THE SIKKIM LAND (REQUISITION AND ACQUISITION) ACT, 1977

ACT NO. 1 OF 1978

11th day of January, 1978

AN ACT to provide for the requisition and speedy acquisition of land for certain purposes. [11th January, 1978] WHEREAS it is expedient to provide for the requisition and speedy acqui-sition of land for public purposes as defined hereafter; Be it enacted by the Legislature of Sikkim in the Twenty-eighth Year of the Republic of India as follows :—

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S.4 Acquisition of land.

(1) Where any land has been requisitioned under section 3, for any public purpose, the State Government may use or deal with such land for such public purpose or any other public purpose.

1[2 If the State Government is of opinion that it is necessary to acquire for a public purpose any land requisitioned under section 3, it may acquire such land by publishing notification to the effect that such land is required to be acquired for such purpose and that the State Government has decided to acquire such land:

Provided that before issuing such notification, the State Government shall call upon the person interested or any other person who, in the opinion of the State Government, may be interested in such property to show cause why the property shall not be acquired and after considering the cause, if any, shown by the person interested in the land and after giving the party an opportunity of being heard, the State Government may pass such order as it deems fit]

S.5 Notice to persons interested.

(1) After the publication of a notification under sub-section (2) of section 4 the Collector shall cause public notice to be given at convenient places on or near the land acquired sta-ting that the State Government has acquired the land and that claims to the amount payable for the acquisition of such land may be made to him.

(2) Such public notice shall state the particulars of the land so acquired and shall require all persons intere-sted in the land to appear personally or by agent before the Collector at such place and on such date and at such time as may be mentioned therein, not being earlier than fifteen days after the publication of such notice and to state in writing and signed by such person or his agent the nature and particulars of their claims to the amount payable for the acqui-sition of such land.

(3) The Collector shall also serve notice in the man-ner prescribed on the occupier, if any, of such land and on all such persons known or believed to be int

S.6 Release from requisition.

(1) Where any land requisitioned under section 3 is not acquired and is to be released from requisition, the State Gover-nment may, after making such inquiry as it considers necessary, specify, by order in writing, who appears to it to be entitled to the possession of such land.

(2) The delivery of possession of such land to the person specified in the order made under sub section (1) shall be a full discharge of any liability of the State Government for any claim for any amount payable for requisition or other claim in respect of such land

S.7 Amount payable for requisition

(1) Whenever any land is acquired under section 4, there shall be paid to every person interested an amount which shall be determined by the Collector in the manner and in accordance with the principles of section 23 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, so far as they may be applicable:

1 of 1894.

Provided that the market value referred to in clause first of sub-section (1) of section 23 of the said Act shall, in respect of any land acquired under this Act, be deemed to be the price which such land would have fetched in the open market if it had remained in the same state and condition as it was on the date of the order of requisition under section 3 and been sold on the date of the publication of the notification referred to in sub-section (2) of section 4.

(2) When the amount has been determined under sub-section (1), the Collector shall, in accordance with the provisions of section 11 of Land Acquisition Act, 1894, so far as they may be applicable, make an awa

S.8 Amount payable for requisition

2 (1) Where any land is requisitioned under section 3, there shall be paid to the person interested in respect of the requisitioning of the land an amount, if any, as may be fixed by agreement between the Collector and the person interested and approved by the State Government in the manner prescribed and the Collector shall make an award ordering payment of such amount;

(2) Where the Collector and the person interested do not agree as to the amount or where the agreement arrived at by and between them is not approved by the State Government or where the person interested cannot be traced or does not appear before the Collector when called upon to be present for the purpose of the determination of the amount, the amount payable for the requisitioning of the land shall consist of—

• (a) a recurring payment, in respect of the period of requisition, of a sum which would have been payable for the use and occupation of the land, if it had been taken on lease
  

S.9 Reference to Court

(1) The Collector shall, in every case, where any person interested being aggrieved by an award made under sub-section (2) of section 7 or 1[* * *] sub-section (2) of section 8, makes an application requiring the matter to be referred to the Court, refer the matter for the decision of the Court.

(2) The application shall state the grounds on which objection to the award is taken and shall be made -

• (a) If the applicant was present or represented before the Collector at the time when the award was made within six weeks from the date of making of the award;
• (b) in other cases, within six weeks of the receipt of the notice from the Collector under clause (b) of sub-section (3) of section 7 or clause (b) of sub-section (2) of section 8, as the case may be, or within six months from the date of the making of the award by the Collector whichever period shall first expire.

(3) The provisions contained in sections 19 to 22 and sections

S.10 Payment to Cultivators

(1) Notwithstanding anything contained anywhere in this Act or any other law for the time being in force, if any land which is being cultivated by any cultivator is requisitioned or acquired under this Act, the cultivator shall be paid an amount determined in accordance with the principles set out in sub-section (2) out of the amount payable for the requisition or the acquisition of the land, as the case may be, to the person interested in such land.

(2) The amount to be paid to the cultivator under sub-section (1) shall be determined according to the following principles, namely:—

• (a) if the cultivator has been cultivating the land for a period of more than five years but not more than ten years on the date of the requisition or the acquisition of the land, as the case may be, fifteen per cent of the amount payable for the requisition or the acquisition of such land, as the case may be;
• (b) if the cultivator has been cultivating the land for more than
  

S.11 Appeal

The provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, relating to appeals shall apply to an award made by the Court on a reference under section 9, if such award were an original decree passed by the Court in exercise of its civil jurisdiction.

5 of 1908.

S.12 Power to enter upon land, etc.

The State Government may, with a view to requisitioning or acquiring any land or for the purpose of determination by the Collector of the amount payable under this Act, by order,-

• (a) require any person to furnish to such authority as may be specified in the order, such information in his possession relating to land as may be specified;
• (b) authorise any person -
  • (i) to enter upon and survey and take levels of any land in such locality;
  • (ii) to dig or bore into the sub-soil;
  • (iii) to do all other acts necessary to ascertain whether the land is adapted for such purposes;
  • (iv) to set out the boundaries of the land proposed to be taken and the intended line of the work (if any) proposed to be made thereon;
  • (v) to make such levels, boundaries and line by placing marks and cutting trenches;
  • (vi) and, where otherwise the survey cannot be completed and the levels taken and the boundaries and line marke
    

S.1 Short Title and commencement

(1) This Act may be called the Sikkim Land (Requisition and Acquisition) Amendment Act, 1978.

(2) It shall come into force at once.

S.2 Amendments in the Sikkim Land (Requisition & Acquisition) Act, 1977 (Act No. 1 of 1978

2. In the Sikkim Land (Requisition and Acquisition) Act, 1977 (Act No.1 of 1978) :—

• (a) for sub-section (2) of section 4, the following shall be and shall always be deemed to have been substituted :-

  “(2) If the State Government is of opinion that it is necessary to acquire for a public purpose any land requisitioned under Section 3, it may acquire such land by publishing a notification to the effect that such land is required to be acquired for such purpose and that the State Government has decided to acquire such land :

  Provided that before issuing such notification, the State Government shall call upon the person interested or any other person who, in the opinion of the State Government, may be interested in such property to show cause why the property shall not be acquired and after considering the cause, if any, shown by the person interested in the land and after giving the party an opportunity of being heard, the State Government may pass s
  

  S.3 Repeal

  The Sikkim Land (Requisition and Acquisition) Amendment Ordinance, 1978, is hereby repealed.

  
  

  S.13

  sary to requisition or acquire any land for any of the public purposes as defined and specified in 5[ clause (9) ] of section 2, all such requisition and acquisition shall be made under and in accordance with the provisions of this act and the rules made thereunder and not under any other law inconsistent with provision of this Act and the rules made thereunder.

  5. Subs. by sec. 2 of the Sikkim Land (Requisition and Acquisition ) Amd. Act No 13 of 1971 (w.e.f. 22.4.1978).

  
  

  S.14 Penalty.

  If any person contravenes any order made under this Act, he shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year or with fine which may extend to two thousand rupees or with both.

  
  

  S.15 Saving.

  Save as otherwise provided in this Act, no decision or order or award made in exercise of any power conferred by or under this Act shall be called in question in any Court.

  
  

  S.16 Protection of action taken under this Act.

  No suit, prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie against the State Government or any officer of the State Government or any other person for anything, or for any damage caused or likely to be caused by anything, which is in good faith done or intended to be done in pursuance of this Act or any order made thereunder.

  
  

  S.17 No Stamp Duty to be paid for award or agreement and no fees to be paid for copies thereof.

  No award or agreement made under this Act shall be chargeable with any Stamp Duty, and no person claiming under any such award or agreement shall be liable to pay any fee for a copy thereof.

  
  

  S.18 Power to make rules.

  (1) The State Government may make rules for carrying out the purposes of this Act.

  (2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing powers, such rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:—

  • (a) the manner of service of orders on the owner or occupier of land under sub-section (3) of section 3;
  • (b) the manner of service of notice on the persons referred to in sub-section (3) of section 5;
  • (c) the manner of service of notice of award under clause (b) sub-section (3) of section 7;
  • 6[“(d) the manner of approval by the State Government of the amount fixed by agreement under sub-section (1) of section 8”]
  • 7[(e) the manner of determination of and of giving notice of the award to the persons interested under 8[ * * * ] sub-section (2) of section 8.]

  6. Inserted by ibid.

  7. Subs. by sec 2 of the Sikkim Land (Requisition a
  

  S.19 Certain laws to cease to apply.

  The provisions of the Sikkim Public Security (Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property) Rules, 1962, and any other law shall cease to apply and have any effect to any matter for which provision is made in this Act.