Tamil Nadu Preservation of Private Forest Act 1949

1. (1) This Act may be called the Tamil Nadu Preservation of Private Forests Act, 1949. 2. It applies (i) * * * * (ii) to forests situated in estates as defined in the Tamil Nadu Estates Land Act, 1908, in the State of Tamil Nadu ; (iii) to private forests situated in other areas in the State of Tamil Nadu and having a contiguous area exceeding forests for the purposes of this Act, by notification, in the District Gazette, but does not apply to reserved forests constituted under the Tamil Nadu Forest Act, 1882, and lands at the disposal of the Government as defined in that Act. Explanation - A private forest exceeding 2 hectares in extent shall not cease to be such by reason only of the fact that, in a portion thereof trees, shrubs or reeds are felled or cut with or without the permission of the Committee or lands are cultivated, or rocks, roads, tanks, rivers or the like exist nor shall the area of such forest cease to be contiguous by reason only of the existence of all or any of the aforesaid circumstance. (3) It shall come into force at once

2. In this Act unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context- (a) 'Committee' means any Committee constituted under Section 2A and having jurisdiction (aa) 'Forest' includes waste or communal land containing trees, shrubs and reeds; pasture land and any other class of land declared by the State Government, to be a forest by notification in the Tamil Nadu Government Gazette; Explanation - For the purpose of the clause, 'communal land' means any land of the description mentioned in sub clause (a) or sub-clause (b) of clause (16) of section 3 of the Tamil Nadu Estates Land Act, 1908; (b) 'owner' in relation to a forest includes a mortgage lessee or other person having right to possession and enjoyment of the forest; (c) ‘person' includes a Hindu undivided family, a Marumakkattayam tarwad or tavazhi and an Aliyasanthana family or branch; (d) 'forest offence' means an offence punishable under the Act; (e) the expressions 'Forest Officer', 'tree', 'timber' 'Forest produce', 'cattle', 'Magistrate' and 'imprisonment'' shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in section 2 of the Tamil Nadu Forest Act, 1882.

2-A. Constitution of Committees - (1) The State Government may, by notification with effect from such date as may be specified therein, constitute for each district a Committee for the purpose of this Act, consisting of the following members, namely;- (a) the District Collector as Chairman of the Committee; (b) the District Forest Officer having jurisdiction over the district; (c) the Tahsildar having jurisdiction over the area; (d) the Executive Engineer of the Agriculture Department in charge of soil conservation; (e) the Personal Assistant (General) to the Collector of the district, who shall be the Secretary of the Committee.

2-B. Meetings of Committee :- (1) The Committee may meet as often as may be necessary and shall, subject to the provisions of sub-sections (2) and (3), observe such rules of procedure in regard to transaction of business at its meetings (including the quorum at meetings) as may be prescribed by the State Government under this Act, provided that not more than two months shall elapse between one meeting of the Committee and another. (2) The Chairman of the Committee or in his absence any member nominated by him in that behalf shall preside at a meeting of the Committee. (3) All questions t a meeting of the Committee shall be decided by a majority of the votes of the members shall be decided by a majority of the votes of the members present and voting and in the case of an equality of votes, the Chairman of the Committee or in his absence the person presiding, shall have a second or casting vote.

2-C Vacancy in Committee, etc., not to invalidate acts or proceedings - No act or proceeding of the Committee shall be deemed to be invalid by reason only of the existence of any vacancy in the Committee or any defect in the nomination of a member thereto or on the ground only that more than two months have elapsed between one meeting of the committee and another.

3. (1)(a) No owner of any forest shall, without the previous sanction of the committee, sell, mortgage, lease or otherwise alienate the whole or any portion of the forest. Explanation - Nothing in this sub-section shall be construed as preventing the owner from selling or otherwise dealing with the right to gather and remove forest produce other than trees, timber and reeds in the usual or customary manner, for a period not exceeding two years. (b) Any alienation in contravention of clause (a) shall be null and void- (i) if the alienation is of any forest declared by the District Collector to be a forest under clause (iii) of section 1(2) or of any portion of such a forest, and is made on or after the date on which the declaration takes effect. (ii) * * * * * * * * * (iii) if the alienation is of any other forest or of any portion of such a forest, and is made on or after the 16th August 1946. (2) No owner of any forest, and no person claiming under him, whether by virtue of a contract, license or any other transaction entered into before or after the commencement, of the Tamil Nadu Preservation of Private Forest Act, 1946, or any other person shall, without the previous permission of the Committee cut trees or reds or do any act likely to denude the forest or diminish its utility as a forest: (3) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1) or sub-section (2), the State Government may exempt any forest or class of forests or class of trees therein from all or any of the provisions of this section.

4. Any person aggrieved by an order under clause (a) of sub section (1) of section 3 or under sub-section (3) of that section in regard to the sanction or permission referred to in that clause or sub-section may, within two months of the receipt of such order, prefer an appeal in writing to the State Government. The State Government, shall pass such orders on the appeal as they may think fit.

5. (x x x x)

6. If, in the opinion of the State Government, it is necessary for the preservation of a forest, or forests, they may, by notification in the Tamil Nadu Government Gazette:- (i) Prohibit or regulate, the doing of any act likely to be detrimental to the preservation of such forest or forests; (ii) Regulate the exercise of customary or prescriptive rights in such forest or forests.

6-A The provisions of Chapter VII of the Tamil Nadu Forest Act, 1882, shall apply to offences punishable under this Act subject to the following modifications, namely;- (i) in section 41, the provision shall be omitted (ii) in section 42, after the words 'the Magistrate shall, the expression "subject to the provisions of section 8 of the Tamil Nadu Preservation of Private Forests Act, 1949" shall be inserted; (iii) in section 14 the words "shall, if it is the property of the Central or State Government or has been confiscated, be taken possession of by or under the authority of the District Forest Officer; and in any other case" shall be omitted; (iv) in sections 45 and 49, for the words "the District Forest Officer" the words "Committee" shall be substituted; (v) in section 50- (a) clause (a) shall be omitted; (b) in clause (c), the word 'or' occurring at the end shall be omitted; and (c) clause (d) shall be omitted; (vi) section 56 shall be omitted

7 (1) Whoever contravenes the provisions of sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) of section 3 or any of the terms of a notification under section 6 shall be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to two years or with fine which may extend to five thousand rupees or with both. (2) Notwithstanding anything contained in section 32 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898, it shall be lawful for any Magistrate of the first class, specially empowered by the State Government in this behalf, to impose a sentence of fine exceeding one thousand rupees.

8. No prosecution shall be instituted against any person without the sanction of the Committee.

9. No order of the State Government or the Committee under this Act and no notification issued by the State Government under section 6 shall be liable to be questioned in any Court of law.

10. (1)) The State Government may make rules for carrying out the purposes of this Act. (2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for- (a) the classes or kinds of trees which may be permitted to be cut and the girth of such tree. (b) the terms and conditions subject to which permissions may be granted; (c) the procedure to be followed by the committee before ranting permissions.

11. x x x x

12. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the State Government, may, as occasion may arise by order do anything which appears to them necessary for the purpose of removing the difficulty.

12-A Rules and orders to be placed before the Legislature - (1) (a) All rules made under this Act, and all orders made under section 12 shall be published in the Tamil Nadu Government Gazette, and unless they are expressed to come into force on a particular day, shall come into force on the day on which they are so published. (b) All notifications issued under this Act shall, unless they are expressed ot come into force on a particular day, come into force on the day on which they are published. (2) Every rule under this Act, and every order made under section 12 shall, as soon as possible, after it is made be placed on the Table of both Houses of the Legislature and if before the expiry of the session in which it is so placed or the next session, both Houses agree in making any medication in any such rule or order or both Houses agree that the rule or order should not be made, the rule-or order shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be or no effect, as the case may be, an however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule or order.

13 (1) Any rule or order made or purporting to have been made, any notification issued or purporting to have been issued, any decision or direction given or purporting to have been given, any action or proceeding taken or purporting to have been taken or anything done or purporting to have been done- (a) under any provision of the Tamil Nadu Preservation of Private Forests Act, 1946 (hereinafter in this section and in section 13 referred to as the said Act) and in force immediately before the 3rd December 1948, or (b) on or after the 3rd December 1948, under any provision of the said Act on the looting that the said Act was in force at the relevant time, or (c) under any provision of the Tamil Nadu Preservation of Private Forests Ordinance, 1940 (hereinafter in this section referred to as the said Ordinance), shall subject to any subsequent modification or cancellation thereof purporting to have been made on or after that date under the said Act on the looting that the said Act was in force at the relevant time or under the said Ordinance be deemed to be a rule or order made, notification issued, decision or direction given, action or proceeding taken or thing don under the corresponding provision of this Act. (2) Any liability or penalty incurred or purporting to have been incurred, any punishment awarded or purporting to have been awarded and any prosecution commenced or purporting to have been commenced- (a) under any provision of the said Act before the 3rd December 1948, or (b) on or after the 3rd December 1948 under any provision of the said Act on the looting that the said Act was in force at the relevant time, or (c) under any provision of the said Ordinance, shall be deemed to have been incurred or commenced under the corresponding provision of this Act.

14. (1) No suit, prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie in any court against any officer or servant of the State Government or any person acting under his direction or aiding or assisting him (a) for, or on account of, or in respect of, any sentence passed or any act ordered or done by him in exercise of any jurisdiction or power purporting to have been conferred on him buy the said Act, or (b) for carrying out any sentence passed by any court in exercise of any such jurisdiction or power as aforesaid. (2) No suit or other any sentence passed by any court in exercise of any such jurisdiction or power as aforesaid. (3) Sub-sections (1) and (2) shall have, effect although the said Act was not or might not have been in force at the relevant time.

15. The Tamil Nadu Preservation of Private Forests Act,1946, and the Tamil Nadu Preservation of Private Forest Ordinance, 1949, are hereby repealed.