West Bengal Requisitioning of Vehicles Act, 1979
No: 34 Dated: Dec, 07 1979
THE WEST BENGAL REQUISITIONING OF VEHICLES ACT, 1979
West Bengal Act XXXIV of 1979
An Act to provide for the requisition of vehicles for the purposes of maintaining supplies and services essential to the life of the community.
Whereas it is expedient to provide for the requisition of vehicles for securing the maintenance of supplies and services essential to the life of the community;
It is hereby enacted as follows :-
1. Short title, extent and commencement. - (1) This Act may be called the West Bengal Requisitioning of Vehicles Act, 1979.
(2) It extends to the whole of West Bengal.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. Definitions. - In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, -
(a) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(b) "Vehicle" means any motor vehicle constructed or adapted for use for the carriage of goods or any motor vehicle used or adapted to be used for the carriage of passengers for hire or reward, and includes a motor cab, contract carriage and stage carriage.
3. Requisitioning of vehicles for public purposes. - (1) If the State Government is of opinion that it is necessary so to do for maintaining supplies and services essential to the life of the community it may, by order in writing, requisition any vehicle for such period as may be mentioned therein, but not exceeding one year, and make such further orders as may appear to it to be necessary and expedient in connection with the requisitioning.
(2) An order of requisition under sub-section (1) shall be served on the person deemed by the State Government to be the owner of the vehicle or, if at the time of requisitioning the vehicle is in possession of a person other than the owner, then on such person as well as on the owner.
(3) Any vehicle requisitioned under sub-section (1) shall vest in the State Government for the period of the requisition and the State Government may use or deal with it in such manner as may appear to it to be expedient.
4. Payment of compensation. - (1) Whenever the State Government requisitions any vehicle under section 3, the owner of such vehicle shall be paid compensation, the amount of which shall be determined by the State Government on the basis of the fares or rates prevailing in the locality for the hire of such vehicle.
(2) The owner of a vehicle requisitioned under section 3, if aggrieved by the amount of compensation determined, may make an application to the State Government within thirty days from the date of service on him of the order determining the compensation, for determination of the amount of compensation by an Arbitrator.
(3) On receipt of an application under sub-section (2), the State Government shall appoint an Arbitrator and the amount of compensation determined by the Arbitrator shall be final.
(4) If, immediately before the requisitioning, the vehicle was, by virtue of a hire-purchase agreement, in the possession of a person other than the owner, the amount determined as compensation under sub-section (1) or sub-section (3), as the case may be, shall be apportioned between that person and the owner in such manner as they may agreed upon, and in default of agreement, in such manner as an Arbitrator appointed by the State Government in this behalf may decide.
(5) Any amount payable under this section as compensation shall be paid by the State Government but the State Government may recover the whole or a portion of such amount from any person or body on whose account the requisition is made.
5. Power to obtain information. - The State Government may, for the purpose of requisitioning any vehicle under section 3 or determining the compensation payable under section 4, by order, require any person to furnish to such authority as may be specified in the order such information in his possession relating to such vehicle as may be so specified.
6. Power of entry into and inspection of premises, etc. - Any person authorised in this behalf by the State Government may enter into any premises and inspect any vehicle therein for the purpose of determining whether, and if so in what manner, an order under section 3 should be made in relation to such vehicle or with a view to securing compliance with any order made under that section.