A raging controversy has erupted over land acquisition for the proposed widening of the Dehra Dun-Haridwar highway to four lanes on the Kuanwala stretch near here by the National Highways Authority of India with villagers blocking the road seeking enforcement of the national land acquisition norms and compensation as given in the case of a similar dispute in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. “We don't object to parting with our lands for a national cause. But that does not mean we will let the authorities cheat us,” said residents of the area on Friday. The NHAI proposes to widen the existing road to 45 metres while the national norms put the limit at 26.5 metres for built-up area, it was stated. According to land revenue records, the present road stretch is 14 to 18 metres wide. The NHAI citing State PWD records claims that the road was 25 metres wide and has sought a correction in the revenue records from the Dehra Dun Collector's office. As the existing road is already 14 to 18 metres wide with some kutcha strip on both sides, the NHAI must justify why it needs to acquire excess land, a senior Agriculture Department official said, adding that the excess land was either prime agriculture or under industrial usage for several decades now. The villagers also want to know why the Special Land Acquisition Officer passed a single order without a proper public hearing for the entire village. They are also sore at the Officer for fixing the value of their land at Rs.2,790 per square metre whereas the Circle Rate was Rs.8,000 and the market rate Rs.14,000 per square metre… here lies the catch… villagers accuse the staff of the Special Land Acquisition Officer of assuring to ‘arrange' for a better deal if they parted with a portion of the compensation. The SLAO's office, however, justified the low compensation rate as that was the average amount shown on land transactions registered over the past few years. The officials also denied having sought any bribe to increase the compensation amount. The villagers also wondered how the authorities had fixed the compensation for built-up structures at malba (debris) rates. “Can the government agencies reconstruct these properties at malba rates?” ask residents, urging Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna to intervene and ensure justice to the affected families.