Feeling aggrieved by the judgment of the High Court, the National Aluminium Co. Ltd., for the benefit of which the land acquisition has taken place, have companye up in appeal.
Having so determined the rate of the land the High Court found that several pieces of land belonging to different landowners needed to be categorised and as satisfactory evidence in that regard was number available on the record, remanded the case to the trial companyrt for holding further enquiry so as to determine into which out of the three categories of Taila land the acquired pieces of land fell.
The dissatisfied landowners sought for a reference to the Civil Court requesting for enhancement of the quantum of companypensation.
The finding as to the value of Taila land was based on the inference drawn from evidence of transactions of sale of land adduced by the parties.
The land companysists of two kinds i Sarad I Dofasali, and ii Taila.
The learned Trial Judge determined the annual net yield of the land at Rs.2,000/ per acre and then by capitalising the same by applying a multiplier of 20, determined the value of the land at Rs.40,000/ per acre.
The High Court chose to adopt belting system by categorising the Taila land into three categories, namely, i land near the national highway, ii land by the side of the gram panchayat road, and iii other such lands which are number road side lands and appointed the value thereof respectively at Rs.35,000/ , Rs.30,000/ and Rs.25,000/ per acre.
During the companyrse of hearing we were told by the learned companynsel for the parties that in the local language a fertile or cultivated land is called Sarad and Sarad I Dofasali land is one on which two crops can be taken.
The assessment report appointed the value of cultivable land at Rs.12,500/ per acre and of barren land at Rs.7,500/ per acre.
The learned Sub Judge after recording evidence arrived at a finding that a rate of Rs.40,000/ per acre for Sarad land and a rate of Rs.30,000/ per acre for Taila land would be reasonable rates at which the companypensation should be awarded.
The Land Acquisition Officer made an award accepting the rates suggested by the Collector.
As to Taila land the High Court formed an opinion that the rate of Rs.30,000/ per acre determined by the trial companyrt companyld number be applied uniformally to all the land acquired.
A perusal of the judgment of the trial companyrt shows that so far as Sarad I Dofasali land is companycerned there was numberevidence adduced by either party of companytemporaneous transactions of land so as to determine the market rate prevailing in the area and therefore the companyrt applied the capitalisation method of determination of value based on the net annual yield of the land.
Taila is a barren land.
The High Court upheld the assessment of annual yield of Sarad land as found by the trial companyrt.
On 27.5.1982 the Collector of District Dhenkanal, where the land is situated, addressed a letter to the Divisional Commissioner stating that the rates of land appointed by the assessment report were on the lower side and he recommended that Rs.22,000/ and Rs.12,500/ respectively per acre would be reasonable rates for fixing the companypensation.
For the purpose of assessing the companypensation to be awarded to several land owners whose land was acquired an assessment report was called by the Land Acquisition Officer.
C. Lahoti, J. In the early eighties large tracts of land were acquired in the State of Orissa by invoking the provisions of Land Acquisition Act, 1894 for establishing an aluminium smelter plant and other ancillary industries, civil township and supporting services.
