ORDER

1. Leave granted.

2. These appeals by special leave arise from the judgments of the Division Bench of the High Court of Allahabad dated 22-1-1991 and 13-5-1992 made in CMWP No. 4177 of 1985 and CMWP No. 7146 of 1988. The land bearing Plot No. 325 situated in Village Chiloli in District Farrukhabad, of a total extent of 5.13 acres out of 8.21 acres was notified and published in the State Gazette on 19-2-1982 for acquisition to establish Model Market Yard of Krishi Utpadan Mandi Samiti, Kaimganj in District Farrukhabad. The declaration under Section 6(1) was published in the Gazette on 7-2-1985, in the newspapers on 4-6-1987 and the substance in the locality subsequent thereto. The respondents who owned about 1 acre and odd land have challenged the validity of the declaration on the ground that it was published after the expiry of three years. Therefore, the notification under Section 4(1) and declaration under Section 6(1) should be deemed to be void. That contention found favour with the High Court and it allowed the writ petitions. Thus these appeals by special leave.

3. The only question is whether the High Court was right in its conclusion that the declaration under Section 6 was published after 3 years and the last of the publications shall be the last date for the purpose of computing three years period envisaged in clause (i) of the proviso to sub-section (1) of Section 6 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short the Act) as amended by Land Acquisition (Amendment) Act, 1984 (68 of 1984). Section 6(1) postulates that subject to the provisions of Part VII of the Act, when the appropriate Government was satisfied, after considering the report, if any, made under Section 5-A(2) that any particular land is needed for a public purpose, or for a company a declaration shall be made to that effect under the signature of a Secretary to such Government or of some officer duly authorised to certify its order that any land covered by the same notification under Section 4(1), irrespective of whether one report or different reports has or Have been made (wherever required) under Section 5-A(2). The proviso itself places an embargo and limitation on the exercise of the power under Section 6(1) and publication of the declaration in the Gazette with the language thus :

"Provided that any land covered by Notification 4(1) published after the commencement of the Land Acquisition (Amendment) and Validation Ordinance, 1967 (1 of 1967), but before the commencement of the Land Acquisition (Amendment) Act, 1984 shall be made after the expiry of three years from the date of publication of the notification under Section 4(1). Sub-section (2) provides that every declaration shall be published in the Official Gazette, in two daily newspapers in the locality in which the land is situated of which at least one shall be in the regional language and the Collector shall cause public notice of the substance of such declaration to be given at convenient places in the said locality (the last of the dates of such publication and the giving of such public notice, being hereinafter referred to as the date of the publication of the declaration), and such declaration shall state the district or other territorial division in which land is situated, the purpose for which it is needed, its approximate area, and, where a plan shall have been made of the land, the place where such plan may be inspected. Sub-section (3) makes such declaration as conclusive evidence that the land is needed for a public purpose or for a company, as the case may be, and, after making such declaration, the appropriate Government may acquire the land in the manner hereinafter appearing." (emphasis supplied)

4. The question, therefore, is that which date of the publications in three steps i.e. publication in the Gazette, two newspapers and local publication to be the last date for the purpose of computing three years limitation prescribed in clause (i) of the proviso to Section 6(1