FAO No. 1889 of 2009 [1] IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH FAO No. 1889 of 2009 (O&M) Date of decision: 12.1.2010 Municipal Corporation, Saharanpur .. Appellant v. Som Nath and others .. Respondents CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RAJESH BINDAL Present: Mr. R. S. Mamli, Advocate for the appellant. ... Rajesh Bindal J. This is an appeal by Municipal Corporation, Saharanpur challenging the award of learned Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, Yamuna Nagar (for short, `the Tribunal') awarding compensation of Rs. 3,40,000/- to the family of deceased- Harbans Kaur in an accident with the tractor owned by the appellant. The appeal has been filed along with applications for condonation of delay of three days in filing the appeal and 43 days in re-filing thereof. Briefly, the facts are that in an accident, which occurred on 18.11.2005, near Old Thana Mandi on Saharanpur Bus Stand to Raiwala road at about 10.00 A.M., Harbans Kaur succumbed to her injuries. The deceased was going on a rickshaw along with her son's wife and daughter. They were being followed by her husband and nephew in another rickshaw. She had gone to Saharanpur from Jagadhri for purchasing clothes for the marriage in the family, when they were hit by the tractor, which was being driven by Naresh Kumar, an employee of the appellant, in a zig zag manner. The claimants were the husband, sons and daughters of deceased- Harbans Kaur. The Tribunal, while assessing the income and her contribution to the family at Rs. 2,000/- per month, assessed the compensation at Rs. 3,36,000/- and adding Rs. 4,000/- thereto for transportation of the dead body from Saharanpur to their native place, amount of Rs. 3,40,000/- was awarded along with interest. It is against this award that the appellant is in appeal before this Court. Learned counsel for the appellant submitted that the amount of FAO No. 1889 of 2009 [2] compensation, as assessed by the Tribunal, is on higher side, considering the fact that the deceased was an household lady and was not doing anything. The claim that she was in the business of dairy farming is totally false and fabricated. However, he could not deny the fact that the tractor in question was not carrying any registration plate at the time of accident and further the same was not even insured. The reason for not getting the tractor owned by the Municipal Corporation insured could not be explained satisfactorily. After hearing learned counsel for the appellant, I do not find any merit in the submissions made. The deceased in the present case was 40 years of age. As far as the accident is concerned, the same is proved beyond doubt on record in view of the fact that the offending vehicle was recovered from the spot and even the driver was arrested, as is noticed in the impugned award. The claimants in the present case are husband and five children of the deceased. The assessment of merely Rs. 2,000/- per month by the learned Tribunal towards her contribution to the family even in the form of household services cannot be said to be on the higher side and so is the application of multiplier of 14, considering her age as 40 years. Accordingly, it cannot be said that assessment of compensation by the learned Tribunal deserves interference by this Court. In view of the above, the present appeal is dismissed. This Court is constrained to impose costs of Rs. 10,000/- on the appellant considering the fact that the appeal was filed, which was without any merit and further the tractor, owned by the Municipal Corporation, was plying on the road without any registration number and the same had not even been got insured. The costs shall be payable to the High Court Legal Services Committee. Out of a sum of Rs. 25,000/- deposited by the appellant along with the appeal, the Registry is directed to pay Rs. 10,000/- towards the costs imposed to High Court Legal Services Committee and the balance amount be transferred to the learned Tribunal for disbursement to the claimants. (Rajesh Bindal) Judge 12.1.2010 mk