IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT : THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE V.RAMKUMAR & THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE P.Q.BARKATH ALI THURSDAY, THE 15TH DECEMBER 2011 / 24TH AGRAHAYANA 1933 MACA.No. 829 of 2006(F) ----------------------- OPMV.778/1998 of MOTOR ACCIDENT CLAIMS TRIBUNAL, THALASSERY .................... APPELLANT(S): APPELLANT/PETITIONER ---------------------------------- K.P.SURESAN, AGED 33 YEARS, S/O. CHERIYAMBU, PUTHUR P.O., KOZHUMMAL, KARIVELLUR VIA, KASARAGOD DISTRICT. BY ADV. SRI.M.V.AMARESAN RESPONDENT(S): 3RD RESPONDENT ----------------------------- THE ORIENTAL INSURANCE CO. LTD., BRANCH OFFICE, KINGSWAY BUILDING, MAVOOR ROAD, CALICUT. ADVs. M/s.MATHEWS JACOB, SENIOR ADVOCATE, SRI.P.JACOB MATHEW & P.NARAYANAN THIS MOTOR ACCIDENT CLAIMS APPEAL HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 15/12/2011,THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY PASSED THE FOLLOWING: V. Ramkumar & P.Q. Barkath Ali, JJ. ................................................. M.A.C.A. No. 829 of 2006 .................................................. : 15 , 2011 Dated th day of December JUDGMENT The appellant who was the injured in a road traffic 2-11-1997 accident which took place on seeks enhancement of . . . ., . . the compensation awarded by the M A C T Thalassery in O P ( ) . 778 1998. 2-11-1997 MV No of On appellant was driving his own autorikshaw with a passenger from Kodakkad to . 3.30 . , Karivellur At about p m a bus which came from Kanhangad side driven in a rash and negligent manner and dashed against the autorickshaw resulting in the appellant . being thrown off the road The autorickshaw was also badly . 27 damaged The appellant was aged on the date of . accident In the application for compensation he claimed that . 4,000/-. his monthly income was Rs The appellant was . . . , . initially hospitalised in the B K M Hospital Payyannur . . . , Thereafter he was referred to T M A Pai Rotary Hospital M.A.C.A. No. 829 of 2006 -:2:- . 24 . Mangalore His initial hospitalisation was for days Eventhough an application was filed by the appellant for assessing the percentage of disability by a medical board , after psychiatric and neurological consultation the Tribunal rejected the said application for the reason that the certificate already issued by the medical board at the District , . Hospital Kannur does not fix any percentage of disability . 1 . Ext X is the said certificate But it mentions that six months , after the accident the appellant had shown signs of behavioral changes and had undergone treatment for . psychosis His condition was diagnosed as bipolar deffective . disorder for which he was on treatment The medical board had recommended examination by a neurologist and , . psychiatrist from the Medical College Hospital Pariyaram The Tribunal after fixing the monthly income of the . 2,000/- . 12,000/- appellant as Rs awarded a sum of Rs by . . way of loss of earnings for six months A sum of Rs 11,000/- was awarded towards transportation expenses . . 40,025/- including bills Another sum of Rs was awarded . . 12,300/- towards medical expenses A sum of Rs was . .3,000/- awarded as bystanders expenses Rs was awarded M.A.C.A. No. 829 of 2006 -:3:- - . . 10,000/- towards extra nourishment A sum of Rs was . , awarded towards pain and sufferings The Tribunal , . 88,325/- accordingly fixed a total compensation of Rs which . 88,500/-. was rounded off to Rs It is aggrieved by the said . award that the appellant has preferred this appeal 2. We heard the learned counsel appearing for the appellant as well as the learned counsel appearing for the . Oriental Insurance Company which has admitted its liability 3. It was under the mistaken impression that the appellant had not sustained any head injury that the Tribunal . 1 did not consider seriously the finding in Ext X about the . psychiatric illness of the appellant seriously During the hearing of this appeal on 20-10-2010. This Court noticing the fact that the Tribunal was not justified in rejecting the request of the appellant to send him to a medical Board for further evaluation of his neurological and psychiatric , condition suo motu referred him to the Medical Board constituted by the Superintendent of the Medical College , . 9-11-2010 Hospital Pariyaram The disability certificate dated forwarded to this Court from the said Medical College shows that he was examined by a team of doctors including the M.A.C.A. No. 829 of 2006 -:4:- , , Assistant Professor of Psychiatry Professor of Neurosusrgery Assistant Professor of Orthopedics and Professor and head of the Department of Surgery to find the percentage of disability 40% ( ).. , at as per IDEAS Scale No doubt the Board has opined that the present psychiatric illness in unlikely to be . due to trauma But it is also mentioned that the mental . status of the patient before trauma is to be ascertained . .1 It was not suggested to the appellant examined as P W before the Tribunal that he had any psychiatrict illness prior . . 2 to the accident The said certificate is marked as Ext X in . this appeal 4. The appellant is admittedly an autorickshaw driver . at Kozhunnal in Kannur District The learned counsel appearing for the appellant submitted that the appellant is has never been able to run his autorickshaw for eking out his livelihood after the accident and he has kept . himself confined to his home Ordinarily an autorickshaw driver will be the last person to keep at home without taking his autorickshaw to the road for eking out his . livelihood We think that the depression which the appellant had developed was on account of the traumatic experience M.A.C.A. No. 829 of 2006 -:5:- 2-11-1997. which he suffered on Eventhough the disability . 2 40%, assessed in Ext X is on a modest estimate the 35% . disability can be taken to be The Tribunal below did . not award any amount towards permanent disability We are of the view that the appellant who was disabled from eking his livelihood on account of the accident is certainly entitled . to disability compensation 5. . The income assessed by the Tribunal as Rs 2000/- . is also on the lower side Going by the various , . judicial pronouncements on the above question a sum of Rs 3,000/- can safely be adopted as the monthly income of the . 27 . appellant The appellant was aged at the date of accident , 18. , So the multiplier to be adopted is On that score the . total disability compensation due to the appellant will be Rs 2,26,800/-. . 10,000/- As against the sum of Rs awarded by , way of pain and sufferings we are of the view that he . 20,000/- should be given Rs as compensation for pain and . suffering The Tribunal did not award any compensation . . 10,000/- toward loss of amenities We award a sum of Rs . . on that score The Tribunal had awarded a sum of Rs 12,000/- by way of loss of amenities for six months M.A.C.A. No. 829 of 2006 -:6:- . 2,000/- . reckoning his monthly income as Rs Now that we . 3,000/- have fixed his monthly income as Rs the loss of . 18,000/-. earning for six months will be Rs Thus we award .6,000/- . an enhancement of Rs on that score 6. The result of the foregoing discussion is that over . 88,500/- and above the sum of Rs awarded by the , Tribunal the appellant will be entitled to an enhanced . 2,52,800/- compensation of Rs which amount shall bear 7.5 interest at the rate of percent per annum from the date . . ( . ) . of the O P M V till the date of realisation , In the result this appeal is allowed in part as above with . / proportionate costs The respondent Insurance Company shall . deposit the amount within two months from today Dated this the 15th day of December, 2011. Sd/-V. Ramkumar, Judge Sd/-P.Q. Barkath Ali, Judge. /true copy/ ani. P.S. to Judge M.A.C.A. No. 829 of 2006 -:7:-