B. SRI ATCHUTANANDA SWAMY, J.

( 1 ) THIS Letters Patent Appeal is directed against the order in A. A. O. No. 1373 of 1996 dated 6-7-2001 of s learned Single Judge of this Court. The above A. A. O. arose out of the order and decree in O. P. No. 506 of 1994 on the file of Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, Nizamabad, which was filed by the claimants, who are the legal heirs of one Shaik Jaffar, against the respondents claiming a compensation of Rs. /- 3,00,000/- alleging that the said Shaik Jaffar died as a result of the injuries sustained by him in a motor accident on 29-5-1994 near the A. P. S. R. T. C. Bus Station, Nizamabad due to the rash and negligent driving of the R. T. C. bus AP 9z 5032 by its driver.

( 2 ) ON a consideration of the evidence on record, the Tibunal awarded Rs. 1,20,100/- towards loss of dependency; Rs. 5,000/- each towards loss of consortium and for pain and suffering, besides a sum of Rs. 100/- towards damages to the clothes of the deceased. Dissatisfied with the quantum of compensation awarded and seeking enhancement of the same, the claimants in O. P. No. 506 of 1994 filed the above A. A. O. 1373 of 1996.

( 3 ) WHILE allowing the appeal in part, the learned single Judge granted a total compensation of Rs,2,02,900/- (i. e. , pecuniary damages of Rs. 1,72,800/- + Rs. 100/- being damages to clothes + Rs. 15,000/- being loss of estate + Rs. 5,000/- being funeral expenses and loss of love and affection + Rs. 10,000/- being loss of consortium to the first appellant therein) with proportionate costs in the O. P. The learned single Judge also granted interest at 12% p. a. on the compensation of Rs. 1,30,000/- originally granted by the Tribunal from the date of filing of O. P. till realization and further granted interest at 9% p. a. on the enhanced compensation amount of Rs. 72,800/- from the date of filing of O. P. till realization and confirmed the rest of the directions issued by the Tribunal.

( 4 ) DISSATISFIED with the Judgment of the learned single Judge in A. A. O. 1373 of 1996 dated 6-7-2001, this Letters Patent Appeal is preferred. Two issues arose for consideration in this Letters Patent Appeal, apart from the preliminary objection taken by Sri K. Harnath, learned counsel appearing for the respondents that this appeal is not maintainable. The issues are - (1) As the deceased was aged about 40 years at the time of death, what is the multiplier to be applied in awarding compensation? And (2) whether the Courts below are right in awarding compensation of only Rs. 10,000/- towards loss of consortium?.

( 5 ) AS far as maintainability is concerned, the argument of the learned counsel appearing for the respondents is that after the amendment of the Code of Civil Procedure, unless the Letters Patent Appeals filed are admitted, they cannot survive merely on the ground that they are presented before the amendment came into force. This argument is no more res intergra in view of the Judgment of a Division Bench of this Court in S. SHIVA RAJA REDDY AND OTHERS vs. S. RAGHU RAJ REDDY1, wherein it was held that all the letters patent appeals presented or filed before 1-7-2002 are maintainable whether they have been admitted or not. What is prohibited is filing of the letters patent appeals after 1-7-2002 i. e. , after the new Act come into force. To put it aptly, the Division Bench held that all letters patent appeals presented in the Registry before the amendment will survive inspite of the amendment. This view received the approval of a Full Bench of this Court in GANDLA PANNALA BHULAXMI vs MANAGING DIRECTOR, APSRTC, MUSHEERABAD, HYDERABAD AND ANOTHER. Accordingly, in view of the above judgments, we reject the objection raised by the learned counsel for the respondents with regard to the maintainability of this appeal.

( 6 ) WITH regard to second issue, it is not in dispute that the accident took place in the bus station premises at Nizamabad while the driver was taking reverse of the vehicle the deceased, who is a

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