JUDGMENT - (1) By a notification dated 25th February 1952 under section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, the Government of Bombay notified part of City Survey No. 369A admeasuring 26010 square feet of Nana Peth, Poona, as likely to be needed for a public purpose viz: vegetable market and a cart stand. The Land Acquisition Officer awarded to the claimant Rs. 61, 470 by valuing the land at Rs. 4-8-0 per square feet because in his view that land could be developed by laying it out into 14 building plots in two rows divided by a road. He awarded Re. 1 for the road-land admeasuring 289 X 25. In addition, the Land Acquisition Officer awarded to the claimant th e15 per cent. solatium. The claimant feeling dissatisfied with the award, applied for a reference under section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act. The learned Civil Judge, Senior Division at Poona, who heard the reference, confirmed the valuation of the land made by the Land Acquisition Officer. But he awarded to the claimant compensation at the rate of 14 annas per square feet for the area of 289 X 25 reserved under the scheme for the road. The Land Acquisition Officer, it appears, had made certain deductions in respect of the development of the land, such as deduction for expenses for construcing roads, and for providing electricity, water connections, drainage, and those deductions aggregared Rs. 7,443. The learned Judge disallowed those deductions and awarded to the claimant Rs. 15,829-14-0 in addition to the amount awarded by the Land Acquisition Officer. The Land Acquisition Officer contends that the additional amount awarded by the learned trial Judge should be disallowed to the claimant. The claimant claims an additional amount of Rs. 21,879-4-0 being the aggregate value of 395 square feet, and the value of the land reserved for road at the rate of Rs. 3-2-0 per square feet. He has also claimed 15 per cet. solatium on the additionl amount.

(2) C. Survey No. 369A Nana Peth is of inamtenure. Out of the land a portion in the northern half, 90 feet in width having a frontage on a public road to its west and 289 feet in length admeasuring in the aggregate 26,010 square feet was proposed to be acquired for the construction of the Poona City vegetable market and cart stand. It appears that out of this land two pieces 1305 square feet on the North-Eastern corner and 75 square feet at the South-East could not be acquitted under this notification as they belinged not to the claimant but to two other persons Parvatibai wife of Bhikoba More, and Mahamad Ali Rehman Baksh. In the southern half of the city Survey No. 369A Nana Peth stood two chawls. These chawls were mortgaged in the year 1947 and that an amount of Rs. 1,543 was due and unpaid was Municipal taxes in respect of chawls standing on this land. The land under acquisition abuts on the west on the Math Road. On the North is the property of another person and to the South is a chawl belonging to the claimant.

(3) The Land Acquisition Officer was of the view that the land had a building potentiality, it being within the built up sector of the Nana Peth Locality. The learned trial Judge agreed with that view, and it is not disputed before us that the land under acquisition has to be assessed as building land, even though at the date of the notification it was lying open and unused.

(4) In the year 1947 it appears that the claimant desired to convert this land into a building site, and he laid out the land into fourteen building plots. Plots 1 to 7 were on the Northern side of the plot, and the remaining plots 8 to14 were on the Southern sie. These two rows of plots were divided by a road of 25 feet in width out of the plots so laid out, plot No. 7 was sold by the claimant by a deed dated 15th December 1949 to one Parwatibai at the rate of Rs. 3-1-0 per square feet. The price charged for this land inhalf the width of the road on which plot No. 7 abutted. The area of the plot No. 7 was 930 square feet, but the climan obtained the price

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