The main legal point established in the judgment is the obligation of the Railway Administration to provide sufficient safeguards at level crossings and the entitlement of victims to compensation under Section 124 of the Railways Act, 1989.

JUDGMENT

V.GOPALA GOWDA, C.J.

1. These writ petitions have been filed by the fathers of the deceased children who died on account of railway accident claiming compensation and praying for issuance of writ of mandamus against the opposite parties to take appropriate steps in the unmanned level crossing near Mangalajodi (Katia Sahi) so that future accidents can be avoided and to pay compensation to each of the petitioners to the tune of Rs.4 lakh, which is the minimum liability of the Railway authority to a passenger as per Section 124 of the Railways Act, 1989.

2. All these writ petitions have been listed together as the facts and reliefs sought for are common and they arise out of the same accident. Therefore, they are heard together and disposed of by this common judgment.

3. Brief facts as have been narrated in the above writ petitions with a view to find out as to whether the petitioners are entitled to reliefs as prayed for and to appreciate the legal contentions raised are as follow :

On 5.8.2006 at about 2.30 P.M. the petitioner (in W.P.(C) No.3214 of 2010) while going along with other three children through the Mangalajodi (Katia Sahi) level crossing in between Kalupadaghat and Bhusandpur in the district of Khurda, Puri-Ahmedabad Express came from another track and dashed against four children. In the said accident, three children expired on the spot and the petitioner in W.P.(C) No.3214 of 2010 sustained severe injuries in her person. The petitioner in W.P.(C) No.3214 of 2010 appeared before the District Medical Board, Khurda for determination of percentage of disability. The Medical Board assessed the disability at 85% as per Annexure-1.

4. It is the case of the petitioners in all the writ petitions that while the aforesaid children were crossing the level crossing, which is an unmanned level crossing, as their houses are situated on the both the sides of the railway line and railway line has been constructed in the middle of the village Mangalajodi, the accident occurred. Besides the villagers of Mangalajodi, everyday about thousands of people are going through the said unmanned level crossing to either side. The said level crossing is a busy level crossing without having any check gate and guard, for which several accidents had occurred there in the past. Annexure-2 is the particulars of 24 number of accidents, which had occurred in the past. In spite of several complaints by the public, the Railway authorities have neither appointed a guard nor put a check gate nor taken sufficient precautionary measures to avoid frequent accidents, for which number of accidents have occurred in the past, which is within the knowledge of the Railway authorities. The petitioners in W.P.(C) 1456 of 2008 have lost their daughter Kamini Behera in the said accident, whose age was 12 years and she was studying in Class-VII. After the said accident, the train remained and the Railway police and other Railway authorities conducted their enquiries and found that the accident occurred while the said children were standing on the railway line and were looking the goods train. Against the said accident, an U.D. Case was registered in the court of the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Khurda, copies of the said F.I.R., Final Report and original certified copies of the Inquest Report and Post Mortem Report, Dead Body chalan of Kamini Behera and Final Report in U.D.G.R. Case No.86/2006 are annexed herewith as Annexures-3 to 7. There was also paper publication for the said accident in the local dailies, i.e., The Samaja and The Sambad dated 6.8.2006, xerox copies of which are annexed as Annexure-8 series. The father of Guri Behera along with his brother Ram Behera whose only daughter expired, filed a joint petition before the Divisional Railway Manager claiming suitable compensation by their letter dated 17.10.2006, but till date the Railway authorities have not intimated the petitioners either by rejecting or granting compensation to them. The copy of t