No: 31 Dated: Oct, 08 1997

THE LADAKH AUTONOMOUS HILL DEVELOPMENT COUNCILS ACT, 1997

[Act No. XXXI of 1997]

    An Act to provide for establishment of Autonomous Hill Development Councils and in Inter-District Advisory Council in the Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir.

Be it enacted by the Jammu and Kashmir State Legislature in the Forty-eighth year of the Republic of India as follows: -

CHAPTER I

Preliminary

1. Short title extent and commencement. - (1) This Act may be called the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils Act, 1997.

(2) It extends to the whole of districts of Leh and Kargil in the State of Jammu and Kashmir.

(3) It shall be deemed to have come into force with effect from 1st June, 1995.

2. Definitions. - In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, -

(a) "Chairman" means Chairman of the Council;

(b) "Chief Executive Councillor" means Chief Executive Councillor of the Executive Council;

(c) "Constituency" means a Constituency notified under section 5 for the purpose of elections to the Council;

(d) "Council" means the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council constituted under sub-section (2) of section 3;

(e) "Council area" means the concerned district with respect to which a Council is constituted;

(f) "Council Fund" means the fund constituted under section 43;

[(ff) "Deputy Chairman" means the Deputy Chairman of the Council;]

(g) "district" means the areas which at the commencement of this Act fall within the territorial limits of the districts of Leh or Kargil as the case may be;

(h) "elections" means a general election and includes an election to fill a seat or seats in the Council;

(i) "elector" in relation to a constituency means a person whose name is entered in the electoral roll referred to in section 6;

(j) "Executive Council" means the Executive Council of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council constituted under section 29;

(k) "general election" means a general election held under sub-section (1) of section 8;

(l) "Government" means the Government of the State of Jammu and Kashmir;

(m) "Government Gazette" means the Government Gazette of the State of Jammu and Kashmir;

(n) "land" means the Khalsa Sarkar land as recorded in the Record of Rights and includes the land falling within the meaning of section 39 of the Jammu and Kashmir Land Revenue Act, Samvat 1996, but shall not include -

(i) the demarcated forests as defined under the Jammu and Kashmir Forest Act, Samvat 1987; and

(ii) the land which have vested, escheated or may vest or escheat to the State under the provisions of -

(a) the Big Landed Estates Abolition Act, Samvat 2007; or

(b) the Jammu and Kashmir Agrarian Reforms Act, 1976;

(o) "Member" means member of the Council;

(p) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made by the Government under this Act.