Devan Ramachandran, J.

There is nothing more tormenting and haunting than the sight of a tear in a mother's eye grieving for her child and there is nothing more daunting than being asked to estimate the value of such tear pecuniarily.

2. We are, in these proceedings, however, left with the most unhappy task of having to so estimate the unestimable.

3. Lest it be mistaken, by the prelude above, the mother-Mrs. Mymoona is not the claimant, but her young son, who was a mere six years of age at the time of the accident. However, by the passage of time of nearly 11½ years now, the mother who has been, for all these years, tending to and caring for her child, who is living in a vegetative state, comes through as the real victim of the terrific accident.

4. On the fateful day of 24.10.2006, at about 8 p.m., the world of Mrs.Mymoona, the mother of her then 6 year old son, the claimant herein, turned on its head when her son Master Basid was knocked down by a speeding car, driven and owned by the first respondent, while he was innocently standing on the non-motorable area of the Chavakkad-Puthuponnani Highway.

5. Every major accident inevitably leaves a legacy of grief. But the extent of grief that this accident gifted Mymoona is inexpressible and incapable of verbal description. It is sometimes said that there is no greater pain for a parent than the death of a child, but this is one case where this to be not so because here we see the unspeakable agony, anguish and undefinable pain of a mother forced to see her small son, full of life until then, being confined to a vegetative state, barely alive and struggling every moment of his life. This agony and pain has continued for the past nearly 11½ years and by the way, it looks now, for the rest of his life.

6. The minor claimant, Master Basid, sustained very serious fatal injuries but providence showed no mercy and he still lives with a severely contorted body, in a near comatose state, robbed of all his faculties, confined to the contours and constant care of his mother.

7. On 11.08.2017, Mrs.Mymoona, the mother of the claimant was personally present before us with I.A.No.2705 of 2017 praying inter alia for release of the balance amount of Rs.15,00,000/-deposited by the Insurance Company in Court under the interim orders of this Court issued while staying the execution of the award. We saw her anguish, which by no means has subsided, even to a degree, in the last eleven years but appears to have been aggravated on account of several other misfortunes she had to suffer. She told us that her husband, the father of the claimant, had been extremely diabetic and that the continuous stress that he was forced to endure because of this son's condition, exacerbated his disease, leading to various complications associated with diabetes, requiring amputation of his limbs and finally causing his untimely death a year ago. Her plight is heart wrenching and we are certain that we cannot be blind to it or pretend not to see it.

8. We propose to dispose of both the above appeals together because both arise from the same award of the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, one being at the hands of the Insurance Company, assailing the quantum of compensation awarded and the other being by the claimant, seeking enhancement of the compensation awarded by the Tribunal.

9. We have heard Sri.Nimod A.R., learned counsel appearing for the claimant and Sri.Mathews Jacob, learned Senior Counsel, assisted by Sri.Jacob Mathew, appearing for the Insurance Company in both the cases.

10. As we have said above, the aftermath of the accident has left a trail of unimaginable agony both for the victim and his parents. A wood cut of the horrendous accident and its indescribable consequences will have to be first narrated before the issues raised herein can be resolved.

11. The accident occurred on 28.10.2006 at about 8 p.m. while the victim, Master Basid, who was only six years of age at that time, was standing by the side of the