COIMBATORE: Severe delays in implementing court orders for payment of compensation have drawn sharp criticism, with hundreds of files pending for years in the district's Revenue Department under the Revenue Recovery Act.
Victims and their families continue to face financial hardship due to prolonged administrative inaction. Sources indicate that each Revenue Inspector (RI) office in Coimbatore district has between 5 and 20 such long-pending cases that remain unprocessed for many years.
"It is unfortunate that despite clear court directives, revenue officials have failed to take timely follow-up action. Many files are simply kept pending on the shelves without proper processing," said a source close to the affected families.
Lack of periodic review by the district administration is being blamed for the inordinate delays. In one such case, C Varadharajan (36) of Ilayankudi in Sivagangai district lost his right arm in an industrial accident at Karthikeya Paper and Board Limited in Sathyangalam in October 2012. The Labour Court ordered the company to pay Rs 2.58 lakh as compensation on October 21, 2022. However, the company, whose headquarters is in Ram Nagar, Coimbatore North Taluk, has not paid the full amount despite the victim repeatedly approaching the district administration since September 2025.
Coimbatore North Tahsildar K Jayakumar said, "We have been following up with the paper mill management. They claimed they have no money to pay the compensation. So far, we have recovered Rs 50,000 in two installments. We cannot give any time frame for the remaining amount as the management says they have no assets."
In another case, an elderly woman from Vadavalli waited nearly a decade for Rs 1.5 lakh in court-ordered compensation. The case was eventually closed after the opposite party died, leaving the victim with nothing. Revenue officials reportedly continued to file follow-up reports even four years after the defaulter's death. Hundreds of similar victims are still awaiting justice through the revenue machinery.
Collector Pavankumar G Giriyappanavar was not available for comment despite repeated attempts.
