SUNIL KUMAR KHUSHWAHA Vs. KATRAGADDA SATYANARAYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Leave granted.

(2.) Two pedestrians were struck by a truck which was driven rashly and negligently, leading to one of them, the appellant/claimant herein, suffering grievous injuries leading to amputation of his right leg from knee. The injured was first taken to the local hospital, then shifted to the specialized hospital and later to Delhi from Ranchi for better treatment where the amputation was carried out. The injured was a fruit seller who had already been filing Income Tax Returns, Exhibit-5 which indicated his income to the tune of Rs.1,56,996.00. The same was adopted by the Tribunal, however no amounts were granted for loss of income due to the permanent disability suffered. The Tribunal granted an amount of Rs.7,09,273.00, the major portion of which was towards medical bills coming to Rs.5,00,949.00. The aggregate was with respect to income during treatment for one and half months, towards conveyance (air and rail) and the pain and suffering which were respectively at Rs.19,624.00, Rs.13,700.00 and Rs.1,75,000.00.

(3.) The High Court relied on Raj Kumar v. Ajay Kumar and Anr,(2011) 1 SCC 343 which emphasized the need to assess the functional disability in granting compensation based on the physical disability certificate. In the present case, a doctor was examined who produced Exhibit 4/1, a disability certificate issued on the examination of the injured by a Medical Board. The certificate assessed the injured to have 50% permanent disability due to amputation of his right leg.