Supreme Court awards ₹83 lakh compensation to girl paralysed in road accident

The Story in Brief

The Supreme Court on Monday awarded over ₹83.38 lakh in compensation to Shreejita Pattnaik, a girl who was six months old when she was paralysed in a 2015 road crash. A bench of Justices Ujjal Bhuyan and NV Anjaria enhanced the award from ₹45.40 lakh to ₹83.38 lakh with 9% annual interest. The court said Pattnaik suffered spinal cord injuries and post‑traumatic myelopathy with paraplegia after a head‑on collision with a tanker in Odisha on 16 June 2015, leaving her dependent for life. Although medical evidence assessed her disability at 90%, the court treated her functional disability as 100% and ordered attendant charges, higher amounts for pain and suffering, loss of amenities and reduced marriage prospects. The Supreme Court reinstated a multiplier of 18 for young children with catastrophic injuries, said future earning capacity should be calculated using minimum skilled wages, and described the Motor Vehicles Act as beneficial requiring realistic lifetime awards.

The Indian Opinion

The report emphasises the court’s legal reasoning and the scale of the award, using strong language such as the injury affecting the child’s “entire future life.” That phrasing reflects judicial concern but can sound emotive to readers seeking a neutral account. The article records the MACT and Orissa high court decisions and notes the MACT found the tanker driver negligent, but it gives little detail on any defence or contesting evidence. Where facts on the driver’s conduct and on practical long‑term care arrangements are thin, readers should recognise uncertainty about how lifetime needs will be met beyond the single lump‑sum award.

Original article: SC awards ₹83 lakh to girl left paralysed after road accident (www.hindustantimes.com)

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