1. The short point involved in this batch of 69 petitions concerns the entitlement of the petitioners to solatium and interest on the compensation paid to them for the acquisition of their lands under the provisions of National Highways Act (henceforth would be referred to as the Act).

2. A Note on Legislative History:
A travel through the lane of legislative history may help capturing the setting in which the petitioners rest their cause for the present action. On 24-01-1997, the President of India promulgated the National Highways Laws (Amendment) Ordinance, 1997 by which S.3 - A to 3 - J were inserted into the National Highways Act, 1956 . These provisions provide for a mechanism for speedy acquisition of land for the construction of national highways and also for a speedier resolution of disputes relating to determination of compensation through a mechanism of statutory arbitration as contemplated in S.3 - G of the Act. S.3 - G (7) of the Act sets out the relevant criteria which the arbitrator must take into account in determining the compensation under the Act. S.3G(7) roughly corresponds to S.23(1) of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 . S.3 - J, which, as would be seen has becom