Coal land acquisition compensation resolved through a court-supervised Claims Commission and agreed scheme for entitlement and payout.

Compensation for coal land acquisition remained unpaid despite the land having vested in the Central Government and then in the company. On the special facts, the Court accepted a mutually agreed mechanism for re-survey, identification of genuine landowners, determination of possession, consideration of de-notification for unsuitable land, and assessment of compensation, including where possession had not been taken. The arrangement was approved as serving fairness and justice, but the Court modified it by constituting the Claims Commission itself, fixing its composition, directing cooperation from the State and the company, and requiring the report to be placed before the Court for further directions.

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Issues: Whether the compensation dispute arising from the coal land acquisition could be resolved by approving the mutually agreed scheme and constituting a Claims Commission to determine entitlement, possession status, de-notification, and the amount payable.

Analysis: The land had already been acquired and vested in the Central Government and thereafter in the company, but compensation had remained unpaid for years. In the special facts, the parties agreed to a comprehensive mechanism for re-survey, identification of genuine landowners, determination of possession, consideration of de-notification for unsuitable land, and assessment of compensation, including in respect of land where possession had not been taken. The Court accepted that the agreed procedure would serve the ends of justice and fairness, but modified it by itself constituting the Commission, fixing its composition, directing cooperation by the State and the company, and requiring the report to be submitted to the Court for further directions.

Conclusion: The scheme was approved with clarifications and modifications, and a Claims Commission was constituted to determine the compensation and related issues.

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