Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh High Court has taken a stern view of the collapse of Ranjana Devi’s house at Chamiyana during the construction of the Shimla bypass four-lane project, holding the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and M/s Gawar Shimla Highway Private Limited jointly responsible for the damage.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice G.S. Sandhawalia and Justice Bipin C. Negi directed both parties to pay 50 per cent each of the total compensation of ₹2,23,55,924 to Ranjana Devi within four weeks.
The matter came before the court as a public interest petition following a letter submitted by Chanda Devi. She had complained that Ranjana Devi’s house, located next to her 3.5-storey building, collapsed during the four-laning work, leaving her own house unsafe.
According to the assessment report placed before the court, the value of Ranjana Devi’s house was assessed at ₹1,65,17,336, while the value of household belongings was estimated at ₹58,38,588. The total loss was therefore assessed at ₹2,23,55,924.
The Bench expressed its displeasure over the fact that despite the damage having been assessed in July 2025, no compensation had been paid to Ranjana Devi so far. The court made it clear that NHAI cannot evade responsibility for damage caused by the construction work.
The High Court has also directed the state government to assess the damage to Chanda Devi’s unsafe house. The assessment will be carried out in accordance with the guidelines of the state-level committee constituted on June 8, 2022, for assessing damage to private land and buildings located outside the Right of Way.
The court directed NHAI and M/s Gawar Shimla Highway Private Limited to make the 50-50 payment to Ranjana Devi within four weeks from the date of the order. The matter has been listed for the next hearing on September 23, 2026.
