P.M. MANUKUTTAN Vs. MAHESH P. AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE wife of the appellant died in an accident. She was aged 52 and was travelling as a pillion rider along with her son, first respondent herein from Kadalundi to Kozhikode on 8 -6 -2009. She was thrown out of the motorcycle and died while undergoing treatment at MIMS Hospital on 9 -6 -2009. Rupees five lakhs was claimed as compensation.

(2.) THE Tribunal has granted compensation in the following manner:

(3.) WHEN there is no clear evidence to prove that she was working as a tailor, we will have to consider her service as a housewife, for which we grant Rs. 3,500/ - per month as notional income for awarding compensation. Other items of heads of claim which require modification are funeral expenses, loss of companionship and loss of estate. According to us, for funeral expenses Rs. 25,000/ - is liable to be granted, for loss of companionship we grant an amount of Rs. 50,000/ -, and for loss of estate we grant an amount of Rs. 20,000/ -. The appellant was aged 61 years at the time of the accident and the Tribunal adopted the proper multiplier as 5, which is not justified. Going by the judgment of the Apex Court in Sarala Verma v. Delhi Transport Corporation : (2012(2) KLT 802), the multiplier to be adopted is 11. Therefore, compensation for loss of dependency will be Rs. 3,08,000/ - (3500x12x11x2/3).