\ v-^^ ll:^^y HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR DIVISIONBENCH CORAM: HON'BLE SHRI RAJEEV GUPTA, C.J. & HON'BLE SHRI N.K. AGARWAL, J. Misc.Appeal No. 899 of 2005 Appellants Claimants Respondents Smt. Narbadiya Bai w/o late Yadu Lal Thakur, aged 35 years. Ku. Yamuna Bai d/o late Yadu Lal, aged about 18years. Ku. Dileswary d/o late Yadu Lal, aged about 17 years (minor) Ku. Hasina d/o late Yadu Lal, aged about 15 years (minor). Harinarayan s/o late Yadu Lal, aged abouf 15 years (minor) (appellant No. 2 to 5 are minor through guardian her mother Smt. Narbadiya Bai (appellant No.1) Khorbahra Ram s/o Sukalu Ram, aged 60 years. Smt. Murhi Bai w/o Khorbahra Ram, aged 55 years. (All are resident of village Pathra Navagaon, post Mahroom Police Station Dongarhgaon, Tah. & District Rajnandgaon C.G. VERSUS Rukham Lal s/o Manglu Ram Dewangan, occupation Driver, residence of village Konari Police Station and Tahsil Dongargaon, district Rajnandgaon C.G. Lakhan Lal Dewangan, Sevtapara Ward No.7, Tahsil and Police Station Dohgarhgaon, district Rajnandgaon C.G. .-s^ |:1 SBB?^ j >'K . iS a""^' '^: 3 National Insurance Company Limited, Branch Office, Kamthi Line, Rajnandgaon C.G. Memo of apDeal under Section 17^of th^JVIotorVehicles Act. Present: Shri C.R. Sahu and Shri C.K. Sahu, counsel for the appellants. Shri Abhishek Sharma, counsel for respondent No.2. Shri Goutam Khetrapal, counsel for respondent No.3. ORDER (06th July, 2011) 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 First Additional Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Rajnandgaon (for short 'the TribunaT) vide award dated 01.11.2004, passed in Claim Case No.105/2003. 2) As against the compensation of Rs.10,00,000/- claimed by the appellants/ claimants, unfortunate widow, minor children and parents of deceased Yadu Lal Thakur, by filing a claim petition under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, for his death in themotor accident on 18.05.2003, the Tribunal awarded a total sum of Rs.1,96,0007- 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 Tribuna! on a close scrutiny of the entire evidence led before it held that deceased Yadu Lal Thakur died on account of the injuries sustained by him in the motor accident on 1 8.05.2003; the !Nr accident occurred due to rash and negligent driving of the driver of the offending vehicle Minibus bearing registration No.C.G.08- ZA/3023; as the above offending vehicle Minibus on the date ofthe accident was insured with the National Insurance Company Limited and the Insurance Companycould not establish any breach of the policy conditions, the Insurance Company was liable to pay compensation to the claimants. 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 assessed the income of the deceased at Rs.2,000/- per month and Rs.24,000/- per annum. By deducting 1/3 of Rs.24,000/- towards the personalexpenses ofthe deceased, the claimants' dependency was assessed at Rs.16,000/- per annum. By multiplying the annual dependency of Rs.16,000/- with the multiplier of 12, the compensation was worked out to Rs.1,92,000/-. By awarding further sum of Rs.2,000/- towards funeral expenses and Rs.2,000/- for loss of consortium to the widow, the Tribunal awarded a total sum of Rs.1,96,000/- as compensation to the claimants for the death of deceased Yadu Lal Thakur in the motor accident. The Tribunal further directed payment of interest on the above amount of compensation of Rs.1,96,000/- @ 6% per annum from the date of filing of the claim petition till the date of actual payment. 6) Shri C.R. Sahu and Shri C.K. Sahu, learned counsel for the appellants submitted that the Tribunat has erred in not accepting the —Nr 4 claimants' evidence about the income of the deceased and in assessing his income at Rs.2,000/- per month only; in deducting 1/3 of the income of the deceased towards his personal expenses; in selecting the lower multiplier of 12; in not awarding any sum towards loss of estate and in awarding low sum of Rs.2,000/- each towards funeral expenses and loss of consortium to the widow; and in awarding low compensation of Rs.1,96,000/- only. 7) Shri Goutam Khetrapal, learned counsel for respondent No.3, the National Insurance Company Limited, the insurer of the offending vehicle Minibus, on the other hand, contended that the compensation of Rs.1,96,000/- awarded by the Tribunal is just and proper compensation in the facts and circumstances of the present case. 8) Shri Abhishek Sharma, learned counsel for respondent No.2 Lakhan Lal Dewangan, the owner of the offending vehicle Minibus also supported the award. 9) In a motor accident claim case, what is important is that, the compensation to be awarded by the Courts/Tribunals should be just and proper compensation in the facts and circumstances of the case. It should neither be a meager amount of compensation, nor a Bonanza. 10) Now we shall examine as to whether the compensation of Rs.1,96,000/- awarded by the Tribunal is just and proper compensation in the facts and circumstances of the present case. 11) True, the claimants pleaded that deceased Yadu Lal Thakur used to earn Rs.10,000/- per month from agriculture and stone mining, no cogent and reliable evidence was led before the Tribunal for establishing the income of the deceased to that extent. In fact, no documentary material was produced before the Tribunal to establish that the deceased had any agricultural land at all. It has come in the evidence of the witnesses examined by the claimants themselves that the alleged stone mining was also in the name of the younger brother of the deceased and not in the name of the deceased. In this state of evidence, we do not find any fault in the approach of the Tribunal in discarding the claimants' evidence about the income of the deceased and in assessing his income on its own estimate at Rs.2,000/- and Rs.24,000/- per annum. 12) So far as the deduction of 1/3 of the income of the deceased by the Tribunal towards his personal expenses is concerned, considering that there are as many as seven claimants in the case, we are of the opinion that the Tribunal ought to have deducted only 1/4 of the income of the deceased towards his personal expenses. We, therefore, assess the claimants' dependency at Rs.18,000/- per annum by deducting 1/4 of Rs.24,000/- towards the personal expenses ofthedeceased. 13) The multiplier of 12 selected by the Tribunal is also on the lower side and requires reconsideration. 14) Considering that deceased Yadu Lal Thakur was shown to be 43 years of age in his postmortem report, we are of the opinion that multiplier of 14 would be appropriate in the present case, in view of the dictum of the Apex Court in the case of Sarla Verma (Smt) and Others Versus Delhi Transport Corporation and another, reported in (2009) 6 SCC 121 wherein multiplier of 14 has been prescribed for the age group between 41-45 years. 15) By multiplying the annual dependency of Rs.18,000/- with the multiplier of 14 the compensation works out to Rs.2,52,000/-. The claimants are further entitled to receive Rs.5,OQO/- towards funeral expenses; Rs.5,000/- for loss of estate; and Rs.5,000/- for loss of consortium to the widow. The claimants, thus, become entitled to receive a total sum of Rs.2,67,000/- as compensation for the death of deceased Yadu Lal Thakur in the motor accident. 16) Learned counsel for the parties submitted that with a view to avoid any possible dispute between the parties before the Tribunal 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. 17) Considering all the relevant aspects of the matter, including the delay in disposal of the claim petition, and the present appeal and the fact that the Insurance Company alone is not to be blamed for the entire delay in the matter, we quantify the amount of interest on the enhanced amount of compensation of Rs.71,000/- at Rs.9,000/-. •';"^'~':^. y.^-^ \ :t ^^^ 1 •vsc^-~y j '^.... "^y subbu 18) For the foregoing reasons, the appeal filed by the appellants/ claimants for enhancement of the compensation is allowed in part. The compensation of Rs.1,96,000/- awarded by the Tribunal is enhanced to Rs.2,67,000/- with further quantified amount of interest of Rs.9,000/- on the enhanced amount of compensation of Rs.71,000/-. 19) Respondent No.3 the National Insurance Company Limitedis granted three months' time for depositing the total sum of Rs.80,000/- (Rs.71,000/- towards enhanced amount of compensation + Rs.9,000/- towards quantified amount of interest on the enhanced amount of compensation of Rs.71,000/-) before the concerning Claims Tribunal. 20) No order as to costs. ___ sd/- Chief Justice Sd/- N.K. Agrawal Judge