Maharashtra Water Resources Regulatory Authority Act, 2005
No: 18 Dated: May, 04 2005
THE MAHARASHTRA WATER RESOURCES REGULATORY AUTHORITY ACT, 2005
ACT No. XVIII OF 2005
An Act to provide for the establishment of the Maharashtra Water Resources Regulatory Authority to regulate water resources within the State of Maharashtra, facilitate and ensure judicious, equitable and sustainable management, allocation and utilisation of water resources, fix the rates for use of water for agriculture, industrial, drinking and other purposes, and matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
WHEREAS, it is expedient to make a law to provide for the establishment of the Maharashtra Water Resources Regulatory Authority to regulate water resources within the State of Maharashtra, facilitate and ensure judicious, equitable and sustainable management, allocation and utilisation of water resources, fix the rates for use of water for agriculture, industrial, drinking and other purposes, and matters connected therewith or incidental thereto, for the purposes aforesaid; it is hereby enacted in the Fifty-sixth Year of the Republic of India as follows :-
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY
1. Short title, extent and commencement:- (1) This Act may be called the Maharashtra Water Resources Regulatory Authority Act, 2005.
(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Maharashtra.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the State Government may, by notification in Official Gazette, appoint, and different dates may be appointed for different areas and for different sections of this Act.
2. Definitions:- (1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,-
(a) "Aggregate Bulk Water Entitlement" means an aggregate of Entitlements issued to a group or association of Water User Entities for the purpose of joint management of the Bulk Water Entitlements;
(b) "Allocation" means the portion or percentage of an Entitlement declared annually or seasonally by the Prescribed Authority to be made available to the holder of an entitlement based upon the availability of water for the period within the sub-basin, river basin, project or storage facility for that season or year; and during water crisis or scarcity on the principle of proportionate entitlement;
(c) "Authority" means the Maharashtra Water Resources Regulatory Authority established under section 3;
(d) "Board" means the State Water Board constituted under section 15;
(e) "Bulk Water Entitlement" shall mean the volumetric entitlement to a share of the surface water resources produced by a project, river system or storage facility, for a specific category or Categories of Use, and deliverable within a specific period of time as specifically provided in the order granting the Entitlement;
(f) "Category of Use" shall mean use of water for different purposes such as for domestic, agricultural irrigation, agro-based industries, industrial or commercial, environmental, etc., and includes such other purposes as may be prescribed;
(g) "Chairperson" means the Chairperson of the Authority;
(h) "Council" means State Water Council constituted under section 16;
(i) "Entitlement" means any authorisation by any River Basin Agency to use the water for the purposes of this Act;
(j) "Government" or "State Government" means the Government of Maharashtra;
(k) "Governor's Directives" means the directives issued by the Governor under rule 7 of the Development Boards for Vidarbha, Marathwada and the rest of the Maharashtra Order, 1994' made under clause (2) of article 371 of the Constitution of India;
(k-I) "High Power Committee" means the committee constituted by the State Government under the Government Resolution, Irrigation Department, No. Misc. 1001/ (154-01)/I. M.-(P), dated the 21st January 2003;]
(1) "Individual Water Entitlement" means any authorization by the Authority to use the water other than Bulk Water Entitlement of an Aggregate Bulk Water Entitlement;
(m) "Integrated State Water Plan" means a water plan approved by the State Water Council;
(n) "Irrigation Project" means a project constructed to provide irrigation facilities to the land situated in the command area in accordance with the project reports or orders in this regard, as revised from time to time;
(o) "Member" means a Member of the Authority and includes the Chairperson;
(p) "prescribed" means prescribed by the rules made under this Act;
(q) "Prescribed Authority" means any authority at various levels within the water resource management system that has been duly authorised by the Authority to determine and declare, on an annual or seasonal basis, the quota or amount of water available within a system for use as an allocated percentage of the Entitlements duly issued by the Authority;
(r) "Project Level Entity" means a group of all Water User Entities, from a common supply source within a water resources project;
(s) "Quota" means a volumetric quantity of water made available to an Entitlement holder, which is derived by multiplying an Entitlement by the annual or seasonal allocation percentage;
(t) "Regulations" means regulations made by the Authority under this Act;