vmw' - v ‘ HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR DIVISION BENCH Present : Shri S.C. Verma, learned counsel for the appellants. \\ None for respondents No. 1 & 2. K i l l Coram : HON’BLE SHRIéAJEEV 'GUPTA,c.J.& HON’BLE SHRI SUNIL KUMAR SINHA, J. Misc. Agapeai No. 628 of 2003 1. Smt. Miiwantin Bai, w/o, Mangaluram Pal, aged about 42 yrs., House wife. 2. Mangaluram Pal, aged 48 years, S/o Shiv Prasad Pal. 3. Ku. Geeta, aged 17 years, Dlo. g; Mangaluram Pal. 4. Ku. Seeta, aged about 15 years, D/o. Mangaluram Pal. 5. Ku. Janki, aged about 12 years, D/o. Mangaluram Pal. Appellants no. 3, 4 and 5 are represented hereby legal guardian mother Milwantin Bai, All are R/o. Vill & P.0. Hasada, P.S. Abhanpur, Tah & Dist. Raipur C.G. Versus g RESPONDENTS 1. Chhannulal Satnami, Sio Ramu Non-applicants Satnami aged 32 yrs, occupation driver, R/o \flll. Devada, P.S. Arang, Tah and Distt. Raipur C.G. 2. Ashok Kumar Baisz Slo Khailandas Bals, R/o Samata Colony, Raipur. 3. Oriental lnsurance Co. Ltd., Through Divisional Manager, Divisional Manager, Kutchheri Road, Raipur (C.G.) Aggeal under Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 Shri P. Dutta, learned counse! for respondent No. 3. ORDER (27m August, 20) The following order of the Court was passed by Rajeev Gupta, C.J. : This is clalmants’ appeal for enhancement of the compensation awarded by the Sixth Additional Motor Accidents Claim Tribunal, Ralpur (r short, ‘th Tribunal’) vide award datd s fo e e 11.03.2003, passed in Claim Case No. 139/2002. 2. The claimants, unfortunate parents and younger isters of s deceased Harvansh Kumar Pal claimed compensation of Rs.8,50,000— by ing a claim petition under Section 6 of the / fil 16 Motor Vehicles Act for hi death in the motor accide on s nt 04.04.2002, when his icycle was dashed by the offending vehicle b Truck-Dumper bearing registration No. M.P. 23/D/41 14, esulting in > his instantaneous death on the spot itself. he claimts further T an pleaded that deceased Harvansh Kumar Pal was aged about 24 years and used to earn Rs.5,000l- per month by working as Turner in Maa Durga Engineering Works Abhanpur. 3. The driver, owner and insurer of the offending vehicie Truck- ‘Dumper contested the cim and denied their liability t pay la o compensation to the claimants. The insurer took the further plea that-the driver of the offending vehicle Truck—Dumper was not holding a valid dn’ving licence and the Truck-Dumper was being plied in breach of the policy conditions. 09 r , 4. The claimants examined AW1 Manglu Ram and AW2 Yashwant Kumar Sahu in aupport of their claim, whereas the driver, owner and insurer of the offending vehicle Truck-Dumper did not examine any witness in rebuttal. held that deceased Harvansh Kumar Pal died on account of the injuries sustained by him in the motor accident on 04.04.2002; the accident occurred due to rash and negligent driving of the driver of the offending vehicle Truck-Dumper; as the offending vehicle Truck-Dumper on the date of the accident was insured with the Oriental Insurance Company Limited, the insurance Company was liable to pay compensation to the claimants. 6. The Tribunal assessed the income of the deceased at Rs.15,000/— per annum on the basis of the notional income prescribed in the Second Schedule under Section 163-A of the Motor Vehicles Act. By deducting 1/3” of Rs.15,000/— towards the personal expenses of the deceased, the claimants’ dependency was assessed at Rs.10,000/— per annum. By multiplying the annual dependency of Rs.10,000/- with the multiplier of 17, the compensation was worked out to Rs.1,70,000l-. By awarding further sum of ‘Rs.10,000/- under other heads, the Tribunal awarded a total sum of Rs.1,80,000/- as compensation to the claimants for the death of deceased Harvansh Kumar Pal in the V motor accident. The Tribunal further directed payment of interest on the above amount of compensation of Rs.1 ,80,000l- @ 9% per \ 5. The Tribunal on a close scrutiny of the evidence led before it g,, ¢ w: am» @ annum from the date of filing of the claim petitian till the date of actual payment. 7. Shri Sac. Verma, learned counsel far the appellants submitted that the Tribunal has erred in not accepting the claimants evidence about the income of the deceased and in assessing his income at Rs.15,000/- per annum only; and in awarding low compensation of Rs.1 ,80,009/- only. 8. Shri P. Dutta, learned counsel for respondent No.3 the Oriental Insurance Company Limited, on the l other hand, supported the award. and contended that the compensation of Rs.1,80,000/- awarded by the Tribunal is just and proper compensation in the facts and circumstances of the present case. 9. The findings recorded by the Tribunal that deceased Harvansh Kui‘nar Pal died on account of the injuries sustained by him in the motor accident on 04.04.2002; the driver of the offending vehicle Truck-Dumper was responsible for the accident; and the insurer of the offending vehicle Truck-Dumper was liable to pay compensation to the claimants have now attained finality as the respondents have not filed any appeal against the award. 10. True, the claimants pleaded that deceased Harvansh Kumar Pal used to earn‘Rs.5,000/— per month by working as Turner in 'Maa Durga Engineering Works, Abhanpur, but no witness was examined from the said workshop to establish that the deceased was working there and was getting salary of Rs.5,000/~ per month. ln.this state of evidence, we do not find any fault in the approach of l the Tribunal in discarding the claimants’ evidence about the income of the deceased. € 11. Nevertheless, the income of the deceased assessed by the Tribunal at Rs.15,000/- per annum is certainly on the lower side and requires reconsideration. 12‘ Deceased Harvansh Kumar Pal was aged about 24 years on the date of the accident. The accident in the present case took place in the year 2002. in the year 2002 a young person aged about 24 years could have easily earned Rs.100/- per day by working even as an unskilled labour. We. therefore, propose to re-compute the compensation taking the income of the deceased at ,Rs.100/- per day; Rs.3,000/. per month; and Rs.36,000/~ per annum. 13. As deceased Harvansh Kumar Pal was un-married on the date of the accident and after his marriage, his contribution to the parents and sisters would have been reduced substantiallygwe deem it proper to deduct 50% of Rs.36,000/— towards the personal expenses of the deceased. The claimants’ dependency. therefore, is assessed at Rs.1 8,000I- per annum. 14. Considering that the claimants are parents and younger sisters of deceased Harvansh Kumar Pal, multiplier of 10 would be appropriate in the case in view of the‘dictum of the Apex Court in the case of Municipal Corporation of Greater ‘Bombay Vs. Laxman Iyer & another, reported in (2003) 8 scc 731, as the younger sisters of the deceased were primarily dependent on their father who is claimant No.2 Mangaluram Pal and was aged about 48 years on‘the date of the accident. 15. By multiplying the annual dependency of Rs.18,000/- with the multiplier of 10, the compensation works out to Rs.1,80,0QO/-. The claimants are further entitled to receive Rs.5,0DO/- towards funeral expenses and Rs.5,000/— towards loss of estate. The claimants, thus, become entitled to receive a total sum of Rs.1,90,000/— as compensation for the death of deceased Harvansh Kumar Pal in the motor accident. 16. For the foregoing reasons, the appeal filed by the appellants/ claimants for enhancement of the compensation is .ailowed in part. The compensation of Rs.1,80,000/- awarded by the Tribunal is enhanced to Rs.1,90,000/-. The claimant‘s are further entitled to receive quantified amount of Rs.1,000l— as interest on the enhanced amount of compensation of Rs.10,000I-. 17. Respondent No.3 the Oriental insurance Company Limited, is granted three months’ time for depositing the total sum of Rs.11,000/— (Rs.10,000/- towards enhanced amount of compensation + Rs.1,000/— towards the quantified amount of _ interest on the enhanced amount of compensation of Rs.10,000/-) \ before the conCerning Claims Tribunal. 18. No order as to costs. , Sd/- J Sunil Kumar Sinha Sdl- Chief Justice