Mahanti Devi vs M/S. Jaiprakash Associates Ltd. .

The Supreme Court upheld the compensation awarded under Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, for land acquired for the Himachal Cement Project, determining that the Reference Court's valuation of Rs.5 lakhs per bigha was justified based on comparable sale deeds. The Court emphasized that compensation cannot be determined with mathematical precision and must consider various positive and negative factors affecting land value. The judgment maintained the compensation amount, remitting pending cases for further consideration.