PRAYAGRAJ, April 18 -- The Allahabad high court has directed the power authorities in Uttar Pradesh to pay Rs.26.65 lakh as compensation to a man who lost his hands in childhood nearly 29 years ago due to alleged negligence by the electricity department. A bench of Justice Sandeep Jain passed the order while allowing a first appeal filed by the victim, Pappu. The incident dates back to March 1997, when Pappu, then seven years old, was playing near a primary school in Nagla Padi, Agra. An 11,000-volt transformer had been installed at the site without any fencing or safety cover. The child accidentally came in contact with it, suffering severe electric burns that ultimately led to the amputation of his arms below the shoulders to save his life. A compensation suit filed through his father was dismissed by a trial court in 2005, which held the child responsible for the incident. Challenging this decision, the victim approached the high court, which has now overturned the earlier ruling and awarded compensation. Allowing the appeal, the high court set aside the October 29, 2005 judgment and decree passed by the additional district judge, Agra, which had denied compensation on the grounds of the victim's alleged negligence. "Victim Pappu is entitled to a sum of Rs.26.65 lakh as compensation for the injuries suffered by him, along with pendente lite and future interest at the rate of six percent per annum from the date of filing of the case, i.e., May 30, 1997, till its realisation from the defendant," the court directed. The Uttar Pradesh State Electricity Board was the defendant in the case. Though UPSEB was in existence at the time of the incident, it was restructured into separate organisations in January 2000, among which the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Ltd was the primary entity. The court further held that the victim is entitled to the costs of the suit and the appeal, including court fees. In its judgment dated April 15, the court directed the electricity board to pay the awarded amount within one month, failing which the plaintiff would be at liberty to initiate execution proceedings for recovery....