HC directs TNEB to pay compensation for girl's death

The Madras High Court has directed the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEN) to pay Rs 6 lakh as compensation to a man, whose daughter got electrocuted in 2006.
Justice S Vaidyanathan passed the order recently on a writ petition by the girl's father, P Siva Shakthivel.
"Taking into consideration the grievous injuries sustained by the petitioner's daughter who died after the incident, this court feels the respondents have to pay suitable compensation to him (petitioner)," the judge said.
He said the amount should be paid within three months from the date of receipt of a copy of the judgement.
The same could be collected from the staff concerned, who had visited the petitioner's house and gathered details about the mishap and assured necessary monetary relief, he said.

Shakthivel submitted that his elder daughter Prema (12), while returning home from school on a bicycle, accidentally fell down and came in contact with a snapped live wire and sustained grievous burns.

Though the girl was admitted to a hospital, she succumbed to the burn injuries a few days later.
Though the Electricity Board staff came to the residence and collected details of the incident and assured relief, no action was taken by the the Board, the petitioner said.
Shakhivel submitted that he had sent a legal notice to the Board in 2009, for which they said that snapping of electric cables were common on rainy days.

He also said the TNEB had contended that the girl touched the electric cable herself and hence they were not responsible for the accident, following which he approached the High Court seeking compensation.
In the order, the judge said there was no codified law for arriving at quantum of compensation in such cases and that legislations such as the Motor Vehicles Act, the Workmen's Compensation Act and the Fatal Accidents Act may be applied to arrive at a just compensation.
He said the court was of the view that the petitioner was entitled to a sum of Rs six lakh from the Board as compensation.

The judge then directed the Board to pay the amount to the petitioner, with an interest at the rate of six per cent per annum from the date of the accident till the date of payment.