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2016 Supreme(AP) 405
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT HYDERABAD FOR THE STATE OF TELANGANA AND THE STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH
NOOTY RAMAMOHANA RAO & ANIS, JJ.
Gaddameedi Narsa Goud & Others – Appellants
Versus
The Land Acquisition Officer, Special Deputy Collector, Land Acquisition Unit, South Central Railway, Karimnagar – Respondent
L.A.A.S. No. 545 of 2012
Decided On : 07-04-2016
For the Petitioners:Ponnam Ashok Goud, A. Krupadhar Reddy, Advocates.
For the Respondent: P. Ganga Rami Reddy, Standing Counsel.
Headnote:
Land Acquisition and Requisition – Land Acquisition Act – Sections 4 (1), 18 and 54 – Compensation granted – Lands in question are situated in Podur village, Kodimial Mandal of Karimnagar District – Land acquisition officer passed his award granting compensation – Claimants claimed compensation at rate of Rs.20,00,000/- per acre and hence sought for reference under Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act for determination of correct market value. That his how the learned Senior Civil Judge entertained O.P. and by his order and decree enhanced the compensation – Not content with this enhancement, the present appeal is preferred – Counsel for the appellants contend that the land of small extents belonging to the several claimants has been acquired for purpose of formation of Broad Guage Railway Line between Karimnagar and Jagtial. It is urged that the land in question is situated in Podur village, which is abutting State Highway. This apart Pudur village is hardly 500-700 meters away from Kondagattu Anjaneyaswamyvari Devasthanam, which is a very famous pilgrim centre in and around these parts of the State, which attracts devotees not only from nearby places but from adjoining states like Karnataka and Maharashtra as well. It is also urged that on every Tuesday and Saturday and on other important festival occasions including Poornima (full moon) days, temple would be receiving the devotees in thousands of numbers and hence, majority of the devotees avail the civic amenities available in Pudur village to maximum extent as the meagre facilities available at Kondagattu are inadequate to meet the demand – Held, Market value of the land should be determined taking into consideration the existing geographical situation of the land, existing use of the land, already available advantages, like proximity to National or State Highway or road and/or notionally or intentionally renowned tourist destination or developed area, and market value of other land situated in the same locality or adjacent or very near to acquired land and also the size of such a land – Hence, keeping in mind the proximate closeness of the lands acquired to the State Highway and also renowned pilgrim centre of Kondagattu Anjaneyaswamy temple and also closeness to the JNTU college of Engineering, R.T.C. bus depot and other educational institutions and commercial establishments situated within the limits of Pudur village, we consider that Ex.A.5 ought to have been taken as a basis for determining the land value instead of capitalisation method – Standing counsel for Railways is not totally unjustified in his criticism that the lands acquired are mostly underdeveloped lands. The Railways have to undertake lot of developmental works before the Broad Guage Railway Line is laid thereon. Firstly, the land has got to be cleared and levelled. It has to be consolidated, compacted and a track bed of certain strength and capacity has to be developed. May be, for formation of a Railway line, there may be no necessity to form roads, or water line mains or regular drainage facility or street lighting as is normally undertaken while developing a lay-out. Therefore, 50% of the cost reflected in Ex.A.5 is liable to be deducted towards developmental costs. When so done, the land value would come to Rs.3,63,000/- per acre (Rs.7,26,000/2=3,63,000), and it can be approximated to Rs.3,50,000/- per acre – Appeal allowed. (Paras 32 and 33)
Nooty Ramamohana Rao, J.
1. This appeal is preferred by the claimants under Section 54 of the Land Acquisition Act not being content with the compensation granted by the learned Senior Civil Judge at Jagtial in O.P.No.15 of 2007.
2. Draft Notification under Section 4 (1) of the Land Acquisition Act was published in the A.P. Gazette dated 07.11.2003 proposing to acquire a vast stretch of land for formation of Broad Guage Railway Line. The lands in question are situated in Podur village, Kodimial Mandal of Karimnagar District. The land acquisition officer passed his award on 05.07.2006 granting Rs.60,000/- per acre towards compensation. The claimants claimed compensation at the rate of Rs.20,00,000/- per acre and hence sought for reference under Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act for determination of correct market value. That his how the learned Senior Civil Judge, Jagtial entertained the O.P.No.15 of 2007 and by his order and decree dated 31.12.2009 enhanced the compensation to Rs.2,00,000/- per acre. Not content with this enhancement, the present appeal is preferred.
3. Heard Sri Ponnam Ashok Goud learned counsel for the appellants and Sri P.Ganga Rami Reddy learned standing counsel for the Railways on behalf of the respondent, Land Acquisition Officer-cum-Special Deputy Collector, Land Acquisition Unit, South Central Railway, Karimnagar.
4. Sri Ponnam Ashok Goud, learned counsel for the appellants, would contend that the land of small extents belonging to the several claimants has been acquired for purpose of formation of Broad Guage Railway Line between Karimnagar and Jagtial. It is urged that the land in question is situated in Podur village, which is abutting Karimnagar – Nizamabad State Highway. This apart Pudur village is hardly 500-700 meters away from Kondagattu Anjaneyaswamyvari Devasthanam, which is a very famous pilgrim centre in and around these parts of the State, which attracts devotees not only from nearby places but from adjoining states like Karnataka and Maharashtra as well. It is also urged that on every Tuesday and Saturday and on other important festival occasions including Poornima (full moon) days, Kondagattu Anjaneyaswamyvari temple would be receiving the devotees in thousands of numbers and hence, the majority of the devotees avail the civic amenities available in Pudur village to the maximum extent as the meagre facilities available at Kondagattu are inadequate to meet the demand. This apart Pudur village is also an important commercial centre in Karimnagar District. It has recorded several developments such as a Road Transport Corporation Depot, which operates its fleet to several destinations in the districts of Karimnagar, Nizamabad etc but also to Hyderabad city on regular basis. There are hostels, colleges and various other educational institutions established in Pudur village over a long period of time. Recognising its importance, Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Hyderabad has established one of its outstation colleges of Engineering and Technology at Podur village. There are several Hotels and Lodging Houses in the village. According to Sri Ponnam Ashok Goud, learned counsel for the appellants, the lands which stood acquired are running parallel to the State Highway connecting Karimnagar and Nizamabad, two of the very important district headquarters in the state of Telangana. The distance in between the lands and this main road is ranging between 500 meters to 2 Km at best. Learned counsel for the appellants, therefore, would contend that gross injustice is done both by the Land Acquisition Officer and the Civil Court in not properly taking all these developments around into account and consideration while fixing the market value for the land in question. Learned counsel for the appellants would urge that when land is used essentially for commercial purposes, only small
