The market value of acquired lands should be fixed at the highest price fetched by any of the neighbouring lands, in the absence of any justifiable reasons to the contrary.

BELLIE, J.

1. These appeals are by the land owners/claimants in Land Acquisition matters. They are respectively against the orders passed in L.A.O.P. Nos. 11 of 1984, 43 of 1984, 29 of 1985, 14 of 1984, 13 of 1984 and 31 of 1985, by the Subordinate Judge, Poonamallee, upon reference made under Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act, hereinafter referred to as ‘the Act’. Excepting the extents of the lands acquired, all other factors are similar in the six Land Acquisition Original Petitions. The lands in all these Lan d Acquisition Original Petitions are in Koyambedu Village and they have been acquired under one award of the Land Acquisition Officer. L.A.O.P. No. 11 of 1984 relates to 5 cents in S. No. 170/2 and 28 cents in S. No. 170/3; L.A.O.P. No. 13 of 1984 relates to 2.39 acres in S. No. 171/1A; L.A.O.P. No. 14 of 1984 relates to 2.42 acres in S. No. 164/3, 2.34 acres in S. No. 177/1, 1.22 acress in S. No. 177/3 and 3.50 acres in S. No. 181/1; L.A.O.P. No. 43 of 1984 relates to 1.28 acres in S. No. 195 and 1.29 acres in S. No. 183/4 relates to L.A.O.P. No. 29 of 1984. L.A.O.P. No. 31 of 1985 relates to 26 cents in S. No. 180/2, 8 cents in S. No. 181/3, 1.79 acres in S. No. 178, 1.31 acres in S. No. 179, 5.67 acres in S. No. 180/1, 86 cents in S. No. 180/3, 22 cents in S. No. 181/2 and 60 cents in S. No. 181/4. All lands are classified as dry lands. It appears they are clay bearing lands and there has been excavation of clay for brick manufacturing in vast portions some of the lands and in respect of those lands the Land Acquisition Officer had to consider the reclamation expenses. The Land Acquisition Officer fixed the market value of the land at Rs. 99/- per cent and he also fixed the reclamation charges in respect of those lands that require reclamation and he deducted the reclamation charges from the value of the land, and thus arriving at the market value of the land, he passed the award. Since the claimants were not satisfied with the said award of the Land Acquisition Officer, the matter was referred to the Court under Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act.

2. According to the claimants, the lands are situate abutting the Madras City and they are on the side of the Madras Poonnamallee High Road. The lands are clay bearing and with the clay mud high class bricks can be manufactured and brick manufacturing is highly lucrative. Besides, the lands are in the midst of highly developed residential area, and they are potential house-sites. There are well developed housing colonies at two sides of the lands and there are industries nearby and as such the lands should have been valued as house-sites. According to the claimants, the value of the lands could have been filed at Rs. 2 lakhs per acre if the lands are considered as clay bearing lands and Rs. 10,000/- per ground if they are considered as house-sites.

3. The Reference Court on consideration of the evidence adduced before it fixed the value of the land at Rs. 500/- per cent as on the date of Section 4(1) notification, namely, 1-10-1975. Then it accepted the charges arrived at for the reclamation of the excavated lands, by R.W. 2 — Assistant Engineer, Highways and R.W. 3 — Surveyor in the Tamil Nadu Housing Board and deducted those charges in respect of those lands. In respect of the lands where reclamation charges is higher than the market value or the land fixed at Rs. 500/- (sic) (per cent-?) the Reference Court has awarded Re. 1/- as notional market value. On this basis the Reference Court fixed the market value for the different lands in the six Land Acquisition Original Petitions. The trial Court has ordered payment of solatium, interest and other amounts to which the claimants are entitled as per the law. Still aggrieved, the claimants have come up with these appeals.

4. In the Reference Court the claimants have filed a number of sale deeds and other documents regarding the market value of the lands. These documents were not accepted by that Court on o