Lachhman Dass vs State of Punjab

Dr. Sarojnei Saksena, J.—This judgment will dispose of Letters Patent Appeal Nos. 812 to 822, 862, 863, 866, 867 and 868 of 1987, 1114 to 1125 of 1998 and 854 of 1990 filed by different claimants and decided by D.V. Sehgal, J. vide his judgment dated 26.3.1987. L.P.A. No. 1114 to 1988 is decided alongwith the aforesaid appeals. Regular First Appeal No. 2252 of 1985 in this case was decided by G.C. Mittal, J. vide his order dated 11.8.1987.

In Letters Patent Appeal Nos. 812 to 822 of 1987, the land measuring 11.49 acres was acquired vide notification dated 25.2.1983 within the revenue estate of village Bathonian Khurd for the construction of Satluj Yamuna Link canal. In Letters Patent Appeal Nos. 1114 of 1125 of 1988 and 854 of 1990, land measuring 50.04 acres in village Bathonia Kalan in District Patiala was acquired vide notification dated 14.12.1982 for the construction of Satluj Yamuna Link Canal. In Letters Patent Appeal Nos. 862, 863, 866, 867 and 868 of 1987, land measuring 15.38 acres was acquired in village Bibipur for the construction of SYL Canal vide notification dated 13.12.1982. The land acquired in all these three villages is in close proximity of village Bathonian Khurd.

Land measuring 11.49 acres was acquired within the revenue estate of village Natj Bathonia Khurd in pursuance of Government notification dated 25.2.1983 for a public purpose i.e. construction of the Satluj Yamuna Link Canal. The Land Acquisition Collector made an award and determined the market value of the acquired land as under :

Chahi

Rs. 16,500/ per acre

Rausli

Rs. 13,200/ per acre

Dakar

Rs. 13,200/ per acre

Bud

Rs. 13,200/ per acre

Gair Mumkin

Rs. 11,000/ per acre.

Being dissatisfied, the landowners made references under Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act (for short the ''Act'') which have been disposed of vide award of the learned District Judge and were challenged in the Regular First Appeals. The learned Additional District Judge determined the market value as under :

Chahi

Rs. 10,000/ per bigha

Barani

Rs. 15,000/ per acre

Banjar/Ghair Mumkin.

Rs. 12,000/ per acre.

The land owners of village Bathonian Khurd preferred R.F.A. No. 802 of 1986. After hearing the rival contentions, the learned Single Judge observed that the District Judge has not mentioned any sale instance which could have been taken into consideration while fixing the compensation. The landowners also failed to bring on record any sale instance pertaining to village Bathonian Khurd to show that the compensation awarded by the Collector is inadequate. The landowners placed reliance on the award of the District Judge by which land of villages Ganda and Chalheri was acquired. Raja Ram AW4 stated that the land of village Chalheri is close to the land acquired in village Bathonian Khurd.

The learned Single Judge also observed that in Tehal Singh v. State of Punjab, 1987 R.R.R. 495, R.F.A. No. 858 of 1986 decided on 20.3.1987, he has referred to the award made by the learned District Judge, Patiala on 24.10.1986 in Land Reference No. 18 of 1984 (Pushap Kumar v. State of Punjab and another) wherein he fixed the market value of the land acquired for the S.Y.L. Canal apart from the land which abuts the G.T. Road and the Urban Estate of Rajpura and runs through the entire revenue estate of village Chalheri from north to south at Rs. 15,000/ per bigha. The learned Single Judge also observed that he has relied therein on the recommendation made by the Chief Engineer, S.Y.L. Canal Project that the market value of the land should be assessed at Rs. 11,000/ per bigha. While making such recommendation, the Chief Engineer relied on the two sale deeds dated 19.8.82 and 4.8.82 whereby agricultural land had been sold at this rate. Despite referring to this recommendation, the Collector fixed the market of the land at Rs. 10,000/ bigha without assigning any reason for not adopting the rate of Rs. 11,000/ per bigha as recommended by the Chief Engineer. The learned Single Judge said that in these circumstances, in Tehal Singh''s case (supra), he pegged down the market value of the land acquired for the S.Y.L. Canal in village Bibipur. The revenue estate of village Bathonian Khurd also adjoins village Chahleri on one side. The terrain and the nature of land in both the revenue are identical. Hence, he adopted the same rate to determine the market value of the land acquired which was subject matter in these Regular First Appeals and fixed the rate as under :

Chahi

Rs. 11,000/ per bigha

Barani

Rs. 7,500/ per bigha

Banjar/Ghair Mumkin

Rs. 5,000/ bigha

The learned District Judge awarded compensation for severance at different rates. The learned Single Judge observed that compensation for severance is not based on sound reasoning. He held that the loss which has been caused by severance includes loss on account of uneconomic agricultural holdings, which has been left after acquisition, bifurcation of a big economic holding into two small holdings which may not be any longer viable for profitable cultivation, loss of access to the land where the canal intervenes between the village and the land or availability of a bridge over the canal in the course of time which may be quite distant from the village as also the land on the other side of the canal, loss of irrigation facilities in case the well or the canal water course which is the source of irrigation is located on the other side of the S.Y.L. Canal. Agriculturists barter or sell small uneconomical holdings which are purchased by the adjoining landowners though the price fetched is comparatively less than its market value. He also observed that the land measuring more than two acres normally makes a viable agricultural holding in the Tehsil of Rajpura where the mode of cultivation and harvesting is by and large conventional and is yet to be mechanised. Taking all these factors into consideration, the learned Single Judge awarding the compensation for severance of land to the concerned land holders as under :

Chahi

Rs. 11,000/ per bigha

Dakkar and Rousli (Barani)

Rs. 7,500/ per bigha<

Banjar and Gair Mumkin

Rs. 5,000/ per Bigha

The learned Single Judge also held that land owners shall not be entitled to solatium under Section 23(2) of the Act and under Section 23(1A) of the Act on the amount of compensation on account of severance, but they shall be entitled to interest, Solatium at the rate of 30% and interest at the rate of 12% per annum on the market value from the date of notification under Section 4 of the Act i.e. 25.2.1983 till the award of the Collector was awarded. Interest was awarded at the rate of 9% per annum from the date of their dispossession for a period of one year and at the rate of 15% per annum for the period subsequent thereto till the date of payment of the amount of compensation. Thus all the Regular First Appeals were partially allowed with proportionate costs.

In L.P.A. No. 1114 of 1988, the facts are that by a notification dated 14.12.1982 under Section 4 of the Act, the State of Punjab acquired 50.04 acres of land in village Bathonia Kalan in District Patiala, for the construction of SYL Canal. The Land Acquisition Collector awarded the market price as under :

Chahi

Rs. 16,500/ per acre.

Dakkar (Barani)

Rs. 13,200/ per acre.

Gair Mumkin

Rs. 11,000/ per acre

Being dissatisfied, the land owners made a reference under Section 18 of the Act. The learned District Judge awarded the market price as under :

Chahi

Rs. 25,000/ per acre.

Dakkar and Rousli

Rs. 20,000/ per acre.

Gair Mumkin

18,000/ per acre.

During the course of arguments, the judgments in Tehal Singh''s case (supra) and R.F.A. No. 802 of 1986 (Jagan Nath and ors. v. State of Punjab and another) decided on 26.3.1987 by D.V. Shehgal, J. were referred to wherein the compensation was awarded as under :

Chahi

Rs. 11,000/ per Bigha

Barani

Rs. 7,500/ per Bigha

Banjar/Ghair Mumkin

Rs. 5,000/ per Bigha

Relying upon the judgment in Tehal Singh''s case (supra), the learned Single Judge fixed the market value of the land as under :

Chahi

Rs. 11,000/ per bigha

Barani

Rs. 7,500/ per bigha

Banjar/Ghair Mumkin

Rs. 5,000/ per bigha

During arguments, the appellant''s learned counsel placed reliance on the decisions rendered in R.F.A. No. 829 of 1986 decided on 3.11.1988 (Chatan Singh and ors. v. State of Punjab and ors.) by J.S. Sekhon, J. and R.F.A. No. 98 of 1986, decided on 20.9.1988 (Arsal Singh and another v. State of Punjab and another) by I.S. Tiwana, J. In both these cases, the market rate of the acquired land is determined as under :

For irrigated lands

Rs. 15,000/ per bigha

Rausli land

Rs. 7,500/ per bigha

Ghair Mumkin land

Rs. 6,000/ per bigha

The learned Deputy Advocate General appearing for the respondents did not dispute the rate of market value determined in these judgement.

In the light of the above agreed stand of the learned counsel, we order that all the claimants in these Letters Patent Appeals are entitled to get compensation of the irrigated land at the rate of Rs. 15,000/ per bigha for Rausli land Rs. 7,500/ per bigha and for Ghair Mumkin land Rs. 6,000/ per bigha. It is further ordered that besides the market value as determined above, the landowners/appellants are also hereby granted the benefit of Sections 23(1A), 23(2) and 28 of the Act as they stand after the enforcement of Act No. 68 of 1984. Appeals are accordingly allowed with costs.

Before parting with the judgment, it is made clear that the land owners/appellants are liable to pay the Court fee on the enhanced amount of compensation within three months from today.

Appeals allowed.