In Brief
In this land acquisition case, the Supreme Court enhanced compensation for 371.5 bighas of agricultural land acquired in Roopwas, Tonk for industrial development. The original award of ₹1,15,000 per bigha for road-abutting land was increased to ₹1,87,000 per bigha. For remaining irrigated and unirrigated land, compensation was fixed at ₹1,33,500 per bigha. The Court emphasised that reference proceedings under the Land Acquisition Act are independent, not appeals, and must rely solely on evidence before the Reference Court, not inadmissible materials considered by the Collector. Compensation was recalculated using comparative sale exemplars adjusted for 12% annual appreciation and development costs.
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