vandalism and rioting". The reasoning given was that it "would deter people from similar behaviour in the future". In an environmental tort case, the defendant was made to pay exemplary damages "so that it may act as deterrent for others not to cause pollution in any manner". Presently, in addition to compensatory damages and restitution, aggravated damages may be awarded to compensate victims for hurt feelings in certain cases. These damages are determined by examining if the defendant's conduct aggravated the plaintiff's damage by injuring "feelings of dignity, safety, and pride". Comparative negligence While the traditional approach of contributory negligence held that a plaintiff who bore even partial responsibility for the harm they experienced due to negligence could not recover damages in tort law, contemporary Indian jurisprudence is based on the principle of comparative negligence. Consequently, when a person fails to use reasonable care for the safety of either of himself or his property such that that they become blameworthy in part as an "author of [their] own wrong", any damages they may recover are reduced in proportion with the extent of their liability. Criticism India's tort system has been criticised for a variety of reasons, ranging from delays and outdated procedural rules to substantive criticism of the implications of its system of absolute liability and the unpredictability of judicial activism enabled by constitutional torts. Procedural deficiencies The delay in delivery of justice is a major problem plaguing India. This has been attributed to reasons such a low judge to population ratio (1 judge per 100,000 capita, with a small number of courts available), as well as poor administrative governance. Outmoded procedural laws allow for delaying tactics, such as interlocutory appeals and stay orders. The government has also been accused of employing delay tactics whenever it is a litigant, appealing even when the chance of success is remote. As a result, the system appears to resemble a "sunk cost auction", where litigants invest ever-increasing amounts to stave off higher losses. Despite being often cited as a litigious country, the rate of litigation is low, due to problems such as long delays, heavy expenses and meagre damage awards. There has apparently been an increase in litigation over the past years, especially with cases involving the government. This has been said to be due to India’s socio-economic growth and the resultant sensitisation regarding legal rights. Due to the problems noted, it has