Sunil Kumar Khushwaha v. Katragadda Satyanarayana & Anr.
Background
The appellant, a fruit seller, was struck by a rashly driven truck as a pedestrian and suffered such severe injuries that his right leg had to be amputated below the knee, after being shifted between hospitals from Ranchi to Delhi for treatment. A Medical Board certified 50% permanent physical disability. The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal awarded about Rs. 7 lakh in compensation but did not grant anything for loss of earning capacity due to the disability; the High Court largely affirmed this.
Decision Breakdown
The Supreme Court held that a 100% functional disability could not be assumed simply because the appellant could no longer vend fruit exactly as before: evidence showed he still operated a shop and could adapt his work, for instance by hiring help. Applying its earlier ruling in Raj Kumar v. Ajay Kumar (which had assessed a similar amputee's functional disability at 60%), the Court fixed functional disability at 60% for loss-of-income calculations, and separately increased the awards for conveyance charges, pain and suffering, and attendant/special-diet costs. The total compensation was recalculated and enhanced to Rs. 32,34,353, payable within two months with interest.
Lesson Learnt
Compensation for disability from an accident must be based on a realistic assessment of how much earning capacity was actually lost, not an automatic assumption of total loss just because the victim can no longer do the exact same job as before.