1 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR MAC No. 547 of 2024 1 - Malti Sahu W/o Late Bhagat Ram Sahu Aged About 49 Years Resident Of Village Bitkuli, Police Station City Kotwali Baloda Bazar, Dist. Baloda Bazar- Bhatapara, C.G. 2 - Minor Shyam Kumar Sahu S/o Late Bhagat Ram Sahu Aged About 15 Years Resident Of Village Bitkuli, Police Station City Kotwali Baloda Bazar, Dist. Baloda Bazar- Bhatapara, C.G. ... Appellants versus 1 - Jivan Soni S/o Gopal Soni Aged About 25 Years R/o Near Sheetla Tent Risda, Balodabazar, Police Station City Kotwali Balodabazar, Dist. Baloda Bazar- Bhatapara, C.G. (Driver And Owner Of Alleged Offending Vehicle Motorcycle Super Splendor Bearing Registration No. C.G.22-T- 5810). 2 - Tata AIG General Insurance Company Limited First Floor, 106-7, Val Fort, Ozon Bilaspur Road, Near Fafadih Chowk, Raipur, C.G. 492001 (Insurer Of Alleged Offending Vehicle Motorcycle Super Splendor Bearing Registration No. C.G.22-T-5810) ... Respondents For the appellants : Mr. S.P. Sahu, Advocate For respondents 1 & 2 : None For respondent no.3 Mr. Saurabh Sharma, Advocate (Hon’ble Shri Justice Sanjay Kumar Jaiswal) ALLENA ANNAJEE RAO Digitally signed by ALLENA ANNAJEE RAO Date: 2026.07.01 10:26:10 +0530 2 Judgment on Board 30/ 6 /2026 1. This appeal under Section 173 of Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (for short “MV Act”) has been filed challenging the award dated 04-01- 2024 passed by the learned Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Balauda Bazar Bhatapara Chhattisgarh, in Claim Case No 85/2022. By the impugned award, the learned Tribunal has awarded Rs. 9,93,472/- as compensation to the claimants due to death of deceased Bharat Ram Sahu. The said vehicle was owned and driven by respondent no. 1 and insured with respondent no.2 /Insurance company. 2. The gist of the claim before the Tribunal, in brief, was that on 09.07.2022, at about 8:00 PM, deceased Bhagat Ram Sahu was going on his bicycle to perform his duty as Chowkidar at Satyanarayan Kesharwani Rice Mill, Dotopar. Near Mallin Nala Main Road. At that time, the driver of Motorcycle Super Splendor bearing Registration No. CG 22 T 5810, drove the vehicle at a high speed and in a rash and negligent manner and hit the bicycle from the front, due to which, Bhagat Ram Sahu sustained grievous head and bodily injuries and died during treatment. On the report of the incident, Crime No. 562/2022 was registered at Police Station Balodabazar against Non-applicant No. 1. It is claimed that at the time of accident, deceased Bhagat Ram Sahu was aged about 50 years. He was working as a Chowkidar and Agriculturist and earning Rs. 20,000/- per month. Due to the untimely death of deceased, there is an irreparable loss to the appellants/claimants who 3 are the legal heirs of the deceased. Therefore, the claimants had preferred the application under Section 166 of M.V. Act before the Tribunal claiming total compensation of Rs. 72,93,000/-. 3. The learned claims Tribunal on a close scrutiny of the evidence brought on record and the pleadings made in application, took the monthly income of deceased as Rs.9540/-, further granted 10% future prospectus , deducted 1/3rd towards personal expenses and applied multiplier of 11. Further more, Rs.70,000/- has been awarded on other heads. Thus a total compensation of Rs. 9,93,472/- has been awarded in favour of the appellants with interest @ 7.5% per annum from the date of application till its realisation. 4. Learned counsel for the appellant/claimants submits that the compensation awarded by the Claims Tribunal is on the lower side and needs to be enhanced suitably. He contends that the Tribunal has taken lesser income of the deceased which needs to be justly enhanced. He further submits that the Tribunal has also awarded lesser amounts on other heads, therefore, this appeal may be allowed and amount of compensation may be enhanced suitably. 5. On the other hand, learned counsel for the Insurance Company/Non-applicant No. 2 has argued that the Claims Tribunal after appreciating oral and documentary evidence available on record rightly awarded the compensation amount. Hence, the compensation awarded by the Claims Tribunal is just and proper and requires no interference. 6. Heard counsel for the parties and perused the documents available on record. 4 7. Now this Court shall examine as to whether the compensation of awarded by the tribunal is just and proper compensation in the given facts and circumstances of the case. 8. As regards the income of deceased, the claimants have pleaded that the deceased was earning Rs.20,000/- per month by working as labourer and agriculturist but no documentary evidence in support thereof has been produced. However, this does not mean that the deceased was not earning anything from his work. Therefore in absence of any reliable evidence regarding income of deceased, keeping in mind the nature of occupation, date of accident, minimum wage rate structure prevailing on the date of accident, price index and cost of living etc., specially the notification by the Labour Department for minimum wages, I find it appropriate to take income of deceased as Rs. 9960/- per month as minimum wages. Thus the annual incomes comes to Rs.1,19,520/- per annum. So far as future prospects is concerned, as per the National Insurance Company Ltd., Vs. Pranay Sethi (2017) 16 SCC 680 after adding 10% towards future prospects i.e.,11,952/- the annual income would come to Rs.1,31,472/-. 9. The deceased was 55 years of age and the claimants are widow and minor son of the deceased. So the deduction towards personal expenses would be 1/3 which comes to Rs. 43,824/-. So the net annual dependency would be Rs.87,648/-. In view of judgment of the Hon’ble Suprme Court in Sarla Verma (Smt) Vs. Delhi Transport Corporation (2009) 6 SCC l2l and National Insurance Company Ltd., Vs. Pranay Sethi (2017) 16 SCC 680 considering the age of 5 deceased, after applying the multiplier of 11 the total loss of dependency is worked out to Rs. 9,64,128/-. Under the other heads, the claimants are further entitled to get Rs.16,500/- for loss of estate, Rs.16,500/- for funeral expenses. As per the decision of Supreme Court in Magma General Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Nanu Ram Alias Chuhru Ram (AIR 2018 SC 2782), each dependent/claimant is further entitled to compensation of Rs. 40,000 for loss of consortium, which further attracts a 10% escalation (making it Rs. 44,000 per claimant). Therefore, each dependent/claimant is entitled to get Rs.44,000/- for loss of love and affection. Thus this Court is recomputing the compensation in the following manner : 1. Total loss of dependency Rs. 9,64,128/- 2. Loss of estate Rs. 16,500/- 3. Funeral Expenses Rs. 16,500/- 4. Loss of love and affection (44000 x 2) Rs. 88,000 Total Rs.10,85,128/- 10. Thus the total compensation is recomputed to Rs.10,85,128/- from which after deduction of Rs. 9,93,472/- as awarded by the Tribunal, the enhancement would be Rs. 91,656/- which the claimants are entitled to receive in addition to what is already awarded by the Claims Tribunal. The enhanced amount shall carry interest @ 6% per annum from the date of enhancement of the award till its realisation. 11. In the result, the appeal is partly allowed. The impugned award stands modified to the above extent and rest of the conditions shall 6 remain intact. 12. The Registry is further directed to communicate the claimants in writing “the enhanced amount” in this appeal as against the amount awarded by the Tribunal. The said communication be made in Hindi Deonagri language and the help of para-legal workers may be availed with a co-ordination of Secretary, Legal Aid of the concerned area where the claimants reside. Sd/- Sanjay Kumar Jaiswal Judge Rao