Chandigarh, March 18 -- The Punjab and Haryana high court has awarded Rs.99 lakh compensation to a 10-year-old girl, who was gravely injured at the age of six by the live wire in Ateli area of Mahendragarh district of Haryana in January 2022. "There can be no dispute that human life and well-being has no price in monetary terms. If a person dies or suffers injuries by electrocution due to the misfeasance and carelessness of the distribution licensee, a case for payment of compensation would arise," the bench of justice Harsimran Singh Sethi and justice Vikas Suri observed adding that the transmission company was duty bound to follow the safety measures required to be observed for supply/transmission of electricity. The court was dealing with a plea from a girl from Haryana, who suffered permanent disability after coming into contact with a 11 kV line, operated and maintained by Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam Ltd (DHBVN). On the fateful day of January 25, 2022, at around 3 pm, the girl was playing on the terrace of the house. She heard a sound, which lured her towards the balcony. The high tension line ran in front of the house, "almost touching the grill of the house". The girl came in contact with the wires and suffered severe burn injuries. As per PGIMER report, her right arm was amputated from her right shoulder and there was contracture of her left hand's ring and little fingers. Resultantly, on account of amputation, the petitioner suffered 92% permanent disability. The father of the petitioner had requested the authorities a number of times to shift the high tension line away from his house, however, no heed was paid to the requests. Even the coverings of the said wires, owing to weathering, were damaged over a period of time and the request to the department to replace the same did not bear any fruit, it was alleged. The child had sought compensation of Rs.2 crore and challenged a 2023 decision of DHBVN to award compensation of Rs.18.92 lakh to the girl. The company had argued that the family has been compensated and further the father of the petitioner had extended the balcony of his house, and thus the respondent was not at any fault for the unfortunate incident. Hence, the petition be dismissed. The court observed that the company was duty bound to keep the humans living in and around habitation safe from any harm by the supply of potentially dangerous energy, especially through high voltage transmission lines. "In the present case, had the Nigam taken precautions and installed the necessary safety devices, the accident could have been avoided. The Nigam having failed to protect the life and property of the public at large in general and of the petitioner in particular, the present case falls within the ambit of strict liability," the bench observed. The court underlined that no contributing negligence can be attributed to a girl aged about six years as being claimed by the company. While deciding on the compensation, the court said the girl has been crippled for her entire life and for the injuries suffered by her, she would not be able to lead and enjoy those comforts and amenities of life, which depend on freedom of movement. It noted that she would require a full-time attendant to guide and help her through with the simple tasks, which require two arms/hands to complete. Also she would require an advanced prosthetic arm, which would enable her to attend her daily activity and carry on with life. Taking note of compensation awarded by different courts in similar cases, the court finalised the amount at Rs.99.93 lakh with an interest at the rate of 7.5% from the date when she filed the petition and ordered that no deduction would be made from this amount for compensation paid earlier. The court noted that 90% of this amount is to be deposited in a fixed deposit and the bank would release a monthly amount of Rs.30,000 per month to her. The girl can approach the HC for release of more funds from time to time....