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The Supreme Court on Thursday delivered a landmark judgment recognising the economic and social value of unpaid domestic work, describing homemakers as ‘nation builders’ and directing that a separate compensation component, termed ‘loss of domestic care’, be awarded in motor accident cases involving their death.
A Bench of Justices Sanjay Karol and N Kotiswar Singh enhanced the compensation payable to the family of a woman who died in a road accident in Haryana in 2001 from Rs 8.43 lakh to Rs 62.77 lakh.
The court also laid down guidelines for assessing compensation in cases involving homemakers.
The apex court allowed an appeal by the woman’s legal heirs and held that a homemaker’s contribution extends beyond conventional monetary measures and has historically undervalued in compensation jurisprudence.
Case Background
The case stemmed from a road accident on November 25, 2001, when the woman died while travelling from Sirsa to Fatehabad.
The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal had awarded Rs 2.42 lakh in 2003, which the Punjab and Haryana High Court increased to Rs 8.43 lakh in December 2024.
Unsatisfied with the amount, the claimants approached the Supreme Court.
The court noted that compensation calculations based on historically low notional income figures often fail to reflect the actual contribution of homemakers.
It introduced ‘loss of domestic care’ as a new compensation head and fixed a composite sum of Rs 30,000 per month as the basic minimum monthly income of a homemaker with no independent earnings.
The amount will increase by 10 per cent every three years.
The judgment also highlighted delays in motor accident compensation cases.
After examining more than 100 appeals, the court found an average pendency of about eight years in High Courts and six years before tribunals.
The Bench urged Chief Justices of all High Courts to prioritise long-pending motor accident claim appeals and consider increasing the number of benches handling such matters. It also directed the filing of claim petitions with relevant documents to reduce delays caused by repeated adjournments.
A copy of the judgment will go to all High Courts and Motor Accident Claims Tribunals.
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