HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR DIVISION BENCH CORAM: HON'BLE SHRI RAJEEV GUPTA, C.J. & HON'BLE SHRS RANGNATH CHANDRAKAR, J. ;-y fc. A Appe!Sants Claimants Mtsc. Appeal No. S15 of 2003 1. Smt. Dhankunwar Wd/o late Hemant Kumar aged 27 years. 2. Kumari Priti d/o late Hemant Kumar aged 6 years. 3. Kumari Renu d/o late Hemant Kumar aged 4 years. 4. Kumari Priya d/o late Hemant Kumar aged 2 years. 5. Dikesh S/o late Hemant Kumer 4 months. Appellants 2 to 5 are minor through her mother as natural Guardian. A!l resident ofVillage Dev Balauda, P.S. Bhiiai 3 Tah. and Distt. Durg (C.G.) Versus Respondents Non-applicants Biswnath S/o Bishauha Dewangan aged 38 years. R/o. Nagpur Laskari Bag Near Paralidas P.S. Pawali Nagpur Tah. And Distt. Nagpur (Maharastra) Sarad Kumar Dixit. S/o.Jagdish Dixit through Pooja Travels, Putla Chauk, Chitaroli. C.A. Road, Nagpur, Maharastra. National Insurance Company Ltd., through Regional Manager, Office at Akash Ganga Complex Supela, Bhilai Tah and Distt. Durg (C.G.) Appeal under Section 173 ofthe Motor Vehicle Act F^SS^ Present: r' Shri Arjun Yadav, learned counsel for the appellants. None for respondents No. 1 Ss 2. Shri Shree Kumar Agrawal, learned Senior Counsei with Shri Anand Gupta, learned counset for respondent No.3/ tnsurance Company. ORDER (26th JuSy, 2010) The following order of the Court was passed by Rajeev Gupta, C.J. This is claimants' appeal for enhancement of the compensation awarded by the Fourth Additional Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Durg (for short 'the Tribunal') vide award dated 28.10.2002, passed in Claim Case No.56/2001. 2) As against the compensation of Rs.22,21,200/- claimed by the appeliants/ claimants, unfortunate widow and minor children of deceased Hemant Kumar, by filing a claim petition under Sectlon 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act for his death in the motor accident on 23.02.2001, the Tribuna! awarded a total sum of Rs.2,20,748/- 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 !ed before it held that deceased Hemant Kumar died on account of the injuries sustained by him in the motor accident on 23.02.2001; the accident occurred due to rash and negligent driving of the driver of the offending vehicle Bus bearing registratlon No. M.H.-31-W/6969; as the offending vehide Bus on the date of the accident was insured with the National insurance Company Limited, the Insurance Company was liable to pay compensation to the claimants. 4) As the respondents have not fiied any appeal against the award, the above findings recorded by the Tribunal have now attained finality. 5) The Tribunal assessed the income of the deceased at Rs.2,200/- per month. By deducting 1/3rd of Rs.2,200/- towards the personal expenses of the deceased, the claimants' dependency was assessed at Rs.1,467/- per month and Rs.17,604/- per annum. By muttiplying the annual dependency of Rs.17,604/- with the multiplier of 12, the compensation was worked out to Rs.2,11,248/-. By awarding further sum of Rs.5,000/- towards ioss of consortium to the widow; Rs.2,000/- towards funeral expenses; and Rs.2,500/- towards loss of estate, the Tribunal awarded a total sum of Rs.2,20,748/- as compensation to the claimants for the death of deceased Hemant Kumar in the motor accident. The Tribunal further directed payment of interest on the above amount of compensation of Rs.2,20,748/- @ 6% per annum from the date of filing of the claim petition tiil the date of actua! payment. 6) Shri Arjun Yadav, learned counsel for the appeliants submitted that the Tribunal has erred in selecting the lower multipiier of 12 and in awarding low compensation of Rs.2,20,748/- on!y. €., 7) Shri Shree Kumar Agrawal, learned Senior Counsel with Shri Anand Gupta, learned counsel for respondent No.3 the National Insurance Company Limited, on the other hand, supported the award and contended that the compensation of Rs.2,20,748/- awarded by the Tribunal is just and proper compensation in the facts and circumstances of the present case. 8) As the daimants themselves pleaded that deceased Hemant Kumar used to earn Rs.2,200/- per month as Home-guard and the salary certificate produced by them before the Tribunal (Ex.P/1) was also to the effect that the annuai salary of the deceased was Rs.25,91 O/-, we do not find any infirmity in the assessment of the income of the deceased by the Tribunalat Rs.2,200/- per month. 9) Similarly, the daimants' dependency also has been rightly assessed by the Tribuna! by deducting the usual 1/3 of the income of the deceased towards his personai expenses. 10) The Tribunal certainly has fallen into error in selecting the lower multiplier of 12. Considering the age of the deceased, his widow. and children, muitiplier of 15, in our opinion, would be appropriate in the present case. 11) By multiplying the annuai dependency of Rs.17,604/- with the multiplier of 15, the compensation works out to Rs.2,64,060/-. The ciaimantsare further entitied to receive a sum Rs.5,000/- towards funeral expenses; Rs.5,000/- for ioss of consortium to .<<: the widow; and Rs.5,000/- for loss of estate. The claimants, thus, become entitled to receive a total sum of Rs.2,79,060/- as compensation for the death of deceased Hemant Kumar in the motor accident. 12) Learned counsei for the parties submitted that with a view to avoid any possible dispute between the parties about the period for which the claimants are entitled to receive interest on the enhanced amount of compensation, the amount of interest on the enhanced amount of compensation may be quantified in this appeal itself. 13) Considering all the relevant factors including the deiay in disposal of the ciaim petition and the present appeal and the fact that the Insurance Company alone is not fo be blamed for the entire delay in the matter, we quantify the amount of interest on the enhanced amount of compensation of Rs.59,312/- at Rs.6,688/-. 14) For the foregoing reasons, the appeal fiied by the appeilants/ ciaimartsfor enhancement of the compensation is ailowed in part. The compensation of Rs.2,20,748/- awarded by the Tribunai is enhanced to Rs.2,79,060/- with further quantified amount of interest of Rs.6,688/- on the enhanced amount of compensation of Rs.59,312/-. 15) Respondent No.3 The Nationat Insurance Company Limited is granted three months' time for depositing the totaj sum of Rs.66,000/- (Rs.59,312/- towards enhanced amount of €:' subUu -^-\ compensation + Rs.6,688/- towards quantified amount of interest on the enhanced amount of compensation of Rs.59,312/-) before the concerning Ctaims Tribunal. 16) No order as tq^^ts_ Sd/- Chief Justice Sd/- R.N. Chandrakar Judge ^