(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, if the State Government is of opinion 122[that a scheme is necessary in the interest of the public or] that a state of famine or scarcity prevails or is likely to prevail in any area 123[or that it is necessary to provide suitable work to relieve rural unemployment in any area] it may make a declaration to that effect. Such declaration shall be published in the Official Gazette. On the publication of such declaration, the State Government may direct the Collector 124[or the Company] to appoint an officer as the Executing Officer for the purpose of immediately constructing embankments in such villages as may be specified. Such direction shall also require the Board 125[or, as the case may be, the company] to prepare a scheme providing for matters specified in clauses (i) and (ii) of sub-section (1) of section 4 or any other matters specified in sub-section (1) of that section in such villages.
(2) On the issue of a direction under sub-section (1), the Board 126[ or, as the case may be, the Company ] shall ask the Executing Officer to prepare a draft scheme, including therein all the works undertaken by him under sub-section (1), and other works in accordance with such instructions as the Board 126[or, as the case may be, the Company] may issue, containing the particulars specified in sub-section (2) of section 4 . Such Executing Officer shall prepare a draft scheme accordingly and submit it to the Board 126[or, as the case may be, the Company] for its approval.
(3) The draft scheme submitted to the Board 127[or, as the case may be, the Company] may be approved by it without modification or with such modification as shall not affect the work carried out by the Executing Officer under sub-section (1). The scheme so approved by the Board 128[or, the Company] shall be published in the Official Gazette and in the village in which the lands included in the scheme are situate. On the date on which the scheme is published in the village it shall come into force and shall have effect as if it were enacted in this Act. The provisions of section 10 A and the sections following the said section and the rules made under section 24 shall, so far as they can be made applicable, apply in respect of such scheme as if it were a scheme which has come into force under section 10.
(4) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (3) the owner of the land in which any work has been carried out for the purposes of a scheme under this section shall be liable, pending the preparation of the statement under section 13 129[or 13A] to maintain the work to the satisfaction of the Divisional Soil Conservation Officer 130[or, as the case may be the Company Officer] and repair it to his satisfaction within such time as he may fix and the provisions of sub-section (2) of section 14 shall apply in respect of the owner’s liability under this section.
25B. If upon an application made by the Board 131[or, as the case may be, the Company], the State Government is satisfied that it is necessary so to do the State Government may, at any time, by notification in the Official Gazette, revoke any scheme after it has come into force and upon such revocation the provisions of this Act, except section 15, shall cease to apply to such scheme. Such notification shall also be published in the village and at the headquarters of the 132[taluka, tahsil] or mahal and of the district in which the lands included in such scheme are situate].
Power of State Government to direct preparation and execution of scheme in area declared to be famine or scarcity area.
Power to revoke scheme.
Expenditure incurred by 133 [State] Government to be charged on 134 [Consolidat ed Fund of State].
Gujarat Land Improvement Schemes Act, 1942.
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26. The expenditure incurred by the 133[State] Government in pursuance of anything done under this Act shall be charged on the 134[Consolidated Fund of the State].
135[26A. Where rights and liabilities of the State Government in relation to the recovery of cost or part cost of the works carried out under any scheme from any owners of lands included in such scheme stand transferred to the State Land Development Bank under section 143A of the Gujarat Co-operative Societies Act, 1961, the rights and liabilities transferred to such Bank shall be entered in the records referred to in sub-section (2) of section 13 or as the case may be, sub-section (3) of section 13A and notwithstanding anything contained in this Act. every such owner of land shall pay the amount recoverable from him under this Act to such Bank. The amount of such cost or part cost shall be paid to the State Land Development Bank by, and recovered by such Bank from, such owners of lands in accordance with the provisions of section 143 A of the Gujarat Cooperative Societies Act, 1961 and such payment to or recovery by, the Bank shall discharge the owners of lands of their liability to make payment to the State Government under this Act to the extent of their respective liability accepted by the Bank.]
136[26B. The State Government may, by order in writing, give to" the Board or the Company such directions as in its opinion are necessary or expedient for carrying out the purposes of this Act and the Board, or as the case may be, the Company shall comply with such directions.]
137[27. All Boards constituted for a division under section 3 shall be dissolved on the day on which the new Boards shall be constituted under section 3 as amended by the Bombay Land Improvement Schemes (Amendment) Act, 1948:
Provided that any direction issued, appointments made, scheme sanctioned, regulation made and all things done by the first mentioned Board shall be deemed to have been lawfully issued, made, sanctioned or done and any scheme so sanctioned shall be executed by the new Board constituted as aforesaid in the district in which the land in respect of which such scheme is made is situate:
Provided further that if such land is situate within the limits of more than one district the 138[State] Government shall decide which of the Boards shall execute the scheme in respect thereof.
28. Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the Board constituted, any directions issued, appointments made scheme approved, regulations made and all things done by or on behalf of the Board, before the date on which the Bombay Land Improvement Schemes (Amendment) Act, 1948, came into force shall be deemed to be and to have always been validly constituted, issued, made, approved, or done and shall not be deemed to have been invalidly constituted, issued, made, approved, or done by reason only of the fact that the Agricultural Commissioner or the Director of Agricultural Engineering acted as a member of the Board before the said date.