MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court recently confirmed an order passed by the high court in 2017, awarding `15 lakh compensation to a boy who suffered severe injuries resulting in amputation of his hands, after he accidentally touched a high-tension electric wire while playing in a playground near a Government Primary Health Centre at Valinokkam in Ramanathapuram in 2011.
A Bench of justices Anita Sumanth and R Vijayakumar passed the order on an appeal filed by the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) in 2018, challenging the order of compensation. The boy was the son of a fisherman residing in the area which was situated near the sea. He was studying in a government high school.
On October 3, 2011, when the boy was playing in a ground, he came in contact with a high-tension electric wire, which left both his hands and a part of his left foot charred. Despite medical treatment, the boy lost his hands and a toe of his foot, resulting in 90% permanent disability. Claiming that the entire incident happened due to the negligence of the electricity department officials, the boy’s father moved a plea in the high court in 2013, seeking compensation.
The petition was allowed by the high court, challenging which the TNEB has filed the appeal. TNEB officials claimed that the electric wire had only ‘sagged’ and waved due to heavy winds and not ‘snapped’ as alleged by the petitioner. But the judges observed that whether it was a sag or snap is immaterial in the matter as the sagging of the wire should not be to the extent that it dips enough to interfere with the movement of persons or pose a threat to one’s life or limb.
If the authorities had carried out proper and regular maintenance as claimed, the flaw in the electric line should have been seen and corrected, the judges pointed out and dismissed the appeal.