Trichy: The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has begun a survey to demarcate land acquired for widening the Trichy-Karur national highway, a narrow and accident-prone stretch connecting the western and central districts of Tamil Nadu.The move comes more than a decade after land was acquired for the project but remained unutilised. With fatal accidents continuing on the highway, NHAI plans to undertake road improvement works, including widening portions of the stretch near the Cauvery riverbank.The survey covers an 11km section between Thindukkarai and Pettavaithalai. Revenue and survey department officials are marking the boundaries of acquired land on both sides of the highway in Perugamani village based on compensation records and land documents.Although land was acquired on both sides of the highway, NHAI is yet to take possession of several parcels. Commercial establishments and other properties continue to function on the acquired land. Officials said property owners would be given sufficient time to vacate before the acquisition process is completed. Some landowners have expressed willingness to surrender the acquired portions of their properties, while compensation is still pending in a few cases.“The survey is to review the land acquisition status. While complete widening of the highway is not possible, necessary improvements will be carried out to ensure road safety,” a senior NHAI official told TOI.Officials expect to gain 10 to 15 feet of additional space on the narrow stretch for improvement work. “Using the land available on both sides of the carriageway, NHAI should provide a median and a bus bay for school students in Thirupparaithurai,” said K Thangaraj, a retired Indian Air Force officer from Trichy.NHAI also said preliminary work is under way to prepare a detailed project report for the proposed four-lane Trichy-Karur-Coimbatore greenfield highway to ease congestion on the existing route.The survey comes weeks after TOI highlighted how land acquired for widening the accident-prone Trichy-Karur highway had remained unutilised for more than a decade despite recurring fatal accidents.