CA NO. …. OF 2017 @ SLP(C) NO. 14839 OF 2015

REPORTABLE IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

CIVIL APPEAL NO.  9287  OF 2017 {Arising out of SLP(C) No.14839 of 2015}

NELATUR SAMPOORNAMMA W/O SRINIVASULUREDDY        ...Appellant

Versus  

SPECIAL DEPUTY COLLECTOR, L.A.,  TELUGU GANGA PROJECT, PODALAKUR  AT NELLORE, ANDHRA PRADESH & ANR.                  ...Respondents

J U D G M E N T

R. BANUMATHI, J.

Leave granted.

2. This  appeal  by  way  of  special  leave  under  Section  54  of  the  Land

Acquisition  Act,  1894  has  been  preferred  by  the  claimant  assailing  the

judgment and order dated 12.03.2014 in LA.A.S. No.989/2007 passed by the

High Court of Judicature of Andhra Pradesh at Hyderabad by which the High

Court concurred with the order of the Reference Court estimating the income

from each pomegranate tree at  Rs.65/- and increasing the multiplier of “9”

instead  of  “2”  alongwith  statutory  benefits,  thereby  awarding  the  total

compensation of Rs.26,325/- (45×65×9) for 45 pomegranate trees.

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3. The Executive Engineer, Telugu Ganga Project, Division No.1, Nellore

sent  a  requisition  for  acquisition  of  lands  of  Dachur  Village  for  foreshore

submersion of Kandelara Reservoir under Telugu Ganga Project to an extent

of Acs.56.53.  Out of this, upto Acs.30.85 is  patta land and the remaining is

Government land.  Out of Acs.30.85, award was already passed for an extent

of  Acs.30.70 in  the office  of  Executive Engineer  under  Award proceedings

A.15/91-92 dated 05.03.1992.  In respect of the remaining 0.15 cents award

could not be passed since the land was covered by pomegranate fruit bearing

trees  for  which  valuation  was  not  given  by  the  Assistant  Director  of

Horticulture for want of guidelines from the Government.

4. The appellant herein is the owner of the land admeasuring 0.15 acre

alongwith  45 pomegranate trees in  Sy. No.592/2,  Reach No.57  of  Dachur

Village of Kaluvoya Nandal of SPSR Nellore District of Andhra Pradesh.   On

30.03.1990,  a  Notification  was  issued  under  Section  4(1)  of  the  Land

Acquisition Act for acquisition of the said land. After declaration under Section

6 and after conducting enquiry, award was passed in Award No.1/92-93 dated

14.09.1992.  

5. On 14.09.1992, Award No.1/92-93 was passed after fixing the market

value for the rain-fed dry lands at Rs.7,500/-  per acre which works out to

Rs.1,125/- for the land of 0.15 cents and of the pomegranate trees which were

three years old at Rs.42.17 P. per tree which totally works out to Rs.1898/- as

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recommended  by  the  Assistant  Director  of  Horticulture  and  Engineering

Department.  The compensation was accordingly paid. The claimant appellant

received the compensation under protest and made application under Section

18  of  the  Land  Acquisition  Act  to  refer  the  matter  to  the  Civil  Court  for

enhancement of compensation.  

6. On reference, O.P.No.64 of 1994 was heard by the Senior Civil Judge,

Gudur, Nellore  District.   In  the Reference Court,  the  case of  the claimant

appellant  was  that  while  passing  the  Award,  the  Land  Acquisition  Officer

assessed the market value of each pomegranate tree at Rs.31/- to Rs.52/-

per year which is a very low rate and paid for two years only and that the Land

Acquisition Officer  assessed the market value of the trees without resorting to

the capitalisation method of valuation. The claimants also submitted therein

that each pomegranate tree earned a gross yield of Rs.325/- per annum and

expense of each tree was Rs.25/- from gross income per year.  The claimant

contended that nearly 100 fruits from each tree and each fruit was valued at

Rs.325/-  on  the  date  of  notification  and  the  net  value  estimated  was

Rs.3,600/- for each pomegranate tree adopting multiplier of ‘12’.   

7. In the Reference Court, claimants examined C.Ws 1 and 2. R.W.1 was

examined on behalf of the Referring Officer. Exhibits A1 to A8 and Ex.B1 were

marked.  Vide judgment and order dated 27.09.2004, the Senior Civil Judge,

Gudur, Nellore District applied the multiplier of ‘2’ based on G.O.Ms. No.601

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dated 19.06.1992 and enhanced the market value of each pomegranate tree

to Rs.65/- and also awarded solatium and other statutory benefits.   

8. Being dissatisfied with the order of the Reference Court, the claimant

approached the High Court  by way of  an appeal  being L.A.A.S.No.989 of

2007.   The  High  Court  based  on  the  evidence  on  record  arrived  at  a

conclusion that  the pomegranate trees existing on the land at  the time of

acquisition  were  three  years  old  and  as  per  G.O.  Ms.  No.601  dated

19.06.1992 marked as Ex.A2, fruit bearing period being 12 years, the relevant

multiplier adopted should have been “9” and not “2”.  

9. Aggrieved by the order of the High Court, the appellant is before us by

way of special leave to appeal.  

10. Learned counsel  for  the appellant  submitted that  when the land with

orchard  of  the  appellant  was  acquired  and  possession  was  taken  by  the

Government  pursuant  to  a  Notification  under  Section  4(1)  of  the  Land

Acquisition Act published on 30.03.1990, as per letter No. F(3) 2164/89 dated

26.11.1989 of the Director of Horticulture, Government of Andhra Pradesh at

Hyderabad, the revised net valuation of pomegranate trees was at Rs.300/-

per tree per annum and adopting 12 years as fruit bearing period, the High

Court ought to have awarded higher compensation.  Learned counsel for the

appellant  has  relied  upon  the  decision  of  this  Court  in  Civil  Appeal  Nos.

11404-405  of  2016  dated  29.11.2016  whereby  this  Court  has  awarded

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compensation of Rs.3,000/- per pomegranate tree in connection with lands

acquired for Somashila Project submergence.  The learned counsel for the

appellant  prayed that  the same amount of  compensation of  Rs.3,000/-  per

pomegranate be awarded to the appellant.  Learned counsel for the appellant

further submitted that the reduction of market value by 10% on the purported

ground that there are no optimum irrigation facilities is unsustainable as the

Award itself records that there exists a well in Survey No.505/6 which is the

land belonging to  junior maternal uncle of the appellant and that the acquired

land was being irrigated  from the said  well  as  per  the understanding that

existed between them.   

11. Per contra, supporting the judgment of the High Court, learned counsel

for the respondent submitted that as per the evidence on record all the 45

pomegranate  trees  existing  on  the  land  are  three  years  old  and  the  fruit

bearing period is twelve years and thus the relevant multiplier “9” was rightly

applied  for  the  purpose  of  determination  of  the  compensation  for  the

pomegranate trees.  Insofar as the judgment in Civil Appeal Nos.11404-11405

of 2016 is concerned, it is submitted that the said order relates to Somashila

Project submergence of which the award was of the year 1999 and the same

cannot be applied to the present case.   

12. Heard the learned counsel for the parties at some length.  Perused the

impugned  judgment  and  considered  the  documents  and  other  materials

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placed on record.

13. As stated by the learned counsel for the appellant as per Letter No. F(3)

2164/89 dated 26.11.1989 of the Department of Horticulture, the revised value

of fruit bearing trees viz. pomegranate was fixed at Rs.75/-.  On the date of

Section  4(1)  Notification  i.e.  30.03.1990,  it  is  evident  that  the  very  same

Notification was in effect and that being so, the Reference Court as well as the

High Court committed an error in fixing the rate of the pomegranate trees at

Rs.65/- relying on the subsequent G.O.No.601 dated 19.06.1992 which was

not  in  existence  on  record  on  the  date  of  publication  of  Section  4(1)

Notification.  Neither the Reference Court ought to have fixed the value of tree

at Rs.65/- nor the High Court should have affirmed it.  Insofar as the multiplier

applied is concerned, after having given our thoughtful consideration, we are

of  the view that  as per  the Notification of  the year  1989,  the fruit  bearing

period being not less than twelve years and the trees being three years old,

the High Court has rightly applied the multiplier of “9”.

14. Planting, raising and making commercial use of fruit bearing trees is a

painstaking affair and cost of the same is consistently on rise as the years are

passing by which is to be kept in view.  Award of compensation in relation to

fruit bearing trees depends on facts and circumstances of each case.  It has

been held in  Kerala State Electricity Board v. Livisha and Ors. (2007) 6

SCC 792, in the following terms:

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“11.  So  far  as  the  compensation  in  relation  to  fruit  bearing  trees  are concerned the same would also depend upon the facts and circumstances of each case. We may, incidentally, refer to a recent decision of this Court in Land Acquisition Officer v. Kamandana Ramakrishna Rao AIR 2007 SC 1142  wherein  claim  on  yield  basis  has  been  held  to  be  relevant  for determining  the  amount  of  compensation  payable  under  the  Land Acquisition Act, same principle has been reiterated in Kapur Singh Mistry v. Financial Commission and Revenue Secretary to Govt. of Punjab and Ors. , State of Haryana v. Gurcharan Singh and Anr. [1995] 1 SCR 408, and Airports Authority of India v. Satyagopal Roy [2002] 2 SCR 505.”  

15. The appellant has sought compensation of Rs.3000/- per pomegranate

tree  relying  on  judgment  of  this  Court  dated  29.11.2016  in  Civil  Appeal

Nos.11404-11405 of 2016. In the facts and circumstances of the said case,

considering the cost of planting and efforts involved in growing trees in general

and in  particular  raising the pomegranate tree over  the efflux of  time,  this

Court deemed it appropriate to award        Rs. 3000/- as compensation for

each of the pomegranate tree. However, the compensation of Rs. 3000/- per

pomegranate tree, as has been awarded in the abovementioned case, cannot

be made applicable to the present case, considering the fact that award of

compensation by Land Acquisition Officer in the said case dated 08.03.1999,

as opposed to award in the present case which is dated 14.09.1992. A period

of  about  seven  years  is  a  considerable  period  to  be  taken  note  of  while

computing cost of planting and raising fruit bearing trees. It  is obvious that

seven years back a fruit bearing tree would have fetched lesser income than it

would fetch now. Accordingly, in the facts and circumstances of the present

case, we deem it appropriate to award    Rs. 2,000/- per pomegranate tree as

compensation to  the  appellant.  To this  extent  the order  of  the  High  Court

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stands modified.

16. The  appellants  are  awarded  compensation  of  Rs.2,000/-  per

pomegranate tree.  The appellant shall also be entitled to all statutory benefits

like solatium and interest on the same. The appeal is partly allowed in the

above terms.

..……………………….J.            [KURIAN JOSEPH]  

                            .………………………..J.  [R. BANUMATHI]

New Delhi; July 19, 2017

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