Updated: Sunday December 08, 2013/AlAhad
Safar 05, 1435/Ravivara
Agrahayana 17, 1935, at 09:10:47 PM
[1][1]The
(Pb Ordinance VIII of 1971)
[4 May 1971]
An
Ordinance to provide for the levy of betterment tax on lands irrigated by the
Taunsa Barrage Canals
Preamble.— WHEREAS it is expedient to provide for the
levy of betterment tax on lands irrigated by the Taunsa Barrage Canals.
NOW, THEREFORE, in pursuance of the Martial Law
Proclamation of 25th March, 1969, read with the Provisional Constitution Order
and in exercise of all powers enabling him in that behalf, the Governor of the
Punjab is pleased to make and promulgate the following Ordinance:-
1. Short
title, extent and commencement.— (1) This Ordinance may be called the Punjab
Taunsa Barrage Betterment Tax Ordinance, 1971.
(2) It extends to the areas irrigated by the
Taunsa Barrage Canals.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as
Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, appoint.
2. Definitions.— In this Ordinance, unless the context
otherwise requires, the following expressions shall have the meanings hereby
respectively assigned to them, that is to say—
(a) “Collector”
means the chief officer-in-charge of the revenue administration of a District,
and includes any other officer specially empowered by Government to perform the
functions of the Collector under this Ordinance ;
(b) “Government”
means the Government of the
(c) “land” means land which is not owned by or vested in Government;
(d) “prescribed”
means prescribed by rules made under this Ordinance;
(e) “tax” means the betterment tax imposed under this Ordinance; and
(f) “Taunsa Barrage Canals” include all canals, channels and reservoirs
for the supply or storage of water from the headworks on the river
3. Imposition of tax.— (1) Except as hereinafter provided, a tax
shall be levied on all such lands as are receiving irrigation from the Taunsa
Barrage Canals, or are included in the culturable commanded area of such
canals, and for which canal irrigation is provided.
(2) The tax shall be levied at the rate of—
(i) rupees
sixty per acre in the case of lands which were receiving irrigation water from
inundation canals prior to the construction of the Taunsa Barrage Canals; and
(ii) rupees
one hundred and twenty per acre in the case of other lands.
4. Tax by whom to be paid.— (1) Except as provided hereunder, the tax
shall be paid by the owner of the land.
(2) When the land is mortgaged with
possession, the tax shall be paid by the mortgagee and the tax so paid shall be
deemed to be part of the mortgage money but shall carry no interest.
(3) When the land is held by an occupancy
tenant, the tax shall be paid by the owner and the occupancy tenant in such
shares as may be proportionate to the value of their respective interests in
the land.
5. Preparation of the statement of
demand.— (1) The Collector
shall prepare a statement of demand, containing full particulars of the amount
which each person having rights in the land is liable to pay.
(2) In distributing the tax between
different owners and occupancy tenants of the land, due regard shall be had to
the prevailing local practice in respect of the division of produce or capital
made between such persons in respect of that land.
(3) The statement of demand prepared under
sub-section (1) shall be published in such manner as may be prescribed.
6. Objections.— Any person feeling aggrieved by a statement
of demand published under sub-section (3) of section 5 may, within thirty days
from the date of publication thereof, prefer objections to the Collector, who
may, after hearing the objections and making such enquiry as is considered
necessary, reject the objections, or accept them and cancel or modify the
statement of demand.
7. Appeal.— (1) Any person feeling aggrieved by an order
passed by the Collector under section 6 may, within sixty days from the date of
such order, prefer an appeal to the Commissioner, who shall, after hearing the
appellant, pass such order as he deems fit.
(2) The order made by the Commissioner under
this section shall be final.
8. Recovery
of arrears.— (1) After the disposal of objections, if any, preferred under section
6, or the disposal of an appeal, if any, preferred under section 7, or if no
objections are filed, after the expiry of the period specified in section 6 for
the preferring of objections, a statement of accounts shall be prepared in
respect of each person from whom the tax is due and shall be served upon him in
such manner as may be prescribed.
(2) A statement of accounts, certified by an
officer exercising the powers of a revenue officer under the
(3) An arrear of the tax shall be
recoverable as if it were an arrear of land revenue.
9. Payment of tax.— (1) The tax shall be payable in twenty equal
annual installments.
(2) Interest on delayed payment of these
installments of the tax shall be levied at the rate of six per centum per annum
and such interest shall be deemed to be part of the tax.
(3) A rebate of ten per centum of the total
amount due shall be allowed if the amount of tax is paid up in a lump sum
within one year of the service of statement of accounts on the person from whom
the tax is due.
(4) When once the tax on any land has fallen
due, any unpaid portion of the tax shall be recoverable from the
successor-in-interest of the person from whom the tax was due:
Provided
that in case of an alienation or transfer of land, otherwise than by
inheritance, the tax shall be payable before such alienation or transfer takes
effect.
10. Exemptions.— (1) No provision of this Ordinance shall
apply to any land which, on the date on which this Ordinance comes into force,
is included in a village site.
(2) Government may, by notification in the
official Gazette, exempt from the operation of this Ordinance any land or class
of lands, which is unfit for cultivation.
11. Powers to
withhold irrigation.— Government may, without notice, withhold irrigation from
any land for which the full amount of the tax has not been duly paid, in which
case Government may remit the tax in whole or in part and may refund any sums
received towards payment of the tax unless, in the opinion of Government, the
value of the land has risen in consequence of the proposal to introduce
irrigation in that area, inspite of the fact that irrigation from such land is
to be withheld.
12. Bar to jurisdiction of Civil Courts.— No Civil Court shall have jurisdiction in
respect of any matter which Government, the Commissioner or the Collector is
empowered by or under this Ordinance to dispose of, nor shall it take
cognizance of the manner in which Government, the Commissioner or the Collector
exercise any powers vested in them by or under this Ordinance.
13. Immunity from proceedings.— (1) No claim shall lie against Government
for compensation or for the refund of tax on account of loss occasioned by the
failure or stoppage of water in the Taunsa Barrage Canals or by any cause
beyond the control of Government.
(2) No suit, prosecution or other legal
proceeding shall lie against any person in respect of anything done or intended
to be done in good faith under this Ordinance or the rules made thereunder.
14. Power
to make rules.— Government may make rules, not inconsistent with this
Ordinance, for the purpose of giving effect to this Ordinance, and such rules
may, among other matters, specify the factors to be considered in determining
whether any land is fit for cultivation.
[1][1]This Ordinance was
promulgated by the Governor of Punjab on 30th April, 1971; published in the
Punjab Gazette (Extraordinary), dated 4th May, 1971, pages 513-517; saved by
Article 281 of the Interim Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
(1972); and, validated by the Validation of Laws Act, 1975 (LXIII of 1975).
[2][2]Now “
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