( 1 ) THIS civil miscellaneous appeal arises against the common judgment in O. P. Nos. 230 and 232 of 1975 on the file of the court of the Motor Vehicles Accidents Claims Tribunal (First Additional District Judge), Guntur. The appellant herein is Srisailam Devasthanam, hereinafter called "the Devasthanam", the first respondent in O. P. N. 230 of 1975. The lower tribunal awarded compensation to the petitioners in O. P. No. 230 of 1975 in a total sum of Rs. 16,600. The Devasthanam filed the above appeal against the award limiting the liability of the insurance company, hereinafter called "the company", viz. , the second respondent in the said O. P. , for a sum of Rs. 5,000.

( 2 ) THE petitioners in O. P. No. 230 of 1975 laid their claim for a sum of Rs. 53,000 on various counts. As the lower tribunal granted only Rs. 16,600, dissatisfied thereby, they filed cross-objections for the balance amount of Rs. 36,400.

( 3 ) IN this appeal, the Devasthanam impleaded the company as respondent No. 5 contending that the company has to bear the entire liability of Rs. 16,600 on the ground that the vehicle was insured with third party risks and that the company has undertaken to reimburse the unlimited liability in terms of the insurance policy, Ex. B-1. The petitioners-legal representatives of the deceased are impleaded as respondents Nos. 1 to 4. The first respondent is the widow; respondents Nos. 2 and 3 are minor daughters and the fourth respondent is the father of the deceased. For brevity, they are called "claimants. "

( 4 ) THE facts leading to the filing of the claim petition are as stated hereunder : The Devasthanam is plying its bus, bearing registration No. APQ 4421, carrying the pilgrims on hire or reward. On 24/04/1976, at about 4 a. m. , when the bus was going to Guntur, the driver drove the vehicle in a rash and negligent manner and when it reached Perecherla level crossing, it left the road and fell into a ditch. In the said accident, Sri Bhavani Venkateswarlu died instantaneously and two other persons sustained injuries. In this appeal, we are not concerned with the two other injured persons, since they did not come up before this court by way of an appeal against the order in O. P. No. 232 of 1975. The claimants, as legal representatives, laid their claim. The basis thereof was stated as under :"the deceased was aged about 35 years. He was in good health and would have lived for another 25 years in the normal course of his life. He was earning about Rs. 25 per day easily as vegetable merchant. He left behind petitioners Nos. 1 to 4, i. e. , widow, two minor daughters and father, respectively. As a result of his untimely death, petitioners Nos. 1 to 4 are permanently deprived of their maintenance and support by the deceased for a future period of 25 years (the future life expectation period of the deceased ). Besides, they are subjected to severe mental agony. Further, first petitioner (widow of the deceased) also suffered loss of consortium, being aged only 27 years. The details of the amount claimed are given below : Rs. I. (a) Pecuniary loss suffered by petitioner No. 1 (widow 17,000 of the deceased) as legal representative-cum-dependant of the deceased, for a future period of about 20 years (period of loss of future earning of the deceased ). (b) Do. for the second petitioner (daughter, aged about 10 8,000 years, of the deceased) for a period of about eight years, i. e. , till the attainment of majority and marriage, maintenance, education and marriage expenses, etc. (c) Do. for the third petitioner (daughter, aged about 4 12,000 years, of the deceased) for a period of about 14 years, i. e. , till the attainment of majority and celebration of marriage, maintenance, education and marriage expenses, etc.) (d) Do. for the fourth petitioner (father, aged about 65 4,000 years, of the deceased) maintenance by the deceased for a period of about seven years. II. Loss of consortium to the first petitioner 8,000 (wido