( 1 ) IN this group of special civil applications the petitioners challenge the notifications issued under secs. 4 and 6 of the Land Acquisition Act (hereinafter referred to as the Act) acquiring their lands for the extension of village site urgently under sec. 17 (4) of the Act by dispensing with the inquiry under sec. 5a of the Act. In Special Civil Application Nos. 1603 and 1604 of 1967 the lands that are sought to be acquired are respectively S. Nos. 11 and 14 situated in village Kholeshwar Taluka Kamrej District Surat. In these petitions the notifications under secs. 4 and 6 of the Act were issued on January 24 1967 and October 6 1967 respectively. In Special Civil Application No. 864 of 1967 the lands that are sought to be acquired are S. Nos. 925 950 954 and 953 situated in village Ichchhapore Taluka Chorasi District Surat. The notifications under secs. 4 and 6 of the Act were issued on February 16 1967 and May 30 1967 respectively. In all these petitions the lands are sought to be acquired to accommodate the flood stricken residents of the respective villages. The acquisition notifications are challenged in the petitions on various grounds but at the time of argument the points pressed were:- (1) That the authorities applied urgency clause on misreading the provisions of sub-secs. 1 and 4 of sec. 17 the Act. That there was no legal application of mind with the result that the notifications issued under secs. 4 and 6 of the Act acquiring the lands of the petitioners are illegal invalid and unauthorised; (2) That the urgency clause was applied mala fide. This point was pressed in Special Civil Application No. 864 of 1967.

( 2 ) IN order to appreciate the contentions it is necessary to refer to the relevant provisions of the Act. Sec. 4 of the Act provides that whenever it appears to the appropriate Government that land in any locality is needed or is likely to be needed for any public purpose a notification to the effect shall be published in the Official Gazette. Sec. SEE of the Act provides that any person interested in any land which has been notified under sec. 4 sub-sec. (1) as being needed or likely to be needed for a public purpose or for a company may within thirty days after the publication of the Notification under sec. 4 of the Act object to the acquisition of the land The objections are to be addressed to the Collector. The Collector then has to give the objector an opportunity of being heard. After the inquiry the Collector has to submit his report to the Government Sec. 6 of the Act provides that when the appropriate Government is satisfied after considering the report if any made under sec. 5a sub-sec. (2) that any particular land is needed for a public purpose a declaration shall be made to that effect. The declaration is required to be published in the Official Gazette. The said declaration of the Government that the land is required for public purpose or for a company is conclusive evidence that the land is needed for a public purpose or for a company. After such a declaration proceeding for determining the compensation payable to the owner of the lands which are acquired is to be put in the motion after giving notices to the persons interested in the land. The Collector after holding an inquiry gives his award determining the compensation payable to the owners of the lands whose lands are acquired. Sec. 16 provides that when the Collector had made an award under sec. 11 of the Act he may take possession of the land which shall there upon vest absolutely in the Government free from all encumbrances. Sec. 17 of the Act provides that in cases of urgency whenever the appropriate Government so directs the Collector though no such award has been made may on the expiration of fifteen days from the publication of the notice mentioned in sec. 9 sub-sec. (1) take possession of any land needed for public purpose or for a company. Such land there upon vest absolutely in the Government free from all