New Delhi, Sep 4 (PTI) A Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) here has awarded Rs 86.45 lakh compensation to the family of a 31-year-old woman, who lost her life in a 2017 accident, saying the income of a homemaker needs to be calculated based on the minimum wages of a skilled worker.
The tribunal was hearing the claim petition by the family members of deceased Rekha Devi. According to the plea, the victim was travelling as a passenger in a tempo, which rammed into a crane coming from the wrong side of the road on November 6, 2017, and subsequently died during medical treatment.
Presiding Officer Abhilash Malhotra directed Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Co Ltd to pay around Rs 86.45 lakh to her family members while underlining that, according to the police probe and site plan, as the crane was being driven on the wrong side of the road, its driver was primarily responsible for the rash and negligent act.
“The driver of the crane was chargesheeted by the police under IPC Sections 279 (rash or negligent driving), 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others ) and 304A (causing death by negligence). There is nothing on record to show that the tempo was driven rashly and negligently,” the tribunal said in its order dated September 2.
It noted the submissions of the victim’s family that the deceased “used to give them valuable time, labour and efforts in discharging her dual function of homemaker besides being gainfully employed as a lady porter.” The tribunal, citing judicial precedents of constitutional courts, said: “It is amply clear that the income of a homemaker needs to be calculated on the basis of minimum wages of a skilled worker.” It said that in a 2011 case, the Supreme Court clarified that the income of a homemaker includes money earned from avocation as well as the value of gratuitous service provided by her and the parameter to value gratuitous service is the minimum wages of a skilled person.
By combining her actual salary with the notional value of her household work, the court fixed her monthly income at Rs 25,883 for the claim.
The tribunal then computed a total compensation of around Rs 86.45 lakh under various heads, such as interest, loss of dependency, loss of love and affection, loss of domestic care, loss of estate, medical expenses, loss of consortium and funeral expenses. PTI MNR KSI KSI KSI
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