Revolutionising Law Reporting !
 |
 |
 |
| Install Now! | Install Now! | Install Now! |
The Maharashtra Sale of Trees by Occupants Belonging to Scheduled Tribes (Regulation) Act, 1969
Maharashtra Act No. 23 of 1969
MH239
|
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY 6 |
(a) "appointed day" means the 3rd day of March 1969;
(b) "Code" means the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966;
[(ca) "Conservator of Forests" means the Conservator of Forests of the concerned circle;]
(d) "Forest Officer" means a Forest Officer within the meaning of the Indian Forest Act, 1927;
(e) "occupant" means an occupant belonging to a Scheduled Tribes;
(f) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules;
(g) "revenue officer" means a revenue officer within the meaning of the Code;
(h) "Scheduled Tribes" means such tribes or tribal communities or parts of or group within, such tribes or tribal communities as are deemed to be Scheduled Tribes in relation to the State of Maharashtra under article 342 of the Constitution of India;
[(i) "trees" means any trees in the holding of an occupant.]
(2) Words and expressions used but not defined, in this Act, shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in the Code. 3. Prohibition. - (1) No occupant shall, after the appointed day, sell any trees in this holding except with the [* * *] assistance of the Collector as hereinafter provided. (2) Any sale of trees made in contravention of the provisions of sub-section (1) shall be invalid; and no person shall fell any trees in pursuance of any sale of tree which is invalid. 4. [Past contracts for sale of trees required to be approved.] - Deleted by Maharashtra 16 of 1991, section 2. 5. [Procedure for sale of trees after appointed day.] - Deleted by Maharashtra 31 of 1974, section 4. [6. Sale of trees through Forest Officers [* * *]]. - 1. Any occupant, who on and after the commencement of the Maharashtra Sale of Trees by Occupants belonging to Scheduled Tribes (Regulation) (Amendment) Act, 1974 in tends to sell any tree in his holding, shall make an application to the Collector for assistance for the sale of the trees. Such application shall be in the prescribed form and shall be accompanie by a certified copy of the permission if any, granted under section 3 of the Maharashtra Felling of Trees (Regulation) Act, 1964, and where such permission is deemed to have been granted under sub-section (1C) of section 3 of that Act, the applicant shall state such fact therein. (2) On receipt of an application under sub-section (1), the Collector shall, after hearing the applicant and making such inquiry as he may deem fit, decide whether the assistance sought for should be granted [for not] for sale of the trees through a Forest Officer [* * * *]. (3) If the Collector decides to grant such assistance, the Collector shall arrange for the sale of the trees in such manner as the State Government may by order direct (including provision in such direction for circumstances in which deposits made at sale may be forfeited) through a Forest Officer who is duly authorized by the State Government in this behalf, so as to secure the maximum price for such trees. [(4) * * * *] [(5) Payment of advance amount prior to the sale of trees and the payment of the proceeds of the sale shall be made by the Collector in the following manner, namely:-(a) twenty per cent of the net estimated value of the trees to be sold shall be paid within thirty days form the date of the decision for grant of assistance for the sale of trees under sub-section (2);
(b) thirty per cent of the net estimated value of the trees to be sold shall be paid within thirty days from the date of transportation of the felled trees to the sales depot;
(c) the proceeds of the sale, after deducting the amount paid under clauses (a) and (b), the expenses of the sale and other expenses as have been incurred, shall be paid within one hundred and twenty days from the date of transportation of the felled trees to the sales depot.]
7. Appeal. - Every person aggrieved by an order or decision of the Collector under this Act may, within thirty days of the receipt of such order, appeal to such authority as may be prescribed in this behalf. Subject to such rules of procedure as may by prescribed, the appellate authority may, after giving such person a reasonable opportunity of being heard, pass order on the appeal as it thinks just and proper. [7A. Revision. - [(1) The State Government or the Conservator or Forests may suo motu or on an application made to it or him by an aggrieved person for the purpose of satisfying itself or himself as to the legality or propriety of any decision or order passed, by or as to the regularity of the proceedingd, of the Collector or any Forest Officer, call for and examine the record of any inquiry or proceedings of any case pending before or disposed of by such Collector or Forest Officer: Provided that no such record shall be called for by the State Government or the Conservator or Forests, if the application is made after six months from the date of receipt, by the applicant, of the decision or order sought to be revised.] (2) If, in any case, it shall appear to the State Government or the [Conservator or Forests] that any decision or order or proceedingd so called for should be modified, annulled or reversed, it or he may pass such order thereon as it or he thinks fit: Provided that the State Government or the [Conservator or Forests] shall not pass any order under this section which adversely affects any person, unless such person has been given a reasonable opportunity of being heard.] [7B. Power to transfer proceedings. - The State Government may, be general or special order, withdraw any applications, appeals or other proceedings under this Act pending before any officer or authority and transfer the same for disposal to any other officer or authority as the case may be, having jurisdiction.] 8. Penalty. - (1) Any person, who fells any trees in any holding or removes them therefrom in pursuance of any sale which is invalid under section [* * * *] shall, on conviction, be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months or with fine which may extend to two thousand rupees, and trees felled, if any, in contravention of this Act may be confiscated by order of the court. (2) The Magistrate may order that the whole or any part of the fine so imposed may be paid to the occupant as compensation. 9. Officers to be public servants. - The officers exercising the powers or discharging any duties or functions under this Act shall be deemed to be public servants within the meaning of sectiun 21 of the Indian Penal Code. 10. Execution order for payment of money. - Any sum the payment of which has been directed by the Collector under this Act be recoverable from the person ordered to pay the same as an arrears of land revenue. 11. Bar of proceedings. - No suit or proceedings shall lie against the State Government or against any person empowered to exercise the powers or to perform the duties or to discharge the functions under this Act for anything in good faith done or purported to be done by or under this Act. 12. Provisions of this Act to be in addition to any other law for time being in force. - The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to, and not in derogation of the provisions of any other law for the time being in force prohibiting or regulating the felling of trees. 13. Power to make rules. - (1) The State Government may by notification in the Official Gazette, and subject to the condition of previous publication make rules for carrying into effect the purposes of this Act. (2) Every rule made under this section shall be laid as soon as may be after it is made before each House of the State Legislature while it is in session for a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two successive sessions and if before the expiry of the session in which it is so laid or the session immediately following both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both Houses agree that the rule should not be made and notify such decision in the Official Gazette, the rule shall from the date of such notification have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may; so however that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done or omitted to be done under that rule. 14. Repeal of Maharashtra Ordinance V of 1969 and saving. - (1) The Maharashtra Sale of Trees by Occupants belonging to Scheduled Tribes (Regulation) Ordinance, 1969, is hereby repealed. (2) Notwithstanding such repeal, anything done or any action taken (including any rules made) under the said Ordinance shall be deemed to have been done or taken under this Act.Notifications
G. N., R. & F. D., No. TRS. 1068-(a)-Z, dated 7th March, 1969 (M.G., Part IV-B, page 363) - In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 2 of the Maharashtra Sale of Trees by Occupants belonging to Scheduled Tribes (Regulation) Ordinance, 1969 (Maharashtra Ordinance Vth of 1969), the Government of Maharashtra hereby specially empowers all Sub-Divisional Officers in the State for performing the functions of a Collector under the said Ordinance. G. N., R. & F. D., No. TRS. 1074/68726-W, dated 17th October, 1974 (M.G., Part IV-B, page 1196) - In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 2 of the Maharashtra Sale of Trees by Occupants belonging to Scheduled Tribes (Regulation) Act, 1969 (Maharashtra XXIII of 1969), and in supersession of Government Notification No. TRS. 1068-(a)-Z, dated the 7th March 1969, the Government of Maharashtra hereby specially empowers all Tahsildars in the State for performing the functions of the Collector under the said Act. G. O., R. & F. D., No. TRS. 1081/104117-F-6(a), dated 11th August, 1981 (M.G., Part IV-B, page 1599) - In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 2 of the Maharashtra Sale of Trees by Occupants belonging to Scheduled Tribes (Regulation) Act, 1969 (Maharashtra XXIII of 1969) and in supersession of Government Notification, Revenue and Forests Department, No. TRS. 1074/68726-W, dated the 17th October 1976, the Government of Maharashtra hereby empowers,-(a) all Divisional Forest Officers and all Sub-Divisional Forest Officers in charge of Independent Forest Sub-Divisions, in the State, to perform all the functions of the Collector under the said Act, within their respective territorial jurisdiction; and
(b) all Range Forest Officers in the State, to perform the functions in respect of lands within their respective territorial jurisdiction, to receive the applications made under sub-section (1) of section 6 of the said Act, to make inquiry and to submit a report to the Divisional Forest Officer, or the Sub-Divisional Forests Officer in charge of an Independent Forest Sub-Division, concerned for taking further action.
G. N., R. & F. D., No. IRS. 1069-(a)-Z, dated 18th March, 1969 (M.G., Part IV-B, page 377) - In exercise of the powers conferred sub-section (1) of section 6 of the Maharashtra Sale of Trees by Occupants belonging to Scheduled Tribes (Regulation) Ordinance, 1969 (Maharashtra Ordinance V of 1969), read with sub-rule (1) of rule 6 of the Maharashtra Sales of Trees by Occupants belonging to Scheduled Tribes (Regulation) Rules, 1969, the Government of Maharashtra hereby authorizes all Range Forest Officers in charge of ranges for the purposes of the said sub-section (1) and sub-rule (1) in respect of lands within their respective jurisdiction. G. N., R. & F. D., No. TRS. 1081/120143-F-3, dated 19th July, 1982 (M.G., Part IV-B, page 746) - In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (3) and (4) of section 6 of the Maharashtra Sale of Trees by Occupants belonging to Scheduled Tribes (Regulation) Act, 1969 (Maharashtra XXIII of 1969), read with rule 5 of the Maharashtra Sale of Trees by Occupants belonging to Scheduled Tribes (Regulation) Rules, 1969, the Government of Maharashtra hereby authorizes the Range-Forest Officers to perform the duties of Forest Officer and Officer, respectively under the sub-section (3) and (4) of the section 6 of the said Act and said Rule 5, within their respective territorial jurisdiction. G. O., R. & F. D., No. TRS. 1081/104117-F-(b), dated 11th August, 1981 (M. G., Part IV-B, page 1600) - In exercise of the powers conferred by section 7B of the Maharashtra Sale of Trees by Occupants belonging to Scheduled Tribes (Regulation) Act, 1969 (Maharashtra XXIII of 1969), the Government of Maharashtra hereby withdraws all applications under sections 4 and 6 and other provisions of the Act pending before any Tahsildars, on the date of publication of this Order in the Official Gazette, and transfers the same for disposal to the Divisional Forest Officer, or where there is a Sub-Divisional Forest Officer in charge of an Independent Forest Sub-Division to such Sub-Divisional Forest Officer, in whose territorial jurisdiction the concerned lands on which the trees are standing are situated.
