Any member of the service who,-
(a) is found guilty of any violation of duty or willful breach of any provision of this Act or any rule or order made thereunder; or
(b) is found guilty of cowardice; or
(c) withdraws from the duties of his office without permission; or
(d) being absent on leave, fails, without reasonable cause, to report himself for duty on the expiration of such leave; or
(e) accepts any other employment or office in contravention of the provision of section 37; or
(f) intentionally or knowingly causes or attempts to cause disaffection towards the Government amongst the members of the service, or induces or attempts to induce any member of the service to withhold his services or commit a breach of discipline; shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three months or with fine which may extend to three months pay of such member, or with both.
27. Penalty for failure to take precautions - Whoever fails, without reasonable cause, to comply with any of the requirements specified in a notification issued under sub-section (1) of section 14 or of a direction issued under sub-section (2) of that section shall be punishable with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees.
28. Penalty for willfully obstructing fire fighting operations - Any person who wilfully and without any reasonable cause obstructs or interferes with any member of the service who is engaged in fire-fighting operations shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three months or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees or with both.
29. Penalty for false report - Any person who knowingly gives or causes to be given a false report of the outbreak of a fire to any person authorised to receive such report by means of a statement, message or otherwise, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three months or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees or with both.
30. Penalty for failure to take out licence - (1) whoever being bound to take out a licence under the provisions of this Act fails to obtain a licence or fails to comply with any of the conditions specified in the licence shall be served a show-cause notice requiring him to obtain a licence or comply with any of the conditions specified in the licence, as the case may be, within such period as may be prescribed.
(2) If he does not comply with the show-cause notice, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three months or with fine which may extend to five thousand rupees or with both.
31. Penalties - Whoever willfully contravenes any provisions of this Act or the rules made thereunder or fails to comply with any requisition lawfully made upon him under any provisions of this Act shall, without prejudice to any other action taken against him under section 22 be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three months or with fine which may extend to twenty five thousand rupees or with both; and where the offence is a continuing one, with a further fine which may extend to three thousand rupees for every day during which such offence continues after the conviction for the first such offence:
Provided that, in the absence of special and adequate reasons to the contrary to be mentioned in the judgment of the Court, such punishment shall not be less than one month and such fine shall not be less than five thousand rupees or such daily fine shall not be less than one hundred rupees per day for a continuing offence.
32. Offences by Companies - (1) Where an offence under this Act has been committed by a Company, every person who, at the time the offence was committed, was in charge of, and was responsible to, the company of the conduct of the business of the company, as well as the company, shall be deemed to be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly;
Provided that, nothing contained in this sub-section shall render any such person liable to any punishment, if he proves that the offence was committed without his knowledge or that he had exercised all due diligence to prevent the commission of such offence.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), where any offence under this Act has been committed by a Company and it is proved that the offence has been committed with the consent or connivance of, or is attributable to any neglect on the part of, any director, manager, secretary or other officer of the company, such director, manager, secretary or other officer shall also be deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
Explanation: For the purposes of this section,—
(a) “Company” means anybody corporate and includes a firm or other association of individuals; and
(b) “Director” in relation to a firm, means a partner in the firm.
33. Compounding or withdrawal of proceedings - (1) The Director General or any person authorised in this behalf by him by general or special order may either before or after the institution of the proceedings, and for reasons to be recorded in writing, compound any offence made punishable by or under this Act or the rules made thereunder or withdraw from the proceedings.
(2) When an offence has been compounded, the offender, if in custody, shall be discharged, and no further proceedings shall be taken against him in respect of the offence compounded.
CHAPTER - VI GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS
34. Training Centres - The Government may establish and maintain one or more training centres in the State for providing courses of instruction in the prevention and extinguishment of fire and may close down or re-establish any such centre.
35. Levy of training fee - The Government may prescribe such fee and such procedure as it may deem fit for providing a course of instruction in the prevention and extinguishment of fire.
36.Levy of fire tax - (1) There may be levied a fire tax on lands and buildings which are situated in any area in which this Act is in force and on which property tax by whatever name called is levied by any local authority in the area.
(2) the fire tax shall be levied by notification in the Official Gazette at such rate as may be specified but not exceeding five per cent of the total amount of the property tax in the form of a surcharge.
37. Bar of other employment - (1) No member of the service shall engage himself in any employment or office other than his duties under this Act unless expressly permitted to do so by the Director General.
(2) Every member of the service shall be considered to be always on duty and is bound at any time to attend at any place and to any duty relevant to the service within or outside the state.
38. Transfer to other areas - The Director-General or any officer authorised by the Government in this behalf may on occasions of fire or other emergency in any neighbouring area in which this Act is not in force, order the dispatch of the members of the service with necessary appliances and equipment to carry out fire-fighting operations in such area and thereupon, all the provisions of this Act and the rules made thereunder shall apply to such area, during the period of fire or during such period as the Director General may specify.
39. Employment on other duties - It shall be lawful for the Government or any officer authorised by them in this behalf to employ the service in any rescue, salvage or other work for which it is suitable by reason of its training, appliances and equipment.
40. Power to obtain information - Any officer of the service not below the rank of an officer-in-charge of a fire station may, for the purpose of discharging his duties under the Act, require the owner or occupier of any building or other property to supply information in his possession, with respect to the character of such building or other property, the available water supplies and the means of access thereto and other material particulars.
41. Consumption of water - No charge shall be made by any local authority for water consumed in the fire-fighting operations or exercises by the service or for installation and maintenance of hydrants, static water tanks or any other arrangement of water supply for fire-fighting purposes within the jurisdiction of the said authority.
42. No compensation for interruption of water supply - No authority incharge of water supply in an area shall be liable to any claim for compensation for damage by reason of any interruption to supply of water occasioned only by compliance of such authority with the requirements specified in section 10.
43. Police Officers to aid - It shall be the duty of Police Officers of all ranks to aid the members of the service in the execution of their duties under this Act.
44. Cognizance of Offences - Save in the case of cognizable offences, no court shall take cognizance of an offence under this Act or the rules made thereunder except on the complaint of, or upon information received from the Director General or any other officer nominated by him in this behalf.
45. Protection of action taken in good faith - No suit, prosecution or other legal proceedings shall lie against any authority, officer or member of the service for anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done in pursuance of this Act or any rule or order made thereunder.
46. Restrictions respecting right to form association, freedom of speech etc - (1) No member of fire service shall, without the express sanction of the Government or of the prescribed authority,-
(a) be a member of, or be associated in any way with, any trade union, labour union, political association or with any class of trade unions, labour unions or political associations; or
(b) be a member of, or be associated in any way with, any other society, institution, association or organisation that is not recognised as part of the fire service of which he is a member or is not of a purely social, recreational or religious nature; or
(c) communicate with the press or publish or, cause to be published any letter or other document except where such communication or publication is in the bonafide discharge of his duties or is of a purely literary, or artistic character or is of a prescribed nature.
Explanation:- If any question arises as to whether any society, institution, association or organisation is of a purely social, recreational or religious nature under clause (b) of this sub-section, the decision of the Government thereon shall be final.
(2) No member of fire service shall participate in, or address, any meeting or take part in any demonstration organised by anybody of persons for any political purposes or for such other purposes as may be prescribed.
(3) Any person who contravenes the provisions of subsection (1) or sub-section (2) shall without prejudice to any other action that may be taken against him, be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine which may extend to two hundred rupees or with both.
47. Power to make rules - (1) The Government may, by notification, make rules for carrying out all or any of the purposes of this Act.
(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for,-
(a) the number and grades of officers of the service;
(b) the manner of appointment of members of the service;
(c) the form of the certificate to be issued to the members of the service;
(d) the conditions of service of the members of the service;
(e) the circumstances in which and the conditions (including the levy of fee) subject to which the members of the service may be despatched to carry on fire-fighting operations in the neighbouring areas;
(f) the conditions subject to which members of the service may be employed in rescue, salvage or other work;
(g) the manner of service of notice under this Act;
(h) the payment of rewards to persons, not being members of the service, for any substantial assistance rendered by them for firefighting purposes;
(i) the compensation payable to members of the service in case of accidents or to their dependants in case of death while engaged on duty;
(j) employment of members of the service or use of any equipment outside the area or on special service and the fee payable therefor;
and (K) any other matter which is required to be or may be prescribed.
(3) Every rule made under this Act shall, immediately after it is made, be laid before the Legislative Assembly of the State if it is in session, and if it is not in session, in the session immediately following for a total period of fourteen days which may be comprised in one session or in two successive sessions and if before the expiration of the session in which it is so laid or the session immediately following, the Legislative Assembly agrees in making any modification in the rule or in the annulment of the rule, the rule shall from the date on which the modification or annulment is notified have effect only in such modified form or shall stand annulled, as the case may be, so however that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.