consent requirements, increasing compliance burden but enhancing fairness. Lawyers must scrutinize payment timelines in legacy projects to advise clients on compensation enhancement.