HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR DIVISION BENCH CORAM: HON'BLE SHRI RAJEEV GUPTA, C.J. & HON'BLE SHRI N.K. AGARWAL, J. ^ Appellants/ Claimants Misc Appeal No.112 of 2006 1 Md Gafur, S/o late Shri Noor Mohammed, aged 54 years 2 Smt Shamshad Begum, W/o Md Gafur, age 4@ years Both R/o Shashtri Market, near Shitla Mandir, DK Ward N0.30 Raipur, Tah & District Raipru (CG) VERSUS Respondents Non-Applicants 1. Dilip Kumar Verma, S/o Roopchand Verma, aged 26 years, R/o Village Chandkhuri, PS Mandir Hasaud Tah & District Raipur 2. Smt Kanchan Khemnani W/o Shri Ganesh Khemnani, R/o Gali No.4, Telibandha, Devendra Nagar, Sector - 2 Riapru Distt Raipur 3. Divisional Manager, The Oriental Insurance Co Ltd., Madina Manjil, Khachhari Chowk, Raipur, Distt Raipur (CG) Memo of appeal under Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act. Present: Shri Amiyakant Tiwari, counsel for the appellants. Shri Abhishek Sinha, counsel for respondent No.3. ORDER >th (13tn June,2011) The following order of the Court was passed by Rajeev Gupta, C.J. The unfortunate parents of deceased boy Mohd. Irfan are the appellants before us in this appeal for enhancement of the compensation awarded by the 14* Additional Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Raipur (for short 'the Tribunal') vide award dated 25.01.2005, passed in Claim Case No. 109/2004.. 2) As against the compensation ofRs.18,00,000/- claimed by the appellants/ claimants, unfortunate parents of deceased boy Mohd Irfan, aged about 12 years by filing a claim petitionunder Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, for his death in the motor accident on 04.03.2003, the Tribunal awarded a total sum of Rs.67,000/- as compensation along with interest @ 6% per annum from the date of filing of the claim petition till the date of actual payment. 3) The Tribunal on a close scrutiny of the entire evidence led before it held that the claimants' son Mohd Irfan died on account of the injuries sustained by him in the motor accident on 04.03.2003; the accident occurred due to rash and negligent driving of the driver of the offending vehicle Truck bearing registration No.CG 04 ZC/7598; as the above offending vehicle Truck on the date of the accident was insured with the Oriental Insurance Company Limited and the Insurance Company could not establish any breach of the policy conditions, the Insurance Company was liable to pay compensation to the claimants. a fl- "^ ,; 4) As the respondents have not filed any appeal against the award, the above findings recorded by the Tribunal have now attained finality. 5) The Tribunal considering the age of the deceased and other surrounding circumstances awarded a total sum of Rs.67,000/- inclusive of Rs.2,000/- towards funeral expenses and Rs.5,000/- for loss of love and affection as compensation to the claimants for the death of their son Mohd Irfan in the motor accident. The Tribunal further directed payment of interest on the above amount of compensation of Rs.67,000/- @ 6% per annum from the date of filing of the claim petition till the date of actual payment. 6) Shri Amiyakant Tiwari, learned counsel for the appellants vehemently argued that the Tribunal has erred in awarding low compensation of Rs.67,000/- only, though the claimants' son Mohd Irfan^vas aged about 18 years on the date ofthe accident and would have extended great support to his parents in their old age. 7) Shri Abhishek Sinha, learned counsel for respondent No.3 the Oriental Insurance Company Limited, the insurer of the offending vehicle Truck, on the other hand, supported the award and contended that as the claimants' son was aged about 12 years only on the date of the accident, the compensation of Rs.67,000/- awarded by the Tribunal is just and proper compensationin the facts and circumstances of the present case. 8) Though the claimants pleaded that their son Mohd Irfan was aged about 18 years, no reliable and cogent material was produced .;;^ ffe ^f^'.^ before the Tribunal in supportof the above plea.. The Tribunal, therefore, relying upon the mention of age of the deceased in his postmortem report assessed that the deceased was aged about 12 years on the date of the accident. It is difficult to believe that a boy aged about 12 years would be earning Rs.200 - 250/- per day as pleaded by the claimants. 9) Be thatas it may, the fact remains that the claimants lost their son Mohd Irfan, aged about 12 years in the motor accident. It is a matter of common knowledge that the parents depend for their maintenance in their old age on their son. 10) The compensation of Rs.67,000/- awarded by the Tribunal when examined in the context of the above mentioned broad features of the case, in our opinion, is somewhat on the lower side and deserves to beenhanced to some extent. 11) Considering all the relevant aspects of the matter, we are of the opinion that further award of Rs.10,000/- inclusive of interest component on the enhanced amount of compensation would make the compensation of Rs.67,000/- awarded by the Tribunal as just and proper compensation in the facts and circumstances of the present case. 12) The appeal filed by the appellants/ claimants for enhancement ofthe compensation, therefore, is allowed in part. The claimants are awarded further sum of Rs.10,000/- inclusive of interest component on the enhanced amount of compensation in addition to the sum of Rs.67,000/- awarded by the Tribunal. ^^, "^ .f^ w^'^ n ~m9.w^% i ^. '^y'^'' '^•- ^..^:: subbu 13) Respondent No.3 the Oriental Insurance Company Limited is granted three months' time for depositing the total sum of Rs. 10,0007- before the concerning Claims Tribunal. 14) No order as to costs. Sd/- ChiefJustice Sd/- N. K. Agarwal