F.A.O.NO. 619 OF 2004 1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH F.A.O.NO. 619 OF 2004 Date of decision:13th September, 2010 National Insurance Company Limited, Regional Office No. II, SCO No. 337-340, Sector 35B, Chandigarh throough Shri Rajinder Sharma, Administrative Officer. .......Appellant Versus Kulwinder Singh and others ........Respondents BEFORE: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE K.KANNAN Present: Mr. Jagtar Kureel, Advocate, for Mr. D.P.Gupta, Advocate, for the appellant. None for the respondents. 1. Whether Reporters of local papers may be allowed to see the judgment? Yes/No 2. To be referred to the Reporters or not?Yes/No 3. Whether the judgment should be reported in the Digest? Yes/No K.Kannan, J.(Oral) 1. The case is taken up for argument by the Insurer only on the issue of interest for future earnings and would rely on a judgment of this Court in “Oriental Insurance Company Ltd. vs. Om Parkash” (2002) ACJ 3872 (P&H). In the said judgment, the Court has rejected the reasoning of the Tribunal in awarding interest for future loss of earnings and it has held that an amount which was to accrue the claimant with the lapse of time and after the accident and even after the decision of the Tribunal cannot be awarded. The award is invariably made by F.A.O.NO. 619 OF 2004 2 factoring a future projection of income and device a certain kind of approximation is inevitable. There have been cases which have laid down that after the award is passed and after a case is closed, no evidence shall be let in that the claimant had come for greater harm and had suffered some other future increase of disability which had not been contemplated at the trial. The effect is that on the day when an award is passed, the Tribunal shall make a proper approximation and determine what is payable as just compensation. If a compensation is awarded, taking also the prospect of future income loss, then the question of award of interest is covered wholly by Section 171 of the Motor Vehicles Act, not merely for a case of injury but even in case of death. The Tribunal approximates the future income also and if interest on future income cannot be awarded, it will make meaningless the application of Section 171 of the Act itself. With respect, I have to state that the judgment cited does not state the law correctly and it is against even, the power of Court under Section 171 of the Act. I therefore, reject the contention of the insurer that interest cannot be paid for the loss of earning for an injured person which the Tribunal estimates as having resulted from the injuries suffered in the accident. 2. The appeal is therefore, dismissed. [K.KANNAN] JUDGE 13th September, 2010 Shivani Kaushik