In Brief
In this Land Acquisition case, the Supreme Court set aside the High Court's decision to reduce compensation for irrigated agricultural land and deny compensation for orange trees. The court found that the High Court overlooked substantial evidence showing the land was predominantly irrigated (85-90%) with perennial water supply via a well, contained 325 orange trees aged 4-5 years that had begun bearing fruit, and supported valuable crop cultivation. The court awarded Rs.1,50,000 per hectare (up from the High Court's Rs.50,000), compensation for orange trees at Rs.600 each (revised from Rs.1,200 based on a ten-year rather than twenty-year multiplier), and additional amounts for barbed fencing and irrigation infrastructure."
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