Foetus can be deemed child for compensation: SC

Can compensation be awarded to a mother for the loss of her unborn child in an accident?
In the first such case, the Supreme Court has awarded Rs 1.80 lakh as compensation under Motor Vehicles Act to Kusuma, who lost her unborn baby when her car collided with a bus.
The task of a bench comprising Justices D K Jain and R M Lodha was made easier by the National Insurance Company, which didn’t challeng before the tribunal or HC Kusuma’s stand that an unborn child should be counted as a living being while claiming compensation.
The accident happened in 1995 when her car collided with a Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation bus. The 30-week pregnant Kusuma was hit on the stomach and delivered a still-born baby. She claimed compensation of Rs 2 lakh for loss of the baby, mental shock, pain and medical costs.