1 2025:CGHC:35400 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR WPC No. 4283 of 2019 1 - Shanti Dubey W/o Badrinath Aged About 51 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 2 - Bharat Kumar S/o Yadumani Aged About 85 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 3 - Rajkumar Behra S/o Nandau Aged About 50 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 4 - Shakuntala Wd/o Nandau Aged About 75 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 5 - Gajadhar Barik S/o Bhagirathi Aged About 84 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 6 - Rajkishore S/o Bhagirathi Aged About 72 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 7 - Jageshwar Prasad S/o Bhagirathi Aged About 70 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 8 - Dhansingh S/o Dukalu Aged About 63 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 9 - Lalit Singh S/o Haricharan Aged About 65 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 10 - Gokul Prasad S/o Haricharan Aged About 52 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 11 - Ramshankar S/o Haricharan Aged About 56 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh -2- 12 - Bhojram Dansena S/o Parkhit Aged About 62 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 13 - Manuram S/o Lachchhiram Aged About 62 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 14 - Govind Ram Behra S/o Bholaram Aged About 62 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh --- Petitioner(s) versus 1 - State Of Chhattisgarh Through The Secretary, Revenue And Dissaster Management, Mahanadi Bhawan, Mantralaya, Atal Nagar, Raipur, Chhattisgarh., District : Raipur, Chhattisgarh 2 - Collector Raigarh, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 3 - Land Acquisition Officer-Cum-Sub Divisional Officer (Revenue) Gharghoda, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 4 - M/s Ambuja Cement Limited Office At Karwahi, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh, Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh --- Respondent(s) Along with WPC No. 1875 of 2019 1 - Bhojraj Dansena S/o Late Parkhit Dansena Aged About 62 Years R/o Village Khamhariya, Post Saraitola, Police Station And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh ---Petitioner(s) Versus 1 - Union Of India Through Ministry Of Environment And Forest And Climate Change Indira Paryavaran Bhavan, Jorbagh Road, New Delhi., District : New Delhi, Delhi 2 - State Of Chhattisgarh, Through The Secretary, Department Of Revenue And Disaster Management , Ministry, Mahanadi Bhawan, Naya Raipur, Post Office And Police Station Rakhi, District Raipur Chhattisgarh., District : Raipur, Chhattisgarh 3 - District Magistrate Raigarh, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 3 4 - M/s Ambuja Cement Company Pvt. Ltd., Gare Pelma Coal Block, Village Khamhar, Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh --- Respondent(s) Along with WPC No. 4362 of 2019 1 - Sumati W/o Late Urmila Aged About 60 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 2 - Shyam Kumar S/o Pillal Aged About 40 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 3 - Mukteshwar S/o Chandroday Aged About 43 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 4 - Mukund Behra S/o Chandroday Aged About 40 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 5 - Sadhu Ram Behra S/o Dubraj Aged About 65 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 6 - Basanti Choudhari W/o Sudama Prasad Aged About 47 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 7 - Yogesh Behra S/o Sadhuram Aged About 38 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 8 - Netranand Behra S/o Dubraj Aged About 58 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 9 - Dilip Nishad S/o Dinbandhu Aged About 59 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 10 - Dropati W/o Jageshwar Aged About 63 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 11 - Ravishankar S/o Padman Aged About 55 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 12 - Thuniram Yadav S/o Katari Aged About 50 Years R/o Village Khamhariya -4- , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 13 - Nandu Ram Rathiya S/o Parasram Aged About 78 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 14 - Pancham Lal Behra S/o Dubraj Aged About 57 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 15 - Shiv Kumar S/o Goverdhan Aged About 64 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 16 - Tilotama W/o Omprakash Aged About 52 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 17 - Omprakash S/o Goverdhan Aged About 55 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 18 - Bhagirathi S/o Goverdhan Aged About 58 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 19 - Hulas Rathiya S/o Mangal Singh Aged About 32 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 20 - Makan Sunder S/o Bholaram Aged About 46 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 21 - Govind Ram Choudhary S/o Bhunak Ram Aged About 62 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 22 - Malik Ram S/o Bhunakram Aged About 60 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 23 - Japeshwar S/o Natthuram Aged About 30 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 24 - Bhimram Nayak S/o Kuber Tharan Aged About 61 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 25 - Ashan S/o Bhimram Aged About 42 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, 5 Chhattisgarh 26 - Makardhwaj S/o Bhimram Nayak Aged About 38 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 27 - Salik Ram S/o Hariram Nayak Aged About 35 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 28 - Khushilal S/o Ajit Singh Aged About 80 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 29 - Tularam S/o Khushilal Aged About 48 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 30 - Chaitram S/o Sohan Aged About 75 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 31 - Dukhiram S/o Indersai Aged About 62 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 32 - Minketan Behra S/o Vishwanath Aged About 50 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 33 - Deendayal S/o Nandlal Aged About 50 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 34 - Budhlal S/o Makhanlal Aged About 47 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 35 - Sunder S/o Mohar Sai Aged About 65 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 36 - Ramlal S/o Mohar Sai Aged About 60 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 37 - Mankunwar S/o Chandar Sai Aged About 48 Years R/o Village Khamhariya , P.S. And Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh ---Petitioner(s) Versus -6- 1 - State Of Chhattisgarh Through The Secretary , Revenue And Disaster Management, Mahanadi Bhawan, Mantralaya, Atal Nagar Raipur Chhattisgarh., District : Raipur, Chhattisgarh 2 - Collector Raigarh District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 3 - Land Acquisition Officer - Cum - Sub Divisional Offcer (Revenue) Gharghoda, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh 4 - M/s Ambuja Cement Ltd. Office At Karwahi Tahsil Tamnar, District Raigarh Chhattisgarh., District : Raigarh, Chhattisgarh ---- Respondents For Petitioners : Mr. Kamal Kishore Patel, Advocate holding the brief of Mr. Surfaraj Khan, Advocate For State : Ms. Shailja Shukla, Dy. G.A. For respective Respondents: Mr. Ramakant Mishra, Deputy Solicitor General Mr. Tushar Dhar Diwan, CGC and Mr. Bhupendra Kumar Pandey, Advocate Mr. Ashish Shrivastava, Senior Advocate assisted by Mr. Rahul Ambast and Mr. Ashutosh Shrivastava, Adv. Hon'ble Shri Justice Rakesh Mohan Pandey Order on Board 23.07.2025 1. In WPC No.4283 of 2019 and WPC No.4362 of 2019, the petitioners have claimed interest on the amount of compensation. 2. In WPC No.1875 of 2019, the petitioner, namely Bhojraj Dansena, has challenged the ‘No Objection Certificate’ granted in favour of respondent No.4 by the Additional District Magistrate, Raigarh, dated 22.05.2018. WPC No.1875 of 2019 was filed on 14.05.2019, and in WPC No.4283 of 2019, Bhojram Dansena is petitioner No.12, which was filed on 11.11.2019, wherein he has claimed interest on the delayed payment of compensation. As Bhojram has claimed interest, meaning thereby he has accepted the amount of compensation, therefore, WPC No.1875 of 2019, whereby he challenged the ‘No 7 Objection Certificate’ granted by the Additional District Magistrate, Raigarh, dated 22.05.2018, is not maintainable, and is therefore hereby dismissed. 3. WPC No.4283 of 2019 and WPC No.4362 of 2019 The facts of the present case are that the petitioners were the owners of their lands situated at Village Khamriya, Tehsil Tamnar, District Raigarh. The lands of the petitioners were acquired according to the provisions of Section 247 of the Chhattisgarh Land Revenue Code, and Revenue Case 01/A-67/2016-17 was registered. An award was passed by respondent No.3/ Sub-Divisional Officer on 28.03.2017. The petitioners further pleaded that the amount of compensation was paid in the year 2019, and the interest part payable to the petitioners according to the provisions of Section 80 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (for short ‘the Act of 2013’) has not been paid. The petitioners had preferred WPC No.2992 of 2019, and liberty was granted to make a representation before the Sub-Divisional Officer (Revenue), Gharghoda, District Raigarh (C.G.) and a further direction was issued to the said authority to decide it. 4. The petitioners preferred representation(s) on 16.09.2019 and it was rejected vide order dated 09.10.2019. Against the said order, these two petitions (WPC No. 4283 of 2019 and WPC No. 4362 of 2019) have been preferred. 5. Learned counsel appearing for the petitioners would submit that an award was passed on 28.03.2017, but the amount of compensation was paid in the year 2019; therefore, the petitioners are entitled to the interest component according to the provisions of Section 80 of the Act -8- of 2013. He would further submit that the petitioners are poor villagers and the amount of compensation remained with the office of respondent No.3 for a considerable period; therefore, the respondent authorities are liable to pay interest. He would pray to allow these petitions. 6. On the other hand, learned counsels appearing for the respondents would oppose the submissions made by the learned counsel appearing for the petitioners. They would submit that an award was passed on 28.03.2017 by the Land Acquisition Officer. The permission was granted to the Forest Department to cut trees on 12.03.2018, and the amount of compensation was disbursed to the petitioners in the month of May, 2019. They would contend that the possession was handed over to respondent No.4 in the month of June, 2019, and prior to that date, the amount of compensation was paid. 7. Mr. Ashish Shrivastava, learned Senior Advocate, would submit that the total amount of compensation was assessed to the tune of Rs. 81,91,77,436/-. Respondent No.4 deposited Rs. 30,00,00,000/- on 30.12.2016 and Rs. 55,01,29,839/- on 16.01.2017 and thus, the total amount of Rs. 85,01,29,839/- was deposited prior to the date of the award. He would further submit that respondent No.4 had paid Rs. 3,09,52,403/- in excess. He would contend that the amount of compensation was lying with respondent No.3, and after acquiring possession of the lands of the petitioners, the amount of compensation was paid to the land oustees. It is also argued that the petitioners have filed these petitions after accepting the amount of compensation. He would further contend that both petitions deserve to be dismissed. 9 8. I have heard learned counsel appearing for the parties and perused the documents placed on the record. 9. Admittedly, the lands of the petitioners were acquired according to the provisions of Section 247 of the Chhattisgarh Land Revenue Code. Respondent No.4 deposited Rs.30,00,00,000/- on 30.12.2016 and Rs.55,01,29,839/- on 16.01.2017. An award was passed on 28.03.2017. The possession was handed over to respondent No.4 in the month of June, 2019, whereas the amount of compensation was withdrawn by the petitioners prior to that date. 10. Section 80 of the Act of 2013 deals with the payment of interest. It states that when the amount of compensation is not paid or deposited on or before taking possession of the land, the Collector shall pay the amount awarded with interest thereon at the rate of nine per cent per annum from the time of so taking possession until it shall have been paid. It further provides that if compensation or any part is not paid or deposited within a period of one year from the date of possession, interest at the rate of fifteen per cent per annum shall be payable. Section 80 is reproduced herein below: “80. Payment of interest.- When the amount of such compensation is not paid or deposited on or before taking possession of the land, the Collector shall pay the amount awarded with interest thereon at the rate of nine per cent. per annum from the time of so taking possession until it shall have been so paid or deposited: Provided that if such compensation or any part thereof is not paid or deposited within a period of one year from the date on which possession is taken, interest at the rate of fifteen per cent. per annum shall be payable from the date or expiry of the said period of one year on the amount of compensation or part thereof which has not been paid or deposited before the date -10- of such expiry.” 11. In the present case, an award was passed on 28.03.2017 and prior to that date, full amount of compensation was deposited with the Land Acquisition Officer by respondent No.4. The petitioners have not disputed the fact that the possession was taken over by the respondents in the month of June, 2019 and prior to the said date, the amount of compensation was disbursed to the petitioners. 12. As the amount of compensation was deposited before passing of the award, and before taking possession of the lands and it was paid to the land oustees, in the opinion of this Court, the petitioners are not entitled to interest component on the delayed payment of compensation as there was no delay in payment of compensation. 13. Accordingly, both petitions are dismissed. No cost(s). Sd/- (Rakesh Mohan Pandey) Judge Rekha