This is a petition arising out of proceedings under the U. P. Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings Act, 1960. The Prescribed Authority had issued a notice to the petitioner under section 10 (2) showing that 92 bigha 14 biswa 19 biswansis area (5. 84 hectares of irregated land) is her surplus land. She was required to file objections. The petitioner filed several objections out of them only three were pressed. One was in respect of plot No. 135; another was about plot No. 177 and the third one was about plot no. 446. The Prescribed Authority negatived all the objections and declared the aforesaid area as surplus land of petitioner. She filed an appeal under section 13 of the said Act. The Learned District Judge negatived her contentions in respect of plot nos. 135 and 177 but gave her option with regard to plot no. 446 as desired by her. The petitioner has, therefore, filed this petition pressing her contention in respect of plot nos. 135 and 177 only. I have heard the learned counsel for both sides. So far as plot no. 135 is concerned, there is no controversy that it remains submerged with water and does not yield any crop. It yields either Singhara and fish. The contention of the learned counsel for the petitioner is that as this plot remains submerged with water throughout the year it cannot be regarded as land and cannot be taken into consideration for determining the ceiling area. The U. P. Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings Act, 1960, does not define land. It is defined in section 3 (14) of the U. P. Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950, as follows:

" Land" (except in Sections 109, 143, 144 and Chapter VII) means land held or occupied for purposes connected with agriculture, horticulture or animal husbandry which includes pisiculture and poultry farming.

Obviouily plot no. 135 is not used for purposes connected with agriculture, horticulture or animal husbandry and it cannot be regarded as land. This question came up for consideration before the Board of Revenue in the case of Ram Autar v. Lala Laxminath (1), in which it was held that where all the land was under water and the use of a small portion of it for growing crops like Bajra and paddy cannot be considered use connected with the agriculture or use for any such other purpose as would render the land within the meaning of the definition of that word in section 3 (14) of the U. P. Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act (I of 1951 ). This view is obviously correct because the preamble of the U. P. Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings Act, 1960, states as follows:

" Whereas it is necessary in the interest of the community to ensure increased agricultural production and to provide land for landless agricultural labourers and for other public purposes as best to subserve the common good;

And whereas a more equitable distribution of land is essential;

And, therefore, it is expedient to provide for the imposition of ceiling on land holdings in Uttar Pradesh for the aforementioned purposes;" The preamble makes it clear that the Act has been passed to provide land for landless agricultural labourers and for a mere equitable distribution of land as also in the interest of community to ensure increased agricultural production and for other public purposes as best to subserve the common good. The object of the Act, therefore, is to carve out land from the large holdings so that the remaining holdings may be manageable and capable of more intensive cultivation as also to provide land to those who could not have got it or who have very little of it. Obviously this purpose cannot be achieved unless there is land. A land which remains submerged with water and which cannot be used for any purpose contemplated by Section 3 (14) of U. P. Act I of 1v51 cannot be regarded as land nor it can serve the purposes contemplated by the preamble of the U. P. Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings Act. The learned Standing Counsel has referred to sections