Punjab Land Revenue Act, 1887
No: 17 Dated: Sep, 23 1887
Punjab Land Revenue Act, 1887
(Act No. 17 of 1887)
An Act to Amend and Declare the Land Revenue Law of the Punjab.
Whereas it is expedient to amend and declare the law in force in the Punjab with respect to the making and maintenance of records-of-rights in land, the assessment and collection of land-revenue and other matters relating to land and the liabilities incident thereto,
It is hereby enacted as follows:-
CHAPTER I
Preliminary
1. Title, extent and commencement. - (1) This Act may be called the Punjab Land Revenue Act, 1887.
(2) It extends to the trritories-administered by the State Government of Punjab -, but not so to as affect otherwise than as expressly provided by this Act, any Regulation in force under the provisions of the Statute 33, Victoria Chapter 3, Section 1, in any portion of those territories, and
(3) It shall come into force on such day as the State Government with the previous sanction of the Central Government
(4) Repealed by the Repealing and Amending Act, 1891 (XII of 1891), section 2 and Schedule.
2. Repeal. - Repealed by the Repealing Act, 1938 (1 of 1938), section 2 and Schedule.
3. Definitions. - In this Act, unless there is something repugnant in the subject or context :
(1) "estate" means any area -
(a) for which a separate record-of-rights has been made; or
(b) which has been separately assessed to land revenue, or would have been so assessed if the land-revenue had not been released, compounded for or redeemed; or
(c) which the State Government may, by general rule or special order, declare to be an estate;
(2) "land-owner" does not include a tenant or an assignee of land-revenue, but does include a person to whom a holding has been transferred or an estate or holding has been let in farm, under this Act for the recovery of an arrear of land-revenue or of a sum recoverable as such an arrear and every other person not hereinbefore in this clause mentioned who is in possession of an estate or any share or portion thereof, or in the enjoyment of any part of the profits of an estate;
(3) "holding" means a share or portion of an estate held by one land-owner or jointly by two or more land-owners;
(4) "rent", "tenant", "landlord" and "tenancy", have the meanings respectively, assigned to those words in the Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887 (XVI of 1887);
(5) "pay", with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions, includes when used with reference to rent, "deliver" and "render", with their grammatical variations and cognate expressions;
(6) "land-revenue" includes assigned land-revenue and any sum payable in respect of land, by way of quit-rent or of commutation for service, to the Government or to a person to whom the Governmenthas assigned the right to receive the payment;
(7) "arrears of land-revenue" means land-revenue which remains up-paid after the date on which it becomes payable;
(8) "defaulter" means a person liable for an arrear of land- revenue, and includes a person who is responsible as surety for the payment of the arrear and a village officer who collects the land-revenue or any other sum recoverable as land-revenue and does not pay the same to the State Government in accordance with the rules framed under the Act.
(9) "rates and cesses" means rates and cesses which are primarily payable by land-owner, and includes -
(a) Repealed by the Repealing and Amending Act, 1891 (XII of 1891);
(b) the local rate, if any, payable under the Punjab District Boards Act, 1883, and any fee leviable under section 33 of that Act from land-owners for the use of or benefits derived from such works as are referred to in section 20, clauses (i) and (j), of that Act;
(c) any annual rate chargeable on owners of lands under section 59 of the Northern India Canal and Drainage Act, 1873 (VIII of 1973);
(d) the - village-officers cesses; and
(e) sums payable on account of village expenses.
(10) "village-cess" includes any cess, contribution or due which is customarily leviable within an estate and is neither a payment for the use of private property or for personal service nor imposed by or under any enactment for the time being in force;
(11) "village-officer" means a chief-headman, headman or patwari;
(12) "Revenue-officer" in any provision of this Act means a Revenue-officer having authority under this Act to discharge the functions of a Revenue-officer under that provision;
(13) "legal practitioner" means any legal practitioner within the meaning of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1879 (XVIII of 1879); except a mukhtar;
(14) "agricultural year" means the year commencing on the sixteenth day of June, or on such other date as the State Government may by notification appoint for any local area;
(15) "notification" means a notification published by authority of State Government in the official Gazette;
(16) "Encumbrance" means a charge upon or claim against land arising out of a private grant or contract;
(17) "survey-mark" includes boundary-mark ; and
(18) "Net-assets" of an estate or group of estates means the estimated average annual surplus produce of such estate or group of estates remaining after deduction of the ordinary expenses of cultivation as ascertained or estimated.
Explanation. - Ordinary expenses of cultivation include payments, if any, which the land-owner customarily bears whether in kind or in cash either in whole or in part in respect of -
(1) water rates,
(2) maintenance of means of irrigation,
(3) maintenance of embankments,
(4) supply of seed,
(5) supply of manure,
(6) improved implements of husbandry,
(7) concessions with regard to fodder,
(8) special abatements made for fallows or bad harvests,
(9) cost of collection of rent,
(10) allowance for shortage in collection of rent,
(11) interest charges payable in respect of advances made in cash, free of interest, to tenants for the purposes of cultivation.
(12) wages or customary dues paid to artisans or menials whose products or labour are utilised for the purposes of cultivation and harvesting,
and the share that would be retainable by a tenant if the land were let to a non-occupancy tenant paying rent, whether in cash or in kind, at the normal rate actually prevalent in the estate or group of estates.
(18A) "net letting value" of a site put to non-agricultural use means the estimated annual rent of the site remaining after deduction of -
(i) fair remuneration for the capital invested on building or machinery or both after deducting the depreciation on their value;
(ii) house-tax, property tax; and
(iii) maintenance charges not exceeding one month's gross rent, as ascertained or estimated in the manner prescribed.
Explanation. - Where no reliable data regarding the cost of buildings and machinery on a site is forthcoming or is otherwise not available, valuation and depreciation shall be based on the standards of the Public Works Department of the Punjab State.
(19) "Assessment Circle" means a group of estates which in the opinion of the Financial Commissioner; to be recorded in an order in writing, are sufficiently homogeneous to admit of a common set of rates being used as a general guide in calculating the land- revenue to be assessed upon them.