West Bengal Slum Areas (Improvement And Clearance) Act, 1972
No: 10 Dated: May, 04 1972
THE WEST BENGAL SLUM AREAS (IMPROVEMENT AND CLEARANCE) ACT, 1972
West Bengal Act X of 1972
An Act to provide for the improvement and clearance of the slum areas in West Bengal and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
Whereas it is expedient to provide for the improvement and clearance of the slum areas in West Bengal and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto;
It is hereby enacted as follows:-
1. Short title and extent. - (1) This Act may be called the West Bengal Slum Areas (Improvement and Clearance) Act, 1972.
(2) It extends to the whole of West Bengal except the places which are declared as Cantonments under the Cantonments Act, 1924.
(3) Save as otherwise provided in this Act the powers of the State Government and the prescribed authority conferred by or under this Act shall be restricted to the area declared as slum area under section 3 of this Act.
2. Definitions. - In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, -
(a) "Calcutta Metropolitan District" means the area described as such in the Schedule to the Calcutta Metropolitan Planning Area (Use and Development of Land) Control Act, 1965;
(b) "hut" means any structure, no substantial part of which, excluding the walls up to a height of fifty centimetres above the floor level, is constructed of masonry, reinforced concrete, ferroconcerte, cemented brick work, steel, iron or other metal or any combination thereof or prefabricated materials;
(c) "intermediary" means a proprietor, a tenure-holder, a lessee or a sub-lessee or holder of any other tenancy interest in land, whether liable to pay rent or not, but does not include a thika tenant;
(d) "notification" means a notification published in the Official Gazette;
(e) "occupier", in relation to any land, hut or other structure, includes -
(i) any person who, for the time being, is paying, or liable to pay, to the owner, the rent or any portion of the rent thereof,
(ii) an owner in occupation of, otherwise using, such land, hut or other structure,
(iii) a rent-free tenant,
(iv) any person who is a licensee in occupation, and
(v) any person who is liable to pay to the owner damages for the use and occupation of such land, hut or other structure;
(f) "owner", in relation to a land, hut or other structure, includes any person who is receiving or is entitled to receive the rent of such land, hut or other structure on his own account or on behalf of himself and others or as agent or trustee, or who would so receive the rent or be entitled to receive it if the land, hut or other structure were let to a tenant;
(g) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(h) "prescribed authority" means -
(i) in respect of any area within the Calcutta Metropolitan District, -
(a) unless otherwise specified by the State Government, the Calcutta Metropolitan Development Authority constituted under section 3 of the Calcutta Metropolitan Development Authority Act, 1972, or
(b) such local authority, having jurisdiction over any slum within such area, as the State Government may, on the recommendation of the Calcutta Metropolitan Development Authority, specify,
(ii) in respect of any other area, the local authority having jurisdiction over the area or any other authority, empowered by the State Government by notification, to perform the functions of the prescribed authority under this Act in such area;
(i) "slum area" means the area declared as such by the State Government under section 3;
(j) "thika tenant" has the same meaning as in the Calcutta Thika Tenancy Act, 1949.
3. Declaration of slum area. - If the State Government is satisfied that the conditions of the land, huts or other structures in any area is such that the continued existence of such conditions would be injurious to public health or safety or to the health, hygiene or morals of the inhabitants of such area, it may, by notification, and in such other manner as may be prescribed, declare such area to be a slum area.
4. Erection of, or addition or alteration to, hut or other structure to be made with prior permission. - No new hut or other structure shall be erected and no substantial addition to, or material alteration in, any existing hut or other structure shall be made, in any slum area except with the previous permission in writing of the prescribed authority, obtained in such manner as may be prescribed, and in accordance with such general or special conditions if any, as the prescribed authority may impose.
5. Power to order demolition in certain areas. - (1) Where any work in connection with the erection of a new hut or other structure or addition to, or alteration in, an existing hut or other structure, has been commenced, is being carried on, or has been completed, in contravention of the provisions of section 4, the prescribed authority may, after giving the owner of the hut or other structure, a reasonable opportunity of being heard, serve a notice upon such owner requiring him to demolish so much of the new hut or other structure as has been erected or so much of the addition or alteration as has been made, as the case may be, within such time as may be specified in the notice.
(2) On the failure of an owner to comply with the notice referred to in sub-section (1) within the time specified therein, the prescribed authority may cause the new hut, other structure, addition or alteration specified in the said notice to be demolished and recover the expenses of such demolition from such owner as if such expenses were a public demand.
6. Power to require the carrying out of certain measures. - Where the prescribed authority is, upon the report from any of its officers or otherwise, satisfied that any hut or other structure in any slum area is, by reason of any omission to make the necessary repairs, or by reason of any damage or sanitary inconvenience or any impediment to the flow of natural light or air, unfit for human habitation, it may serve upon the owner of such hut or other structure, a notice requiring him to carry out within such time, not being less than sixty days, as may be specified in the notice, such measures as, in its opinion, are necessary to render such hut or other structure fit for human habitation.
7. Power to require service privy or urinal to be connected with sewer mains. - Where sewer mains exist or have been laid within one hundred metres of any service privy or urinal in any hut or other structure or on any land appurtenant thereto within a slum area, the prescribed authority may serve on the owner of such hut, other structure or land, a notice requiring him -
(a) to get such privy connected with the sewer mains, or
(b) in the case of a urinal, either to close it or to get it connected with the sewer mains,
within such time, not less than sixty days, as may be specified in the notice.
8. Power to direct discontinuance of service privy or urinal. - Where, in any slum area, public conveniences connected either with the sewer mains or any septic tank exist or have been provided within such distance of any hut or other structure as the prescribed authority considers reasonable, it may serve a notice upon the owner of such hut or other structure requiring him within such time, not being less than sixty days, as may be specified in the notice, to discontinue the use of any service privy or urinal existing therein or on any land appurtenant thereto, and, if necessary, to demolish such service privy or urinal.
9. Power of prescribed authority to cause certain works to be done. - (1) If a notice served on the owner of a hut, other structure or land under section 6, section 7 or section 8 is not complied with within the time specified therein, the prescribed authority may cause the work specified in the said notice to be done.
(2) All expenses incurred by the prescribed authority in causing any work to be done under sub-section (1), together with interest thereon at the rate of six per centum per annum from the date on which the demand for payment of such expenses is made until such payment, may be recovered by it from the owner of the hut, other structure or land as if they were a public demand.