Daijiworld Media Network – Thane

Thane, Apr 5: The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) in Maharashtra’s Thane district has awarded a compensation of Rs 10.25 lac to a 45-year-old woman who suffered serious injuries in a bus accident that occurred in 2018.

MACT member S N Shah held Ameya Travels and its insurer, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Co. Ltd., jointly liable to pay the amount. A copy of the order, dated March 18, was made available on Saturday.

According to the claimant’s counsel, advocate Baldev B Rajput, the accident took place on the night of January 1, 2018, when a bus being driven negligently rammed into the gate of a building on Mumbai’s Pedder Road.

The victim, Amee Dharmendra Bhuta, was returning from a New Year celebration with friends when the mishap occurred. She sustained multiple fractures and serious injuries, resulting in a 35 per cent permanent partial disability.

The tribunal noted that the accident was clearly due to the bus driver's negligence and also referred to the criminal case registered against him by the police.

Advocate Rajput told the tribunal that Bhuta was self-employed and earning Rs 25,000 per month at the time. She had filed a claim seeking Rs 26.95 lac under various heads, including future loss of income and medical expenses.

The tribunal awarded Rs 10.25 lac under multiple categories such as future income loss, pain and suffering, special diet, conveyance, and loss of enjoyment of life. It directed the insurance company to deposit the amount, along with 8 per cent annual interest from the date of filing the claim, within a month.

The tribunal further allowed the insurance company to recover the amount from the bus owner and ordered that a part of the compensation be disbursed to the victim, while the remainder be kept in a fixed deposit for her benefit.