JUDGMENT :

HEMANT GUPTA, J.

1. The present appeals are directed against the order dated 22.03.2016 passed by the High Court of Judicature at Bombay, Aurangabad in the First Appeals filed by the land owners and the State determining the compensation of the land acquired at the rate of Rs.317/-per square meter (29 per square feet) apart from the statutory benefits, thus reducing the compensation awarded by the learned Reference Court on 13.08.2003 at the rate of Rs. 70 per square feet.

2. The land of the appellants measuring 40R (1R = 100 square meters or 1089 square feet) comprising of a land survey no. 220/4/b was taken into possession by the State through private negotiations on 14.09.1984. The market price payable to the landowners was to be settled by negotiations but, since the price could not be decided, therefore the land comprising land survey no. 220/4/b admeasuring 40R was intended to be acquired vide notification dated 04.02.1999 under Section 4 of The Land Acquisition Act, 1894¹[For short the ‘Act’] published in the Maharashtra Government Gazette. Such land is the subject matter of Civil Appeals arising out of SLP (Civil) Nos. 33471-33472 of 2016. The State also intended to