Section 28-A permits compensation exceeding foundational award rates for proven irrigated lands or additional elements like structures/trees, without absolute cap, to fulfill beneficent intent of equalizing payments for similar lands.

CORAM : SHAILESH P. BRAHME, J.

CLOSED FOR ORDER ON : 03.02.2026 ORDER PRONOUNCED ON : 27.02.2026 FINAL ORDER :

. Taken up for final disposal with the consent of the parties.

2. This Court is called upon to answer following issues.

(i) Whether the claimants are entitled to receive the compensation exceeding the compensation awarded by the Court relying upon which the recourse is taken to Sec. 28-A of the Land Acquisition Act ?

(ii) Whether the claimant taking recourse to redetermination U/Sec. 28-A of the Land Acquisition Act is entitled to receive compensation for factors other than land viz trees, structure, pipeline which were not subject matter of the compensation awarded by the Reference Court upon which reliance is sought for ?

3. These appeals are preferred for enhancement of the compensation by challenging judgment and award passed by the Reference Court in the respective references. They are emanating from proceedings U/Sec. 28-A of the Land Acquisition Act (for the sake of brevity and convenience hereinafter referred to as Act). The location of the lands, area under acquisition, the dates for notifications and the purpose for acquisition are not in dispute.

4. In all the matters appellants are claiming that the lands be treated as irrigated lands, whereas, the Special Land Acquisition Officer and the Reference Court treated them as dry lands. Appeals are classified into following four groups considering the nature of the challenge and enhancement.

Group I : Enhancement due to change in classification from dry land to irrigated land.

Group II : Enhancement due to additional compensation for trees, wells and structures.

5. In all the appeals the notification U/Sec. 4 Act was issued on 03.12.1986 and award was passed on 22.11.1990, which are common. The rate of Rs. 370/- per R was offered. No compensation was awarded for well, structure or the fruit bearing trees existing in the acquired lands. Appellants did not prefer to challenge the rates offered by the S. L. A. O. by resorting to Sec. 18 Act.

6. Arising out of self same notification and award referred above, L. A. R. No. 10 of 2013 (Old L. A. R. No. 396 of 1993) was preferred by Hiralal Kishansingh Rajput. The Reference Court in that matter fixed the rate of Rs. 1,500/- per R for dry land and Rs. 2,250/- per R for seasonal irrigated land vide judgment dated 25.06.2015. The land was treated to be dry land. It was not having trees, wells and the structures. The rates awarded by above referred judgments are treated to be foundation for the appellants to approach the Collector U/Sec. 28-A Act, which is referred to “Foundational Award” hereafter. 7. The appellants approached the S. L. A. O. U/Sec. 28-A and claimed compensation more than the rate fixed in the Foundational Award. The compensation for well, structure and the trees are also claimed. The Collector considering the Foundational Award fixed the rate within the range of Rs. 1,414/- to 1,715/- per R, treating all lands as dry lands. The claim for wells, structure and trees have been denied. Such award was passed on 11.09.2018.

8. Appellants preferred to go before the Reference Court being unsatisfied by the rates fixed by the Collector by resorting to Sec. 28-A(3). The Reference