PASAYAT, J.

( 1 ) A wall encompassing the General Post Office, Cuttack collapsed on 29-8-1991. According to the petitioner, he was passing by the side of the wall, a portion of the wall fell on him, and he sustained injuries. He makes a claim of Rs. I lakh as damage from the Union of India, the Chief Post Master General of the State, the Senior Superintendent of Post Offices and the Post Master of the concerned post office on the ground that due and proper care was not taken as regards maintenance of the wall, and on account of such negligence, he sustained serious injuries, was hospitalised for a pretty long time, his left leg was severely fractured and his right leg was also injured. Though the residents of nearby Bepari Sahi had many times requested the authorities for effecting repairs to the wall which was in a precarious stage and was on the verge of collapse, with apprehension of damage to life and property, the authorities turned a deaf ear to the same. The apprehension came to be true when on 29-8-1991 the wall collapsed.

( 2 ) A counter-affidavit has been filed by the opposite parties wherein it is accepted that the wall collapsed but the same is attributed to natural c