(1) This Act may be called the West Bengal State Tubewell and Lift Irrigation Act, 1974.
(2) It extends to the whole of West Bengal.
(3) It shall come into force in such area or areas and on such date or dates as the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint and different dates may be appointed for different areas or for different provisions of this Act.
2. In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or Definitions.
context,—
(a) "agricultural lands" means lands used for agriculture and includes lands used for growing fruits, vegetables and the like and culturable waste or fallow lands but not homestead lands;
(b) "appellate authority" means the authority referred to in.
section 26, to hear and dispose of appeals under this Act;
Short title, extent and commencement.
233 The West Bengal State Tube well and Lift Irrigation Act, 1974.
[West Ben. Act (Chapter 1.—Preliminary.--Section 2.)
(c) "Chief Engineer" means the Chief Engineer (Agriculture) in the Department of Agriculture and Community Development and includes any Engineer subordinate to him, but not below the rank of an Executive Engineer, who is authorised by the Chief Engineer to act on his behalf for the purposes of this Act;
(d) "Collector" includes the Additional District Magistrate and any other officer, not below the rank of a Deputy Collector, specially empowered by the State Government to perform all or any of the functions of a Collector under this Act;
(e) "command area" means any area which is served by an irrigation project located within such area shown in a map prepared by the Chief Engineer describing and delineating its local limits and boundaries; such command area may be different with respect to kharif, pre-kharif, rabi seasons or summer crop;
(f) "crop" means any of the pre-kharif, kharif, rabi or summer crops or other fruits, vegetables as specified in the Schedule to this Act:
Provided that the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, revise the Schedule by such addition thereto or alteration therein, as the State Government may consider necessary from time to time;
(g) "development levy" means a levy imposed under this Act in respect of any area and payable by every person being either the owner or occupier of agricultural lands within that area, who does not avail of the irrigation facility from deep tubewells or shallow tubewells owned by Government or river lift or other irrigation schemes of Government for any season other than kharifduring a year by way of requisition for water, for the plot concerned, and payable at such rate per annum for every hectare of agricultural land in the notified area of an irrigation project as may - be fixed by the State Government by notification referred to in section 3;
(h) "irrigation project" means a project of the State Government for providing irrigation facilities to any agricultural land through a tubewell which may be either a deep tubewell or a shallow tubewell or lift (pumping) plant, set up for the purpose and declared by the Chief Engineer, 234 The West Bengal State Tubewell and lift Irrigation Act, 1974.
XLVIII of 1974.]
(Chapter IL—Imposition of development levy in notified areas.— Section 3.)
West Ben. Act X of 1956.
by notification in the Official Gazette, to be an irrigation project for the purposes of this Act;
(0 "levy" includes both development levy and user's levy;
(i) "notified area" means an area declared as such by notification under section 4;
(k) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
"Project Authority", in relation to an irrigation project, means the Block Development Officer having jurisdiction or an officer appointed by the State Government to be in charge of operation, control or conduct of business of such irrigation project;
(m) "revisional authority" means the authority referred to in section 25 for the purpose of hearing and disposing of any reference under this Act;
(n) "user's levy" means a levy imposed under this Act and payable by the owner or the occupier of any land who applies for supply of water to such land under this Act for irrigation of any crop within the command area of a project, at such rate which may be fixed by the State Government for any particular crop in a particular season of the year. A bargadar cultivating land shall be treated as an occupier for the purpose of this Act,
Explanation.—"Bargadar in this clause has the same meaning as in clause (2) of section 2 of the West Bengal Land Reforms Act, 1955;
(o) "year", in relation to the assessment and collection of development or user's levy, means a year commencing from the first day of the month of July in any year and ending on the thirtieth day of the month of June following that year, and includes any part of such year.
CHAPTER II Imposition of development levy in notified areas