LALIT MOHAN SHARMA, J.

1. The petitioners in these four cases have challenged the right of the different Agricultural Produce Market Committees, the respondents to the cases, to demand and collect market fee on Ata, Sujji and Maida under the provisions of the Bihar Agricultural Produce Markets Act, 1960 and the Rules framed thereunder. The main argument has been addressed on behalf of the petitioners in C.W.J.C. 1660 of 1981 with reference to the paperbook of that case, which has been adopted in the other cases.

2. It has been contended that since Ata. Sujji and Maida have not been legally included in the schedule to the Act and in the list of items notified in accordance with law with reference to the Market Committees the Market Committees have no jurisdiction to direct the petitioners to collect and pay market fee thereon. The petitioners have also taken several other points in support of their case which, in view of my opinion on the above question, are not necessary to be dealt with.

3. For the better regulation of buying and selling agricultural produce and the establishment of markets therefor, the Bihar Agricultural Produce Markets Act (hereinafter referred to as the Act) was enacted in 1960. By S.2(1)(a), the term agricultural produce was defined as the produce specified in the schedule to the Act. Ata, Sujji and Maida were not included in the schedule. S.3(1) empowers the State Government to declare its intention by notification of regulating the purchase and sale of such agricultural produce and in such area as may be specified, inviting objections and suggestions within a period of two months. S.4 provides for consideration of the objections and suggestions so received and consequent appropriate reduction in area and exclusion of any item in terms of produce by another notification. It is also enjoined that for such market area, there shall be a principal market yard (one or more sub market yards are also permitted). Sub-sec.(3) of S.4 deals with the modification of the market area and the list of the agricultural produce applicable to any market area in the following terms:-

"(3) Subject to the provisions of S.3, the State Government may at any time, by notification exclude from a market area any area or any agricultural produce specified therein or include in any market area any area or agricultural produce included in a notification issued under sub-sec.(1)".

By a further notification under S.5, the details of the principal market yard and the sub market yards are to be declared. By still another notification under S.6 a Market Committee is to be established for every market area. S.27 places a duty on the Market Committee to levy and collect fees on the agricultural produce bought or sold in the market area at a given rate. The fee has been made payable by the buyer and the procedure with respect to the levy and collection is laid down in Rr.82 and 83.

4. Coming to the circumstances leading to the filing of C.W.J.C, 1660 of 1981 the respondent No. 2, Patna City Market Committee was constituted, under a notification dated 11-11-1970, with only a few commodities out of the schedule. By another notification dated 9-9-1974, as contained in Annexure-2, all the commodities specified in the schedule were notified by a general reference to that effect and without actually detailing the items, S.39 of the Act authorises the State Government to add to, amend or cancel any of the items in the schedule by a notification. By an order dated the 12th Feb. 1972, the State Government purported to add inter alia Ata. Sujji and Maida in the schedule. This order, however, was not notified before 1980. It was published in the extraordinary issue of the Bihar Gazette on the 15th May, 1980. However, no notifications were issued under Secs.3 and 4 for the purpose of declaring the added items as notified agricultural produce for the respondent-Market Committee.

5. According to the respondents, the schedule stood amended in 1972