ORIENTAL INSURANCE COMPANY LTD Vs. CHANDONA PRAMANIK

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE Appellant Oriental Insurance Company Limited impugns a judgment dated 19.12.2009 passed by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (the Claims Tribunal) whereby a compensation of Rs.6,09,550/- was awarded in favour of the Respondents No.1 to 3 (the Claimants) for the death of one Johar who died in a motor vehicle accident which occurred on 28.11.2003.

(2.) A Claim Petition under Section 163-A of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (the Act) was preferred by the Respondents No.1 to 3 claiming the income of the deceased to be Rs.40,000/- per annum. In the absence of any proof of income, the Claims Tribunal took the minimum wages of an unskilled worker i.e. Rs.2784/- per month, added 50% towards inflation on basis of the judgment of this Court in National Insurance Company Ltd. v. Kailash Devi, II (2008) ACC 770, and applied the multiplier of Rs.16' to compute the loss of dependency as Rs.5,34,528/-. On adding a sum of Rs.50,000/- towards loss of love and affection and Rs.25,000/- towards funeral expenses, the overall compensation was computed as Rs.6,09,528/- (rounded off to Rs.6,09,550/-).

(3.) FIRSTLY, it is urged that in a Claim Petition under Section 163-A of the Act, no addition towards inflation can be made and the compensation has to be granted on the deceased's income on the date of the accident as per the structured formula provided in the Second Schedule to the Act.