Full Text
LOK SABHA
————
The following Bills were introduced in Lok Sabha on 4th August, 2023:—
BILL NO. 63 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for the establishment of a Permanent Bench of the High Court of Kerala
at Thiruvananthapuram.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:–
1. (1) This Act may be called the High Court of Kerala (Establishment of a Permanent
Bench at Thiruvananthapuram) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. There shall be established a permanent Bench of the High Court of Kerala at
Thiruvananthapuram and such Judges of the High Court of Kerala, being not less than fivein number, as the Chief Justice of that High Court may, from time to time nominate, shall sitat Thiruvananthapuram in order to exercise the jurisdiction and power for the time beingvested in that High Court in respect of cases arising in the district of Thiruvananthapuram
and such other territories within that State as the President may by notification specify.vlk/kkj.k
EXTRAORDINARY
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Establishment of
a PermanentBench of HighCourt of KeralaatThiruvananthapuram.Short title and
commencement.
CG-DL-E-05102023-249154
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The principal seat of the Kerala High Court is at Ernakulam, which is situated at a
distance of 200 kilometers from the State Capital, Thiruvananthapuram. Ever since theformation of the State of Kerala in 1956, there has been a demand for the establishment of apermanent Bench at the State Capital.
It has been observed that the State is a principal litigant in a majority of cases pending
in the High Court of Kerala. This leads to the State Government incurring considerableexpenditure on account of travelling allowance and leave allowance given to the Governmentemployees for travelling from Thiruvananthapuram, the state capital to Ernakulam fordepositions.
Moreover, it has been the policy of the successive Governments that justice should
be taken to the doors of the litigants and therefore the litigants should not be compelled togo long distance to the Court. In the interest of administration of justice, the court must beeasily accessible to the litigants and witnesses.
It will be, therefore, appropriate if a Bench of High Court is established at
Thiruvananthapuram in the State of Kerala.
Hence this BIll.
N
EW DELHI; SHASHI THAROOR
February 17, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 3
BILL NO. 99 OF 2023
A Bill to prohibit violence against healthcare personnel and damage or loss to property
of healthcare Institutions and for matters connected therewith and incidentalthereto.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Healthcare Personnel and Healthcare Institutions
(Prohibition of Violence and Damage to Property) Act, 2023.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,extent andCommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires—
(a) “appropriate Government” means in the case of State, the Government of
that State and in all other case, the Central Government;
(b) “Healthcare Institutions” means—
(i) a hospital, maternity home, nursing home, dispensary, clinic,
sanatorium, mobile medicare units, e-medicine and tele-medicine centres or aninstitution by whatever name called that offers services, facilities requiring
diagnosis, treatment or care for illness, injury, deformity, abnormality or
pregnancy in any recognized system of medicine established and administered
or maintained by any person or body of persons, whether incorporated or not;
or
(ii) a place established as an independent entity or part of an institution
referred to in sub-clause ( i), in connection with the diagnosis or treatment of
diseases where pathological, bacteriological, genetic, radiological, chemical,
Biological investigations or other diagnostic or investigative services with the
aid of laboratory or other medical equipment, are usually carried on, established
and administered or maintained by any person or body of persons, whether
incorporated or not; and shall include a healthcare institution owned, controlledor managed by—
(a) the Government or a department of the Government; or a Public
Sector Undertaking or Autonomous Body of the Government;
(b) a trust, whether public or private;
(c) a corporation (including a society) registered under a Central, or
Provincial or State Act, whether or not owned by the Government;
(d) a local authority; and
(e) a single doctor.
Explanation.— For the purposes of this clause, a mobile medical unit or an ambulance
shall be deemed to be a healthcare institution if such vehicle is fitted with medical equipment
and is used for providing healthcare service.
(c) “healthcare personnel” include—
(i) a registered medical practitioner, possessing a recognized medical
qualification as defined in clause (r) of section 2 of the National Medical
Commission Act, 2019, and enrolled in a State Medical Register as defined in
clause ( v) (w) of that section;
(ii) a medical practitioner registered for practising in any other system of
medicine which is recognized under any law for the time being in force;
(iii) a registered dentist, registered dental hygienist and registered dental
mechanic shall have the same meaning as assigned to them in the Dentist’s
Act, 1948;
(iv) a registered nurse, midwife, auxiliary nurse-midwife and health visitor
who is registered as such under section 15A of the Indian Nursing Council
Act, 1947;
(v) a medical student who is undergoing education or training in any
system of medicine recognized by any law for the time being in force;
(vi) a nursing student who is undergoing education or training in nursing
profession;
(vii) para-medical workers, para-medical student;Definitions.
30 of 2019.
16 of 1948.
48 of 1947.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 5
(viii) diagnostic services provider, and ambulance driver and helper;
(ix) security personnel designated by the healthcare institution;
(x) administrative and other staff of the healthcare institution;
(xi) Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA); and
(xii) any other category of persons notified by the appropriate Government
from time to time;
(d) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(e) “property” means any property movable or immovable or medical equipment
or medical machinery owned by or in possession of, or under the control of any
healthcare personnel or healthcare Institution;
(f) “verbal abuse’ means the words used with the intention to insult or humiliate
the healthcare personnel;
(g) “violence” includes any of the following acts committed by any person
against healthcare personnel which causes or may cause—
(i) harassment impacting the living or working conditions of such
healthcare personnel and preventing them from discharging his duties;
(ii) harm, injury, hurt, intimidation or danger to the life of such healthcare
personnel, either within the premises of a healthcare institution or otherwise;
(iii) obstruction or hindrance to such healthcare personnel in the
discharge of his duties, either within the premises of a healthcare institution orotherwise; or
(iv) loss or damage to any property or documents in the custody of, or in
relation to, such healthcare personnel; and
(h) words and expressions used herein and not defined, but defined in the
Indian Penal Code, 1860 or in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 shall have thesame meanings, respectively as assigned to them in those Codes.
3. No person shall indulge in any act of violence against a healthcare personnel or
cause any damage or loss to any property in a healthcare institution.
4. (1) Whoever commits an act of verbal abuse to a healthcare personnel shall be
punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend up to three months, or withfine which may extend up to fifty thousand rupees, or with both.
(2) Whoever commits violence or abets or incites commission of violence against any
healthcare personnel or abets or incites or causes damage or loss to any property of a
healthcare institution, shall, upon conviction, be punished with imprisonment for a term
which shall not be less than six months but which may extend up to five years, and with fine,which shall not be less than fifty thousand rupees but which may extend up tofive lakh rupees;
(3) Whoever, while committing violence as referred to in sub-section ( 2) causes
grievous hurt as defined in section 320 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 to any healthcarepersonnel, shall, upon conviction, be punished with imprisonment for a term which shallnot be less than three years, but which may extend up to seven years, and with fine, whichshall not be less than two lakh rupees, but which may extend up to ten lakh rupees.
5. Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, an
offence punishable under this Act shall be cognizable and non-bailable.45 of 1860.
2 of 1974.
Prohibition of
violence.
Offences and
penalties.
45 of 1860.
Offence to be
cognizable andnon-bailable.2 of 1974.
6. Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973,—
(i) upon a written request of the aggrieved healthcare personnel, it shall be
mandatory for the person in charge of a healthcare institution to inform the officer incharge of the concerned police station of the commission of an offence under thisAct;
(ii) on receiving a complaint either from the institution or the affected healthcare
personnel, a First Information Report should be registered within one hour of receivingthe complaint;
(iii) any case registered under this Act shall be investigated by a police officer
not below the rank of Inspector and investigation of such cases shall be completedwithin a period of thirty days from the date of registration of the First InformationReport and such investigation shall be supervised by senior police officer not belowthe rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police;
(iv) in every inquiry or trial of a case under this act, the proceedings shall be
held as expeditiously as possible, and in particular, when the examination of witnesseshas once begun, the same shall be continued from day to day until all the witnessesin attendance have been examined, unless the Court finds the adjournment of thesame beyond the following day to be necessary for reasons to be recorded, and anendeavour shall be made to ensure that the inquiry or trial is concluded within aperiod of one year:
Provided that where the trial is not concluded within the said period, the Judge
shall record the reasons for not having done so:
Provided further that the said period may be extended by such further period,
for reasons to be recorded in writing, but not exceeding six months at a time;
(v) for the purpose of providing for speedy trial, all cases registered under this
Act shall be tried in designated special courts, which the State Government shall,with the concurrence of the High Court by notification in the official Gazette, set up ineach district; and
(vi) for every Special Court the State Government may, by notification in the
Official Gazette, designate Special Prosecutor for the purpose of conducting cases inthat court.
7. Where a person is prosecuted for committing an offence punishable under
sub-section ( 1) and sub-section ( 2) of section 4, such offence may, with the permission of
the Court, be compounded by the personnel against whom such act of violence is committed.
8. (1) Where a person is prosecuted for committing an offence punishable under
sub-section ( 3) of section 4, the Court shall presume that such person has committed such
offence, unless the contrary is proved.
(2) In any prosecution for an offence under sub-section ( 3) of section 4 which requires
a culpable mental state on the part of the accused, the Court shall presume the existence ofsuch mental state, but it shall be a defence for the accused to prove the fact that he had nosuch mental state with respect to the act charged as an offence in that prosecution.
Explanation.—For the purposes of this section,—(a) a fact is said to be proved only when the Court believes it to exist beyond reasonable
doubt and not merely when its existence is established by a preponderance of probability;and
(b) “culpable mental state” includes intention, motive, knowledge of a fact and the
belief in, or reason to believe, a fact.Information,investigationand trial ofoffences.2 of 1974.
Composition
of CertainOffences.
Presumption
as to certainoffences andculpablemental state.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 7
9. (1) In addition to the punishment provided for the offence punishable under
sub-section ( 2) and sub-section ( 3) of section 4, the convicted person shall be liable to pay,
by way of compensation,—
(i) such amount, as may be determined by the Court for causing hurt or grievous
hurt to any healthcare personnel.
(ii) in case of damage to any property, or loss caused, the compensation payable
shall be twice the amount of fair market value of the damaged property or the losscaused, as may be determined by the Court.
(2) If the convicted person does not pay the compensation granted the said sum shall
be recovered as an arrear of land revenue under the Revenue Recovery Act, 1890 in suchmanner as may be prescribed.
10. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to, and not, save as otherwise
expressly provided, in derogation of any other law for the time being in force.
11. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form orbe of no effect, as the case may be; so, however that any such modification or annulmentshall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.
12. (1) The State Government may, by notification, make rules for carrying out the
provisions of this Act in respect of matters which do not fall within the purview ofsection 11.
(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such
rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:—
(a) installation of CCTV cameras and round the clock Quick Reaction Teams
with effective communication, security gadgets particularly at casualty, emergencyand areas having high footfalls;
(b) security of sensitive healthcare institution to be managed by a designated
and trained force;
(c) entry restriction of entry of undesirable persons in the healthcare institution
premises and other areas as may be specified;
(d) display of important information addressing the stakeholders in every
healthcare institution and police station;
(e) appointment of Nodal Officer to monitor registered cases of medical
negligence;
(f) expeditious filling up of vacant posts of doctors and para-medical staff in
healthcare institution and Primary Health Centres (PHCs) to avoid excessive pressureon doctors and to maintain global doctor-patient ratio;
(g) better infrastructural facilities and medical equipment and provision
of extra
monetary incentive for the doctors and para-medical staff serving in remote areas ascompared to major and metro cities with better career prospects; and
(h) standard operating procedures regarding the manner in which persons in
custody, accused or otherwise are to be presented in healthcare institution and beforehealthcare personnel.Compositionfor acts ofviolence.
Application of
other laws notbarred.
Power of
CentralGovernmentto make rules.
Power of State
Governmentto make rules.1 of 1890.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The increasing and repeated instances of violence against healthcare personnel
represents a complex and grave challenge that must be addressed on a priority basis.Violence in any form and in any setting is reprehensible. However, acts of violence againstmedical professionals and on healthcare institutions are the most extreme and should bedealt with an iron hand.
While there is no central data on the number of assault cases against healthcare
personnel or health facilities, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) estimates that75 percent of all doctors face some form of verbal and physical abuse during their service,with cases of violence severely underreported. International organizations, such as theWorld Health Organization (WHO) and the International Council of Nurses (ICN), have alsorecognized the issue of violence against healthcare workers as a global concern.
The legislative lacunae only further complicate our ability to address this challenge.
Currently, no national-level law, including the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860 and Code ofCriminal Procedure (CrPC), 1973 comprehensively and categorically addresses the issue.State Laws vary: the existing laws are weak in their implementation, vary a lot and lack scopeto protect all Healthcare personnel. Infact, several States and Union Territories have nolaws at all.
It is submitted that while ‘Health’ and ‘Law and Order’ are state subjects, the Parliament
is competent to legislate on matters related to ‘Legal, Medical and other professions’ aslisted in Entry 26, List 3 (Concurrent List) of the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution ofIndia. Infact, in 2019, the Central Government had introduced a draft Bill titled the Healthcare
Service Personnel and Clinical Establishments (Prohibition of Violence and Damage toProperty) Bill which would have made such violence a non-bailable and cognisable offencewith a jail term of up to five years. But this was withdrawn before it could be considered byParliament.
Our healthcare professionals are neither adequately appreciated nor protected and it
is imperative to realise that this is not just a medical fraternity issue. Violence against them
also weakens the healthcare ecosystem and affects the quality of services provided topatients, in turn, leading to a further risk of violence.
On May 10, 2023, a young doctor, committed to using her training and education in the
serve of humanity, had her life tragically taken away from her at the hands of a patient shewas seeking to heal. Her death must not just serve as a reminder of the consequences of ourinaction but become a call to action, particularly towards ensuring that the legislativelacuna is addressed so that no doctor has to worry about their own safety in the line of duty.
This, therefore, necessitates a comprehensive central legislation to put a check on
such violence at the earliest, to promote a safe work environment for doctors and other
healthcare personnel and to serve as a model for state laws.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SHASHI THAROOR
July 3, 2023.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 11 and Clause 12 of the Bill empower the Central Government and the State
Government respectively to make rules for carrying out the purposes of this Bill. As therules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation of legislative power is of a normalcharacter.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 9
BILL NO. 250 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for prevention of violence against journalists and protection of
journalists, their institutions, properties and for matters connected therewith orincidental thereto.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third year of Republic of India as follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Journalist (Prevention of Violence and Damage or
Loss to the Property) Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may , by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,extent andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “journalist” means a person whose principal avocation is that of a journalist
and who is employed as such, either whole-time or part-time, in, or in relation to avisual or print media establishment, such as editor, a leader writer, news-editor,sub-editor, feature-writer, copy-tester, reporter, correspondent, cartoonist,
news-photographer, news reader, news videographer but does not include any such
person who is employed mainly in a managerial or administrative capacity;
(b) “institutions” includes any registered newspaper establishment, news
channel establishment, news based electronic media establishment or news stationestablishment and all institutions of Journalist involved in discharge of his service asa Journalist;
(c) “offenders” means a person who either by himself or as a Member or Leader
of group of persons commits or attempt to commit, abate, provoke or incite thecommission of violence under this Act;
(d) “property” means any property movable or immovable, owned or in
possession of or under the control of any journalist or any Institution for discharginghis service or duty as a journalist; and
(e) “violence” means an act which causes any harm, injury or endanger of life or
intimidation, obstruction or harassment or coercion or assault of criminal force orthreat to journalist in discharge of his service or duties or causes to be the reason fordamage or loss to the property or reputation of a journalist or an institution.
3. Whoever commits violence against a journalist shall be punished with imprisonment
for one year or with imprisonment of either description of a term which shall not be less than
one year and which may extend upto three years and shall also be liable to pay fine.
4. In addition to the punishment specified under section 3, the offender shall be liable
to pay compensation for damage or loss caused to the property of journalist or any Institutionas may be determined by the Court and he shall also be liable to reimburse medical expenditureincurred by the journalist:
Provided that if the offenders fails to pay the compensation and medical expenditure
imposed, the same shall be recovered as if it were arrears of land revenue.
5. Any offence committed under this Act shall be cognizable non-bailable and triable
by the Court of Judicial Magistrate of First Class.
6. Any case registered under section 3 shall be investigated by a Police Officer not
below the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police in such manner as may be prescribed.
7. The provision of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of provisions
of any other law for the time being in force.
8. The provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Act No. 2 of 1974) shall
apply to the proceedings as per the provisions of the Act.
9. (1) The Central Government shall after taking consent of the Bar Council of India by
notification in the Official Gazette, make rules to carry out the provisions of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session for a total period of thirty days which
may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both Houses agree that the ruleshould not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be ofno effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall be
without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Definitions.
Violence
againstjournalist tobe punishable.
Compensation.
Cognizance of
offence.
Investigation.
Application
of Code ofCriminalProcedure.Act to
supplementother laws.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 11
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The violence against the Journalists are increasing. The journalist exposed to every
kind of attack including police violence against the reporters and reprisals instigated bycriminal groups or corrupt local officials. There have been consistent attacks on Journalistswho question or criticise the ruling dispensation. The violence pervades the profession ofjournalism today. The Journalist in India face a range of threats including censorship,economic hardships and job insecurity. The journalists are routinely threatened, intimidated,
arrested, booked and silenced. The situation adversely affect the right granted byArticle 19( 1) of the Constitution for freedom of speech and expression. The independent
and fearless media is required to strengthen the democracy.
Hence the protection of Journalists, their institutions and property against violence
is necessitated. The Bill, therefore, seeks, to provide for the prevention of violence againstthe Journalists, their institutions and property.
N
EW DELHI; N.K. PREMACHANDRAN
November 19, 2022.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 9 of the Bill empowers the Central Government and State Government to make
rules for carrying out the purpose of this Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detailsonly, the delegation of legislative powers is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 13
Bell No. 257 of 2022
A Bill to provide for prevention of violence against Advocates and protection of Advocates,
their institutions, properties and for matters connected therewith or incidentalthereto.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Advocates (Protection) Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,–
(a) “advocate” shall have the same meaning as provided under Section 2 ( 1) (a)
of the Advocates Act, 1961;
(b) “institution” means all institutions discharging of legal services;
(c) “offender” means a person who either by himself or as a member or leader of
group of persons commits or attempt to commit, abate, provoke or incite the commissionof violence under this Act;
(d) “property” means any property movable or immovable, owned by or in
possession of or under the control of any advocate or institution for discharging hisservice or duty as an advocate; and
(e) “violence” means an act which causes any harm, injury or endanger of life or
intimidation, obstruction or harassment or coercion or assault or criminal force orthreat to advocate in discharge of his service or duties or causes to be the reason fordamage or loss to the property or reputation of an advocate or an institution.
3. Whoever commits violence against an advocate shall be punishable with
imprisonment for two years or with imprisonment of either description for a term which mayextend to five years and shall also be liable to fine:
Provided that if offender fails to pay the compensation and medical expenditure
im- posed the same shall be recovered as if it were arrears of land revenue.
4. In addition to the punishment specified in Section 3, the offender shall be liable to
pay compensation for damage or loss caused to the property of an advocate as may bedetermined by the Court and he shall also be liable to reimburse medical expenditure incurredby the advocate.
5. An offence committed under this Act shall be cognizable, non-bailable and triable
by the Court of Sessions.
6. Notwithstanding anything contained in Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 the Police
Officer not below the rank of Superintendent of Police shall investigate any offence underthis Act.
7. Any advocate appearing for a party before the court or tribunal or authority
including police shall be deemed to be an officer of such institution and entitled for protection
available to such officers as public servant.
8. The provision of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of provisions
of any other law for the time being in force.
9. The provisions of Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 shall apply to the proceedings
as per the provisions of this Act.
10. (1) The Central Government shall, after taking consent of the Bar Council of India,
by notification in Official Gazette, make rules for the purpose of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session for a total period of thirty days which
may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,
both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both Houses agree that the rule
should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be ofno effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall bewithout prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Definitions.
25 of 1961.
Punishment
for committingviolenceagainstadvocate.
Compensation
for damagescaused.
Offence to be
non-bailable.
Jurisdiction.
Advocate
deemed to beofficer to legalinstitution.
Act not to be
in derogationof other laws.
Application of
the Code ofCriminalProcedure,1973.
Power to make
rules.2 of 1974.
2 of 1974.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 15
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Eighth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of
Offenders in Havana, Cuba, 1990 in which India was a participant has adopted the basicprinciples on the role of Lawyers. Clause 16 to 18 of the same guarantees for the functioning
of Lawyer.
The Supreme Court of India also observed that the bar is an extension of system of
justice, an Advocate is an officer of Court. The recent incidents of assault, criminal force,intimidation and threats caused to Advocates while discharging their professional duties isalso grave in nature. Advocates in due discharge of their professional duties also face thethreat of malicious and frivolous prosecution by the rival parties including Police and otherauthorities. The United Nations Human Rights Council on Independence of Judges andLawyers –A/HRC/RES/29/6 wherein, while acknowledging the fact that the principle ofconfidentiality in lawyers’ communication with clients is violated, and they are denied freeaccess to their clients and documents it was decided as follows:
“Calls upon all States to guarantee the independence of lawyers who promote and
defend human rights. Provide assistance to human rights defenders, journalists and activistsand their ability to perform their functions accordingly, including by taking effectivelegislative, law enforcement and other appropriate measures that will enable them to carryout their professional functions without interference, harassment, threats or intimidation ofany kind”.
The aforesaid United Nations Resolutions, Supreme Court Judgments and the recent
incidents necessitated a legislation for the protection of advocates in the country.
The Bill therefore seeks to provide for the prevention of violence against the
Advocates, their institutions and property.
The Bill seeks to achieve the above objectives.
N
EW DELHI; N.K. PREMACHANDRAN
November 21, 2022.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 10 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of this Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of details only, the delegation oflegislative powers is of a normal character.
BILL NO. 251 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In article 201 of the Constitution, for the words “President shall declare’’, the
words, “President shall, within a period of six months from the date of receipt of messageregarding declaration by the Governor that he reserves the Bill for consideration of thePresident, declare’’.
————
STATEMENT OF OBJECT AND REASONS
Article 201 of the Constitution specifically states that “When A Bill is reserved by a
Governor for the consideration of President, the President shall declare either that he assentsto the Bill or that he withholds assent therefrom”. But no time stipulation is provided in theConstitution.
Due to the lack of time stipulation various Bills passed by the Legislature of different
States are pending for long time without a declaration. If no decision is taken on the Billspassed by State Legislature it will adversely affect the Legislative process. The declarationregarding the assent is prolonged taking the advantage that there is no time stipulation.Hence it is necessary to amend article 201 by inserting specific time limit for assents to theBill by the President.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; N.K. PREMACHANDRAN
November 21, 2022.Short title and
commencement.
Amendment
of article 201.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 17
BILL NO. 228 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Census Act, 1948.Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Census (Amendment) Bill, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force with immediate effect.
2. For section 3 of the Census Act, 1948, (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act),
the following section shall be substituted, namely:—
“3. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette,
declare its intention of taking a census in the whole or any part of the territories towhich this Act extends, decennially (every ten years), and thereupon the census shallbe taken.
(2) The Central Government shall release the latest Census data in the year 2024
and thereupon the Census shall be conducted and be made public decennially:
Provided that in exceptional circumstances, the release of Census data may be
delayed by not more than two years:
Provided further that if when the Central Government fails to release decennial
Census data, the Central Government shall lay the reasons for such delay before eachHouse of Parliament and get approval of the House with at least two thirds majority.”
Explanation .— For the purpose of this section,—
“(a) ‘census’ shall include information about the education, income and
caste of the population (individuals or households), in addition to thedemographic parameters;
(b) “income” of the population shall include the source of income, level
of income and any other parameters representing disposable income of thehouseholds; and
(c) “caste of population” shall mean the self declaration of the name of
the caste and sub-caste by individuals or households.”.Short title andcommencement.
Substitution of
new sectionfor section 3.37 of 1948.
Central
Governmentto take census.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Census Act, 1948 governs the conduct and release of census data in India. This
law in its present form does not have provisions mandating the timing and frequency ofcensus in our country. For a diverse country like India, census data is very crucial as itprovides information about the growth, development of citizens across gender, communities,age groups and regions. This serves as an important tool through which the Governmentcan design new policies for population groups that are stagnating and identify targetpopulations for their policies.
In India where there is much diversity in social, income and education status, census
can also validate backwardness of certain communities. In K.Krishna Murthy and othersv/s. Union of India (2010), the Supreme Court held that it cannot comment on the quantumof reservation provided for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) without contemporaneousempirical data about the nature and implications of backwardness. It held the Executiveresponsible for conducting rigorous empirical inquiry into the patterns of backwardnessthat act as barriers to political participation of OBCs.
Following the judgment, to study the social, educational and economic backwardness
of OBCs the Centre initiated empirical enquiry into OBCs on 02 October, 2011 in the form ofSocio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC), 2011. But this SECC, 2011 data is withheld bythe Central Government on the pretext of inaccuracy of the data, when in fact the RegistrarGeneral and Census Commissioner of India has deposed before the Standing Committee onRural Development in 2016 that data has been examined and 98.87% data on individuals’caste and religion is error free. The Central Government contradicted itself by further claimingin the Parliament that no study was undertaken by them on OBCs.
Since the political participation of more than 56,000 OBCs in Maharashtra and 9 lakh
OBCs across India, through reservation in local Government is threatened, it is imperativeto conduct a census that includes information about the education, income and caste of thepopulation, in addition to the demographic parameters.
This Bell aims to precisely do this, by stipulating timing and frequency of census and
by inclusion of caste, income related parameters in the regular census itself. This provisiondoes away with the need for undertaking a completely new Socio-Economic and CasteCensus. The Bill, thus, bestows liability on the Central Government to conduct empiricalstudy on the progress and backwardness of various communities across the country andrelease the data decennially (every ten years).
Political reservation of communities and their participation in local-self government is
important as it empowers the community that the elected representative belongs to. Theobjectives of democratic decentralisation are not only to bring governance closer to thepeople, but also to make it more participatory, inclusive and accountable to the weakersections of society. Many States including Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh,Himachal Pradesh and Kerala are experiencing roadblocks to conducting local body electionsdue to a lack of empirical data on OBCs.
N
EW DELHI ; SUPRIYA SULE
19 November , 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 19
BILL NO. 273 of 2022
A Bill further to amend the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and
their Rehabilitation Act, 2013.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers
and their Rehabilitation (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 2 of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their
Rehabilitation Act, 2013 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act), in sub-section ( 1),
(i) for clauses ( d) and ( e) the following clauses shall be substituted, namely:—
‘(d) “hazardous cleaning” by an employee, in relation to sewer or septic
tank means entering into a septic tank or sewer to manually clean it;’
(e) “insanitary latrine” means a latrine which requires human excreta to be
cleaned or otherwise handled manually, either in situ or in an open drain or pitinto which the excreta is discharged or flushed out, before the excreta fullydecomposes.
(ii) in clause ( g), in the explanation for clause ( a), the following clause shall be
substituted, namely—
‘(a) “engaged or employed” means being engaged or employed on a
regular, contract, private, casual or daily wage basis or any other forms ofemployment;’Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 2.
3. In section 6 of the principle Act, after sub-section ( 2) the following sub-section
shall be inserted, namely:—
“(3). If any government agency, body or officer engage in a contract with a
private entity for sewer or septic tank cleaning and that private entity employ manualscavengers for the purpose, then the government officer concerned shall also beliable under this act and shall be punished herewith under section 8.”.
4. After section 7 of the Principle Act, the following sections shall be inserted namely:—
“7A. The Central Government shall convert every manhole in the country to
machine hole by the December 2024 in mission mode.
“7B. The Central Government shall procure sewer and septic tank cleaning
machines and employ person either on contractual or permanent basis byOctober 2023:
Provided that:—
(a) preference in employment shall be given to those who left manual scavenging
and are currently unemployed but willing to work with machines.
(b) minimum wage per day of the persons employed shall be not less than one
thousand rupees.
(c) person so employed shall be given health insurance by Union Ministry of
Health and Family Welfare and a register in this behalf shall be maintained by theMinistry of all such employees, whether contractual or permanent.”
“7C.( 1) No private entity shall employ workers for sewer and septic tank cleaning,
using machines unless the requisite licence has been issued by the Ministry of HomeAffairs.
(2) For issuance of licenses, the private entity shall submit details of
machines, its memorandum and additional details covered under the CompaniesAct, 2013 in such manner as may be prescribed.
(3) Every employee employed by the private entity shall be eligible for
the benefit available under section 7B.
(4) The Ministry of Home Affairs shall have power to conduct enquiry
into the working of the Private Entity as and when it deems fit and it may revokeits license if private entity is found guilty of violation of any provision of thisAct.
7D. No manual scavenger shall be employed in cleaning of sewer and
septic tanks without machines that have been approved solely by the UnionMinistry of Home Affairs.”.
5. For section 8 of the principle Act, following section shall be substituted, namely:—
“8. Whoever contravenes the provisions of section 5 or section 6 or section 7
shall for the first contravention be punishable with imprisonment for a term whichmay extend to five years or with fine which may extend to two lakh rupees or with both,
and for any subsequent contravention with imprisonment which may extend toseven years or with fine which may extend to five lakh rupees, or with both.”.Amendmentof section 6.
Insertion of
new sections7A, 7B, 7Cand 7D.
Conversion of
manhole intomachine holein missionmode.
Central to
procure sewerand septictank cleaningmachine.
Licence to
PrivateEntities.
Prohibition
on cleaningof sewer andseptic tankswithoutmachinesapproved.
Substitution of
new sectionfor section 8.
Penalty for
contraventionof section 5or section 6orsection 7.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 21
6. For section 9 of the Principle Act, the following sections shall be substituted,
namely:—
“9. Whoever found guilty for the death of manual scavenger due to hazardous
cleaning of sewer and septic tank shall be punished under section 304 of Indian PenalCode, 1860 and the case shall be tried by a judicial officer with rank of not less thanjudicial Magistrate first class;
Provided that the expenditure of the court proceedings on behalf of deceased
manual scavenger shall be borne by the concerned State Government in case of Statejudiciary and in case appeal goes to Supreme Court, the expenditure shall be borne bythe Central Government.”
9A. The dependent family members of the deceased manual scavengers who
has died due to hazardous cleaning of sewer and septic tanks shall be compensatedwith an amount not less than twenty lakh, within two months of death by concernedappropriate State Government.”
7. In section 10 of the principle Act, for the words “except upon a complaint”, the
words, “either suo moto or upon a complaint” shall be substituted.
8. In section 13 of the principle Act, in sub-section ( 1) inserted after clause ( f), the
following clause shall be namely:—
“(fa). He shall be given additional five per cent horizontal reservation apart from
the existing Scheduled Casts or the Scheduled Tribes reservation in education andemployment opportunities by 31st May, 2023”.
9. In section 20 of the principle Act,
(a) after sub-section ( 1), the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:—
“Provided that at least six inspectors shall be appointed in each district”
(b) in sub-section ( 2) after clause ( d), the following clause shall be inserted,
namely:—
“(da) maintaining a register scavengers present in his district and record
deaths of manual scavengers happened during hazardous cleaning of sewerand septic tank;”.
10. For section 21 of the principle Act, the following section shall be substituted,
namely:—
“21. Offences under this Act shall be tried by not less than a first class judicial
magistrate.
(a) An appeal against the order of judicial Magistrate First Class under
sub-section ( 1) shall be filed either to the High Court or to the Supreme Court within
ninety days of the judgement and appeal shall lie with district and session judge.”.
11. In Section 31 of the Principal Act, in Sub-Section ( 1) after clause ( d) the following
clauses shall be inserted, namely:—
“(da) conduct survey and invite application for identification of manual
scavengers to be filled by the applicant on its website or directly by requested post orthrough mail:
(db) inquire into the application within fifteen days of receipt of such application
and reject or accept it within this time and the intimation of rejection or acceptanceshall be sent immediately on the fifteenth day to the applicant;Substitution ofnew sectionfor section 9.
Penalty in
case of deathof ManualScavenger dueto Hazardouscleaning ofsewer andseptic tank.
Compensation
to thedependentfamilymembers ofdeceasedmanualscavenger.
Amendment
of section 10.
Amendment
of section 13.
Amendment
of section 20.
Amendment
of section 21.
Offences to be
tried by ajudicialmagistratecourt.
Amendment
of section 31.
(dc) identify a person to be a manual scavenger either suo moto or through the
help of local authorities or any non-Governmental Organisation.
(dd) review application of a migrant manual scavengers for identification and
being accepted as manual scavengers he shall be provided all the benefits availableunder this Act and provide assistance as mentioned in this act:
Provided that the migrant manual scavenger shall be a permanent resident of
that place at least for last five years from the date of filling of application foridentification.”.
12. After Section 33 of the principle Act, the following section shall be inserted,
namely:—
“33A. The Central Government shall start awareness programs in general public
to attract attention to problems of manual scavenging in India and for this purpose aseparate chapter shall be introduced in school curriculum for students above 6thclass, to create awareness and address this discriminatory practice.”.
13. After Section 35 of the principle Act, the following section shall be inserted,
namely:—
“35A. A video application on the internet shall be maintained by the Central
Government where any person can upload videos of manual scavengers indulging inhazardous cleaning of sewer and septic tanks with relevant information includingplace and people involved.
Provided that:—(a) general public shall have access to view every uploaded videos on the
application;
(b) the identity of the person who had uploaded video shall be kept secret; and
(c) only special inspector shall have a direct access to uploader’s identity and
he shall investigate the case within thirty days and upload the summary of the caseand the action taken under the video on the application, barring the identity of theparties involved.”.Insertions ofnew section33A.
Awareness
Programs andintroducingchapter onManualScavenging inIndia inschoolcurriculum.
Insertions of
new section35A.
A Centralized
WebApplicationwhere peoplecan uploadvideosdepictingmanualscavenging.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 23
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act,
2013 was enacted to completely ban manual scavenging in the country. It contains detailedprovisions to eradicate this discriminatory and menacing practice. However, even after adecade of enforcing the Bill, Manual Scavenging still persists in the Country. Still, peopledie cleaning sewers and septic tanks. They are neither provided with any safety gears, nora decent wage. Till date, a specific caste is made to do this menial job. They are stigmatizedas soon as they are born and even in death, they are given no dignity. Throughout their life,they inhale toxic gases, are made to clean man holes with bare body and in case of mishaps,better to be described a murder; they are given no justice. It is very unfortunate that sinceits inception, hardly any conviction has been recorded in a manual scavengers’ death caseunder this act.
According to the Government’s reply this year in the Parliament, 347 people died
during sewer and septic tanks cleaning in the last five years (2017-2022). The numbers areso grossly under reported, that it makes it hard to rely on them. As per the National SafaiKaramchari Finance and Development Corporation’s 20th Annual Report (2016-17) therewere 26 lakh insanitary latrines in the country, of which 13.29 lakh were in urban areas and12.71 lakh in rural areas. The report states that as of 31st March 2017, 12,742 manual scavengershave been identified in 13 states, which is prima facie disproportionate. It is inconceivablethat 13,000 manual scavengers can excavate 26 lakh insanitary latrines. Under the Swachh
Bharat Mission, sanitary latrines are being built in large numbers displacing insanitary onesbut it has aggravated the problem instead of reducing it. These sanitary latrines requiremajor buildup of sewer and septic tanks which in absence of machines and machine holesare to be cleaned by manual scavengers only.
A very large numbers of manual scavengers are contractually employed by private
entities. Their minimum pay is not fixed and they are not given any social security or health
and financial benefits. Municipalities provide the contract to these private entities andoften turn a blind eye when sewers and manholes are cleaned by these manual scavengersin direct contact with human excreta and filth. Several instances have been reported whenDistrict Magistrates refuse to acknowledge manual scavengers in order to provide themrehabilitation under this act. In 2018, insanitary latrines were built for a religious festival inKarnataka and Avarnas were brought from Uttar Pradesh to clean these toilets. Permissionto do all this was granted by none other than the deputy commissioner, who is supposed tobe responsible for the implementation of the 2013 Act. As far as Panchayats are concerned,they are mostly ruled by caste based hierarchies. Manual scavengers even face banishmentfrom the village when they come out as manual scavengers to the concerned authorities ofthe villages.
Vigilance committee, State and Centre committee meetings hardly take place and there
is no accountability as such to keep a check on their working. Lack of efficient implementationof this Act has resulted in hundreds of deaths across the country in sewers and septictanks. Here, arises a need to make this act more efficient and make concerned authoritiesaccountable.
Hence, this Bill.
N
EW DELHI ; SUPRIYA SULE
November 21, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of Bill vide proposed new sections 7A and 7B provides that the Central
Government shall procure machines for cleaning sewer and septic tanks and convert everyman hole in the country to machine hole. Clause 12 vide proposed section 33A provides forthe Central Government to start awareness programms in general public to attract attentionto problems of manual scavengers. Clause 13 vide proposed section 35A provides that theCentral Government shall introduce a web application where people can upload videos ifthey encounter any scene of manual scavenging. The Bell, therefore, if enacted, wouldinvolve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a recurringexpenditure of about ten thousand crore from the Consolidated Fund of India is likely to beinvolved.
No non-recurring expenditure is likely to be involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 25
BILL NO. 255 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Representation of the People Act, 1950.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:–
1. (1) This Act may be called the Representation of the People (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 23 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950,—
(i) after sub-section ( 5), the following sub-section shall be inserted:–
“(5A) The collected Aadhaar data shall be discarded within three hours
of its intended use and in case of violation or any leak of the Aadhaar data, theElection Commission shall be liable for it and may be sued for compensation:
Provided that the Electoral Registration Officer may ask the person to
permanently link only his Aadhaar Biometric Data to his Election Photo IdentityCard (EPIC) and in case of affirmation, shall update the same in Electoral Roll insuch manner as may be prescribed:
Provided further that it shall be the duty of Election Commission to keep
the collected data safe and it shall not be used for any other purposes or to beshared to any other authority or institution or private entity.
Explanation .— For the purposes of this sub-section “liability” means
that if any Employee of Election Commission violates provision of this act, theElection Commission shall be the tortfeasor or defendant in the court of law,representing the accused and paying liability as such.’’. and,
(ii) after sub-section ( 6), the following sub-section shall be inserted, namely:–
“(6A) ( 1). The Electoral Registration Officer shall record biometric data of
fingerprint and iris scan for every new entry, application, replacement requestand alteration request for the EPIC and issue a unique identification number incase of any new entry, replacement request or alteration request:
Provided that the Electoral Registration Officer shall first check whether
Biometric data of the new entrant, while applying for EPIC is already available inthe electoral roll or not.
(2) The biometric identification data along with the original EPIC may be
used at the election booth to prevent electoral fraud including preventingmultiple or duplicate entry of a person in electoral roll by initiation of identificationthrough biometric data.’’.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 23.43 of 1950.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
In December 2021, Parliament passed The Election Laws (Amendment) Bill to amend
the Representation of the People Act, 1950 and the Representation of the People Act, 1951and to give powers to Electoral Registration Officer to ask Aadhaar number during registrationof Voter ID or any further updating. The purpose is to authenticate the entries in electoralroll and to identify registration of name of the same person in the electoral roll of more thanone constituency or more than once in the same constituency. However, the Act doesn’tmention how exactly Aadhaar number would be used for the purpose. Even though, thesubmission is voluntary and doesn’t attract deletion of the person’s name from electoral rollupon non-submission of Aadhaar number but linking Aadhaar ID with Voter ID seemsunsettling. Aadhaar number which has the same meaning as assigned to it in ‘clause ( a) of
section 2 of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits andServices) Act, 2016.’ contains vast information about the person. It is that UniqueIdentification number which an Indian resident use in almost every official and unofficialwork ranging from applying for jobs and Government schemes to book a hotel room andeven to get an entry in a premises.
Given its importance, arises a need for securing its data; but UIDAI has eventually
failed in doing so. In 2018, nearly 1.1 billion registered Citizens Aadhaar data was breached
and sold for 500 rupees by criminals for 10 minutes. In June 2022 around 11 crore Indianfarmers’ Aadhaar data was leaked from Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi website. Giventhe vastness of information linked to one’s Aadhaar ID and its unsettling record of beingleaked, it seems perturbing to link it to V oter ID. Moreover, the Act doesn’t mention the useof one’s Aadhaar if the person hadn’t provided his Aadhaar ID while registering for theElectoral roll in past. The Act should have envisaged to give Voter ID a Unique Identificationitself so as to permanently give a person a single unique number throughout his life whichwould remain same even if he replace his V oter ID multiple times at multiple places. This Billtends to do the same.
The Bill makes it mandatory for Electoral Registration Officer to delete Aadhaar data
of the person within three hours of its use from the main server but may permanently saveAadhaar biometric data with V oter ID upon taking consent from the concerned person. TheBill also provided that biometric data shall be required for new registration of V oter ID, anyalteration or replacement request and every subsequent movement related to the person’sV oter ID and shall be updated in the Electoral Roll in the main server. The Bill intends to stopmultiple entries via use of biometric data. Let’s put it this way. As linking Aadhaar ID withVoter ID could pose a threat to Privacy, the entire data minus biometric one shall be deletedwithin three hours of use. That biometric data once stored in main server shall come inhandy when the person go for second entry in electoral roll as every new entry requestrequires biometric data submission. The main server would notify the Electoral Registration
Officer if that person is already enrolled in Electoral roll, with the use of biometric data. Thisway, Aadhaar number could be used to identify multiple entries and its deletion within threehours would put Privacy issues at bay. Use of biometric data would pave way for establishingpermanent unique identification of the person for life.
The menace of multiple or duplicate entries in the Electoral roll put democratic structure
of the country at risk. Conducting free and fair election in the largest Democracy of theworld is a task that requires reformed and novel practices which doesn’t undermine citizensrights but strengthen them in the process.
Hence this Bell.
N
EW DELHI; SUPRIYA SULE
November 21, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 27
BILL NO. 276 OF 2022
A Bill to provide the right to paid leave during the period of menstruation for working
women, menstrual leave for female students and free access to menstrual healthproducts including menstrual cups, tampons and sanitary pads irrespective ofstatus or region and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Right to Women to Menstrual Leave and Free Access
to Menstrual Health Products Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “appropriate Government” means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in other cases, the Central Government;
(b) “Authority” means the Female Menstrual Health Products Price Regulating
Authority established under section 4;
(c) “educational institution” means any secondary or higher secondary school,
college or institution or University imparting higher education;
(d) “establishment” include an office of the appropriate Government, quasi
Government or department including telegraph office, post office, telephone exchange,a mine, a plantation, an agricultural field, a hospital or nursing home, a shop or anybusiness establishment, a brick kiln, construction site, any banking establishment,any private office or house, any school, college university or like institution,establishment for the exhibition of equestrian, acrobatic and other performances andany other such place where a women is employed for any work whatsoever;
(e) “factory” means a factory as defined in the Factories Act, 1948;
(f) “industry” means an industry as defined in the Industrial Disputes
Act, 1947;
(g) “menstrual health products” means products used to absorb or collect
menstrual flow including menstrual cups, tampons, sanitary towels, panty liners,sanitary pads and articles;
(h) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act; and
(i) “working woman” means a woman who is employed whether directly or
indirectly through any agency or contractor, as the case may be, for wages in anyestablishment, factory or industry.
3. Every women shall be entitled to the following rights:—
(a) In case of working women— Right to paid leave and absence from work for three
days during her menstruation in any establishment registered with the appropriateGovernment;
(b) In case of female students— Right to leave of absence from educational institution
for three days during her menstruation; and
(c) Right to access to free menstrual heath products.
4. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, establish
on an Authority to be known as the Female Menstrual Health Products Price RegulatingAuthority for carrying out the purpose of this Act.Short title andcommencement.
Definitions.
Right of
Women.
Establish of the
FemaleMenstrualHealth ProductsPrice RegulatingAuthority.
(2) The Authority shall consist of,—
(a) Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Chairperson, ex-officio;
(b) Union Minister of Women and Child Development, Vice-Chairman, ex-officio;
(c) Union Minister of Finance, Education and Labour and Employment, Member,
ex-officio; and
(d) six other member to be nominated by the Central Government in such manner
as may be prescribed:
Provided that out of six nominated members, four shall be women.
(3) The salary and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of service of
members nominated under clause (d) of sub-section (1) shall be such as may be prescribed.
(4) The Authority shall meet at least once in a month and shall regulate its own
procedure.
5. The Authority shall, —
(a) ensure availability and distribution of menstrual health products free of cost
to every women;
(b) regulate the prices of menstrual health products;
(c) create awareness, responsiveness and consciousness regarding the
importance of menstrual health products;
(d) identify and give priority in access to menstrual health products to target
group including women not enrolled in full-time education or living in poverty;
(e) maintain accounts in accordance with international standards;
(f) collaborate with the appropriate Government regarding availability menstrual
health products under their jurisdiction; and
(g) undertake such other functions as it deems necessary for carrying out the
purposes of this Act.
6. Every local authority shall endeavour to ensure that menstrual health products are
available free of cost to every women under its Jurisdiction.
7. The Central Government shall for the purposes of redressal of complaints under
this Act establish grievance redressal mechanism in such manner as may be prescribed.
8. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by the Parliament by
law in this behalf, provide adequate funds, from time to time, to the State Governments forthe effective implementation of the provisions of this Act.
9. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any other
law for the time being in force.
10. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the provisions of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days which
may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,
both Houses agree in the making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that
the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified formor be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment
shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.
(3) Every rule made by the State Government under this Act shall be laid, as soon as
may be after it is made, before the State Legislature.Function ofthe Authority.
Duties of Local
Authority.
Grievances
RedressalForum.
Central
Governmentto provideadequate fund.
Act not in
derogation ofother law.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 29
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Undoubtedly, menstrual awareness has increased in urban areas, with more women
opting for sanitary pads rather than cloth. Not only women, people, in general, have developeda better understanding of menstruation in metro areas. Innovations in products arehappening, like menstrual cups, menstrual discs, and much more.
Unfortunately, society identifies women as the other half, but only for specific, indoor-
bound duties, highlighting the biological difference as a mark of inferiority. Menstruationand its debilitating nature, though a reality, are often hushed.
According to research, approximately 40 per cent of girls miss school during their
periods. The type of absorbent used, lack of privacy at school, restrictions imposed on girls
during menstruation, the mother’s education, and the source of menstrual information wereall found to be important factors in school absenteeism. Nearly 65 per cent said it had animpact on their daily activities at school and that they had to skip class tests and lessons asa consequence of discomfort, anxiety, shame, and concerns about leakage and uniformdiscolouration.
While access to menstrual products is critical, equal attention should be paid to the
mental trauma that girls experience during their periods. Girls should receive comprehensivecounselling on menstruation and other associated issues.
The need is to ensure that all who crosses the age of menarche may avail paid leave for
three days for working women and three days of leave with attendance and compensationof academic activities for girl students who menstruate. It is also required that access tomenstrual products, at no cost shall be available to them as and when required.
It is intended to remove any barriers which stop women, girls and trans people
accessing female health and hygiene products – items which are essential to the health,hygiene and wellbeing of those who has crossed menarche till the period of menopause.
The idea behind the proposed Bell is that certain circumstances make access to
sanitary products difficult for women and trans people. These include homelessness,coercive, controlling and violent relationships and health conditions such as endometriosis.
This Bill provides for the novel idea of a type of leave where women and trans women
may have the option of taking a paid leave for three days from their workplace during theperiod of menstruation. Here ‘leave’ shall mean full entitlement of a women to completewages during the period of menstruation subject to maximum of 3 days per month for aworking women and of 3 days for a non-working women including students.
Countries like Japan, Taiwan, China, Korea, Indonesia, and Mexico have introduced
within their legal framework the policy of menstrual leave, for the benefit and the welfare ofwomen. Sanitation is considered to be the central pillar of health according to the WorldHealth Organisation. Our directive principles of states policy propound that necessaryprovisions shall be made by the state to improve health and hygiene of its citizens. Severalcompanies and organizations in the United Kingdom and Australia have also introducedwithin their local constitution, a policy of menstrual leave. But a legal framework in India isnot envisaged yet.
The concept of menstrual leave is an expansion of article 21, the right to life under the
constitution of India; one should not be expected to work during menstruation, because ofthe menstrual pains, and the body being weak and vulnerable, basic sanitation problemslike lack of proper sanitary facilities, lack of clean, safe, and private facilities for women, andlack of adequate menstruation alternatives result in the infringement of their basic right tohealth and also human right to health.
Moreover, due to hormonal actions most menstruating girls and women are having
mental issues facing those days. Worrying about their physically unfit situation and the
availability of hygiene facilities, they feel tortured.
Our Constitution is always concerned about the protection of the vulnerable as it is
committed to the principle of inclusiveness. Prioritising women’s health and safety is theprimary sign of a civilized and egalitarian society.
Many of developing and developed countries are taking the happiness index to
evaluate the good governance of their state. As our country is also looking forward to suchnew scales for measuring the well-being of the people, we should also think about suchrevolutionary ideas out of the traditional way of thinking. It is sure that this Bill will be amilestone in that category which concerns the happiness of nearly half of the population of
India.
Considering all the objectives stated above, in line with the principle of inclusiveness
as envisioned by our founding fathers, there is a greater urgency for such a Bell.
Hence this Bell.
N
EW DELHI; HIBI EDEN
November 21, 2022
————
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill provides for establishment of Female Menstrual Health Products
Price Regulating Authority for carrying out the purposes of this Act. It also provides forappointment of member to the Authority. Clause 7 provides for the Central Government toestablish grievances redressal mechanism for redressal of complaints under this Act. Clause8 provides for the Central Government to provide requisite funds. The Bell, therefore, ifenacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that anannual recurring expenditure of rupees fifteen hundred crore is likely to be incurred from the
Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees five hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 10 of the Bill empowers the appropriate Government to make rules for carrying
out the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegationof legislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 31
BILL NO. 108 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for the protection, enrichment and welfare of Pokkali farmers and for
matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be called the Pokkali Farming (Protection, Enrichment and Welfare)
Act, 2023.
(2) It extends to the whole territory of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date, not being later than three months
from the date of assent of the President, as the Central Government may, bynotification in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,extent andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “pokkali farming” means the farming of paddy and prawn in a coordinated
manner in the coastal areas of the country;
(b) “coastal areas” means the areas specified as such by the Central Government
by notification in the Official Gazette; and
(c) “farmer” means a person engaged in pokkali farming.
CHAPTER II
PROTECHTION AND ENRICHMENT OF POKKALI FARMING
3. The Central Government shall declare pokkali farming as an industry and shall take
necessary steps to provide all necessary facilities and support for the growth anddevelopment of the industry.
4. The Central Government shall take necessary measures for the protection of pokkali
farming, including,—
(a) measures to protect the rights of the farmers;
(b) measures to prevent the exploitation of the farmers;
(c) measures to ensure that the farmers get a fair price for their produce;
(d) measures to prevent the conversion of pokkali farming land for other
purposes;
(e) measures to provide technical support and assistance to the farmers;
(f) measures to promote research and development in the field of pokkali farming;
(g) measures to provide financial assistance to the farmers for the purpose of
improving the quality of their produce;
(h) measures to provide market support to the farmers; and
(i) measures to promote the export of Pokkali farming produce.
CHAPTER III
M
ISCELLANEOUS
5. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide adequate funds for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
6. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions, notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as may appear to it to be necessary for removingthe difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made under this section after the expiry of a
period of two years from the commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is
made, before each House of Parliament.
7. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the provisions of this Act.
(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such
rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:
(a) the manner in which the protection and enrichment of pokkali farming shall
be carried out;Definitions.
Declaration
of PokkaliFarming as anindustry.
Measures of
Pokkalifarming.
Central
Governmentto providefunds.
Power to
removedifficulties.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 33
(b) the manner in which the rights of the farmers shall be protected;
(c) the manner in which the exploitation of the farmers shall be prevented;
(d) the manner in which the farmers shall be provided with a fair price for their
produce;
(e) the manner in which the conversion of pokkali farming land shall be prevented;
(f) the manner in which technical support and assistance shall be provided to
the farmers; and
(g) the manner in which research and development in the field of pokkali farming.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Pokkali farming system, which involves the coordinated cultivation of paddy and
prawn in the coastal areas, is a unique and important aspect of the Indian agricultural sector.Despite its significance, this traditional system has been facing various challenges in recentyears, such as land conversion, exploitation of farmers, and a lack of technical support andfinancial assistance.
The need is to provide for the protection and enrichment of Pokkali farming, so as to
preserve this traditional system and ensure its growth and development. It is also requiredto declare Pokkali farming as an industry and provide all necessary facilities and support forits growth and development. It also provides for measures to protect the rights of farmers,prevent their exploitation, and ensure they receive a fair price for their produce. Measuresto promote and encourage the growth of Pokkali farming, including providing technicalsupport, promoting research and development, and providing financial assistance to farmersfor the purpose of improving the quality of their produce is also required to be taken.
The present Bill aims to address the challenges faced by Pokkali farmers and ensure
that this unique and valuable system continues to thrive and contribute to the Indianagricultural sector.
The Bill, therefore, proposed for the protection and enrichment of Pokkali farming, so
as to ensure the growth and development of this important traditional system and the well-being of its farmers.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI ; HIBI EDEN
March 13, 2023.
————
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill provides for Central Government to take various measures for the
protection and enrichment of pokkali farming. Clause 5 provides for the Central Governmentto provide adequate funds for carrying out the purposes of this Act. The Bill, therefore, ifenacted, would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimatedthat a recurring expenditure of about rupees hundred crore per annum would be involvedfrom the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees fifty crore is also likely to be involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 7 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 35
BILL NO. 105 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for the protection of healthcare professionals from violence, harassment,
and acts of aggression in the course of their duty and for matters connected therewithor incidental thereto.
WHEREAS violence, harassment and acts of aggression against healthcare
professionals have become a growing concern in the country, posing a threat to theirphysical and mental wellbeing, thereby affecting the quality of healthcare services in thecountry.
AND WHEREAS the existing laws to deal with such incidents are inadequate and
require a comprehensive legislation to protect healthcare professionals from such violenceand harassment.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Healthcare Professionals (Protection from Violence
and Harassment) Act, 2023.
Short title,extent andcommencement.
(2) It shall extend to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(1) “healthcare professional” means any person who is registered under any
law for the time being in force and is involved in the delivery of healthcare services,including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other medical and paramedical staff;
(2) “hospital” means any institution, whether run by the Government or private,
which provides healthcare services to the public;
(3) “patient” means any person who seeks healthcare services from a healthcare
professional;
(4) “violence” means any act of physical or mental harm, including verbal
abuse, threats, intimidation, or damage to property, which is committed against ahealthcare professional in the course of their duty; and
(5) “harassment” means any unwanted conduct, which has the purpose or
effect of violating the dignity of a healthcare professional in the course of their duty.
3. (1) Whoever commits an act of violence or harassment against a healthcare
professional in the course of his duty shall be punishable with imprisonment for a termwhich may extend to five years and with fine which may extend to rupees five lakh.
(2) The punishment provided under sub-section ( 1) shall be in addition to any other
punishment provided for the offence under any other law for the time being in force.
4. (1) Any healthcare professional who is a victim of violence or harassment in the
course of his duty shall be entitled to protection and compensation under this Act.
(2) The Central Government shall establish a mechanism to provide protection and
compensation to healthcare professionals who are victims of violence or harassment in thecourse of their duty in such manner as may be prescribed.
(3) The compensation provided under sub-section ( 2) shall be in addition to any
other compensation payable under any other law for the time being in force.
5. Every hospital shall,:—
(a) take all necessary measures to prevent violence and harassment against
healthcare professionals in the course of their duty;
(b) establish a mechanism for reporting incidents of violence and harassment
against healthcare professionals; and
(c) provide necessary support and assistance to healthcare professionals who
are victims of violence or harassment in the course of their duty.
6. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973,
an offence under this Act shall be cognizable and non-bailable.
(2) No court shall take cognizance of an offence under this Act except on a complaint
made by the victim or the hospital where the victim was employed or associated.
7. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide adequate funds forthe implementation of the provisions of the Act.
8. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order, published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act as may appear to be necessary for removing thedifficulty:Definitions.
Offence of
violence andharassmentagainsthealthcareprofessionals.
Protection
andcompensationfor healthcareprofessionals.
Obligations of
hospitals.
Cognizance
andinvestigationof offences.
Central
Government toprovide funds.
Power to
removedifficulties.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 37
Provided that no order shall be made under this section after the expiry of two years
from the commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is
made, before each House of Parliament.
9. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form orbe of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulmentshall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Power tomake rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The healthcare professionals of our country are the backbone of our healthcare
system, and their safety and security is of paramount importance to ensure that qualityhealthcare services are available to the people. The instances of violence and harassmentagainst healthcare professionals are increasing at an alarming rate, which poses a seriousthreat to their physical and mental wellbeing, and also affects the quality of healthcareservices in the country.
According to a survey, close to seventy-five per cent. of doctors in the country had
faced physical abuse of some kind, and demands for a comprehensive legislation to checkviolence against healthcare professionals have been growing louder. The existing laws todeal with such incidents were weak and inadequate, and there is a need for a stringent lawto prevent such incidents.
The proposed Bill aims to provide a comprehensive legal framework for the protection
of healthcare professionals from violence and harassment in the course of their duty. TheBill seeks to define the offences of violence and harassment against healthcare professionalsand provides for stringent punishment for the same.
The Bill also provides for the establishment of a mechanism for the protection and
compensation of healthcare professionals who are victims of violence or harassment, andimposes obligations on hospitals to prevent and report such incidents.
In view of the above, it is proposed to enact a law to ensure the safety and security of healthcare professionals healthcare services.Hence this Bill. in the country and to maintain the quality of healthcare services.
N
EW DELHI; HIBI EDEN
March 9, 2023.
————
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill provides for the Central Government to provide compensation to
all the healthcare professionals who are victim of violence or harassment in the court of hisduty. Clause 6 provides for the Central Government to provide funds for carrying out the
purpose of this Act.
The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund
of India. It is estimated that about rupees five hundred crore will be incurred per annum fromthe Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 9 of the Bill empowers the appropriate Government to make rules for carrying
out the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegationof legislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 39
BILL NO. 281 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Companies Act, 2013.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Companies (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) Save as otherwise provided for in this Act, it shall come into force on such date as
the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint and differentdates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act and any reference in any suchprovision to the commencement of this Act shall be construed as a reference to the cominginto force of that provision.
2. In section 2 of the Companies Act, 2013 (hereinafter referred to as the principal
Act,—
(i) for sub-section (52), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:–
“(52) “listed Company” means a company or an entity which has listed,
on a recognized stock exchange(s), the designated securities issued by it ordesignated securities issued under schemes managed by it, in accordance withthe listing agreement entered into between the entity and the recognized stockexchange(s); and
(ii) after sub-section (56), the following sub-section shall be inserted, namely:—
“56A. “National Business Responsibility Standard Board” means National
Business Responsibility Standard Board constituted under section 138A.”.
3. In section 134 of the principal Act, in sub-section ( 3), after clause (m), the following
clause be inserted, namely:—
“(ma) the reporting framework as outlined in the Form V, under Rule 14 of
Environment Protection Rules, 1986, under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 oras prescribed by the National Business Responsibility Standard Board.”.
4. In section 137 of the principal Act, in sub-section ( 1),
“for the words “all the documents”, the words ‘all the documents’ including
Form V , as specified, under Rule 14 of Environment Protection Rules, 1986 under theEnvironment Protection Act, 1986 or as prescribed by the National BusinessResponsibility Standard Board while filing annual financial statement with theRegistrar, shall be substituted.
5. After Chapter IX of the principal Act, the following CHAPTER and sections
thereunder shall be inserted, namely:—
“CHAPTER IXA
NATIONAL BUSINESS RESPONSIBILITY STANDARD BOARD
138A. ( 1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, establish
a National level apex body in this Chapter called in the National Business ResponsibilityStandard Board, hereinafter referred to as the National Board, for carrying out the purposesof the act.
(2) The head office of the National Board shall be at the New Delhi and the Board may,
with the previous approval of the Central Government, establish offices at other places inthe country.
(3) The National Board shall consists of,
(a) one full-time Chairperson, who shall be an eminent person having a minimum
of fifteen years of work experience and expertise in the matter related to theenvironmental pollution, climate change and sustainable development;Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of Section 2.18 of 2013.
Amendment of
Section 134.
Amendment
of Section137.
Insertion of
new ChapterIIA.
Establishment
of NationalBusinessResponsibilityStandardBoard.
(b) one officer in the rank of Joint Secretary to the Government of India to be
appointed by the Central Government as a full-time Member-Secretary of the Board;
(c) following ex officio members to be appointed by the Central Government, in
such manner as may be prescribed—
(i) one officer not below the rank of Joint Secretary to the Government of
India each from the Union Ministries of Corporate Affairs, Finance (Departmentof Economic Affairs), Commerce and Industry (Department of Promotion ofIndustry and Trade), Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Health andFamily Welfare, Science and Technology, Power, Road Transport and Highways,Petroleum and Natural Gas and Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare;
(ii) one member from National Institution for Transforming India (NITI
Aayog) not below the rank of Joint Secretary or advisor;
(iii) one member from the Central Pollution Control Board;
(iv) one member from the Indian Space Research Organization;
(v) one member from Invest India;
(vi) one member from the Securities and Exchange Board of India; and
(vii) one member from the Reserve Bank of India.
to be appointed by the Central Government in such manner as may be prescribed;
and
(d) Following non-official members to be appointed from amongst specialists/
stakeholders—
(i) one member from Indian Banks’ Association;
(ii) three members from Industry Associations;
(iii) two members from academia;
(iv) two members from Civil Society;
(v) such other members to be appointed by the Central Government in
such manner as may be prescribed.
138B. ( 1) The Board shall,
(a) carry out their functions in accordance with the following criteria and
conditions, in so far as the functions contained herein are in compliance with theframework of rules and regulations made under this Act, including the rules thereofpertaining to the functions of a company registrar and other entities mentioned therein;
(b) advise the Central Government on matters relating to the environmental
concerns and steps required to improve the quality of the environment to abate allforms of environmental pollution;
(c) update periodically the reporting framework for companies in consultation
with stakeholders and ensure its compliance;
(d) engage in consultation with stakeholders at regular intervals to update,
revise and incorporate the reporting framework;
(e) continuously oversee the reporting of companies;
(f) publish annual report and maintain a year-round public visibility of the data;
(g) develop and deploy comprehensive and relevant standards, indicators, and
disclosure formats for various classes of industries conforming to best practices andglobally accepted standards in consultation with stakeholders;
(h) monitor compliance, issue notice, and take action in case of non-compliance;
(i) undertake capacity building initiatives and continuous research and
development work for achieving reporting standards and global practices andcommitments;Functions ofthe Board.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 41
(j) promote adoption of the reporting frameworks by companies through
appropriate subsidies and incentives; and
(k) any other matter which the National Board may deem expedient for fulfilling
the objective of reducing environmental pollution.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section ( 1), the National Board may
also require companies or classes of companies as defined in clause (20) and (21) of section2 to furnish any such information pertaining to factors involving responsible businesspractices or as laid by the Board, within such time as may be specified in the order:—
Provided that if any company fails to comply with an order made under clause ( k) of
sub-section ( 1) or knowingly furnishes information which is incorrect or incomplete in any
aspect intricately concerning sustainability, carbon emissions and environment, theCompany shall be liable to the penalties in accordance with the quantum contained in undersub-section ( 4) of section 405.
138C.( 1) The National Board shall meet at such time and place and shall observe such
rules of procedure in regard to the transaction of business at its meetings (including thequorum at its meetings) as may be prescribed.
(2) The Chairperson of the National Board shall preside at the meetings of the Board:—
Provided that if for any reason the Chairperson is unable to attend any meeting of the
National Board, any member of the Board chosen by the members present at the meetingshall preside at the meeting.
(3) The Member-Secretary shall be the chief coordinating officer and the convener of
the Board and shall assist the National Board in the discharge of its functions under thisAct.
(4) The Member-Secretary shall also discharge any other function as may be
prescribed.
138D. The salaries and allowances payable to, and the other terms and conditions of
service of, the Chairperson, Member Secretary ex-officio and other member shall be such asmay be prescribed.
138E. The Central Government may remove any member from the Board who, in its
opinion, has —
(i) been adjudged as an insolvent; or
(ii) been convicted of an offence which involves moral turpitude; or
(iii) become physically or mentally incapable of acting as a member; or
(iv) abused his position as to render his continuance in office detrimental to the
public interest; or
(v) acquired such financial or other interest as is likely to affect prejudicially his
functions as a member:
Provided that no such Member shall be so removed unless he has been given a
reasonable opportunity of being heard.
138F. (1) The National Board may appoint such officers and other staff as it considers
necessary for the efficient discharge of its functions under this Act.
(2) The salary and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of service of
such officers and other staff of the Board shall be such as may be prescribed.”.Meetings ofthe Board.
Conditions of
service ofChairpersonandrepresentatives.
Removal of
Members.
Appointment
of officers andstaff.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The global phenomenon of climate change has assumed alarming proportions now,
and its severity as a threat to mankind has rapidly escalated owing to the vast quantum ofemissions released cumulatively over time as a result of anthropogenic activities.Repercussions of climate-related impacts cannot be ignored anymore. The world has cometogether to address this amplifying crisis ensued by rapid emissions. The fundamental rightto life enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution of India also mandates the continuouspursuance of a clean, healthy, and pollution-free environment. It is a known fact thatIndustrialization has been a great contributor to lifting millions out of poverty and increasingsocial prosperity. At the same time, rapid industrialization has also led to an increase inemissions, and across the world, Industries are among the largest emitters of Green HouseGases (GHG). Lately, at the global level, Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG)frameworks have become a prudent approach to holistically counter the threat of climatechange from companies’ viewpoint. In India, The Securities and Exchange Board of India(SEBE) has been issuing periodic guidance in that regard and the reporting on such indicatorswill only be made mandatory through Business Responsibility and SustainaBelity Report(‘BRSR’) from Financial Year 2022-23 for the top 1000 listed companies by marketcapitalization. This fragmented approach puts the onus only on select entities beyond acertain threshold while excluding the majority of companies from the ambit of ESG reporting.Further, every Industry is already reporting to State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs) onthe indictors outlined in the Form V, under Rule 14 of the Environment Protection Rules,1986. Therefore, amending the Company Act with insertion of a section for mandatoryreporting as per the already existing reporting framework, provisioned under the EnvironmentProtection Act (EPA), can serve the purpose of pollution abatement to a greater extent.Instead of de novo arrangements, the proposed Bell, at ceteris paribus, provisions ofreporting of Form V to the Company registrar instead of SPCBs and creation of an apexbody to devise, monitor and ensure compliance. This could be a first step towards accuratelyquantify and report emissions and, going forward, keep formulating appropriate responsesas the need may be.
Further, to ensure Indian industry remains competitive globally, it has to pass muster
with provisions like Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) proposed under theGreen Deal by Euro-Zone. Therefore, it is important to empower the domestic entities operatingat a smaller scale to efficiently deal with such international obligations.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI ; GAURAV GOGOI
November 21, 2022
————
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 5 of the Bill vide proposed section 138A provides for constitution of the
National Business Responsibility Standard Board as an apex body to devise appropriatereporting frameworks, build capacity of Companies and monitor and check environmentalpollution created by them. Also the proposed section 138F of this Bill also mandates theappointment of officers and staff for ensuring the smooth functioning of the Board.
The Bill, therefore, if enacted, is likely to involve expenditure from the Consolidated
Fund of India. It is likely to involve a recurring expenditure of about rupees ten crore perannum from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees five crore is also likely to be involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 43
BILL NO. 271 OF 2022
A Bill to amend the Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region
and Adjoining Areas Act, 2021.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Commission for Air Quality Management in National
Capital Region and Adjoining Areas (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 2 of the Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital
Region and Adjoining Areas Act, 2021 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act),—
(i) after clause ( d), the following clauses shall be inserted, namely:—
“(da) ‘Directorate General Occupational Safety and Health’ means
Directorate General Occupational Safety and Health as per sub-section ( 1) of
section 87 of the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code,2020;
(db) ‘Energy Intensive Industries’ means Energy Intensive Industries as
per clause ( e) of section 14 of the Energy Conservation Act, 2001.”.
3. In section 3 of the principal Act, in sub-section ( 3), after clause ( d), the following
clause shall be inserted, namely:—
“(da) a representative of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, not below
the rank of Joint Secretary to the Government of India;”.
4. In section 11 of the principal Act,—
(i) in sub-section ( 3), after clause ( c), the following clauses shall be inserted,
namely:—
“(ca) Directorate General of Mines Safety; and
(eb) Directorate General Occupational Safety and Health from the Ministry of
Labour and Employment;”.
(ii) in sub-section ( 4), after clause ( c), the following clause shall be inserted,
namely:—
“(ca) one technical representative from the Ministry of Health and Family
Welfare working in the field of medicine and research working or studying onthe impact of air pollution on living beings.”.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 2.
Amendment
of section 3.
Amendment
of section 11.29 of 2021.
5. In section 12 of the principal Act,—
(i) in sub-section ( 2), for clause ( vi), the following clause shall be substituted,
namely,—
“(vi) carrying out and requiring investigations and research relating to
problems of environmental pollution and air pollution in particular that haveimplications on air quality and health of the people in the region;”;
(ii) in sub-section ( 6), for clause ( h), the following clause shall be substituted,
namely:––
“(h) encourage and incentivise the efforts of non-governmental
organisations, institutions working in the field of air pollution, and EnergyIntensive Industries that switch over to energy efficient equipments and investin the energy efficient machinery and equipment;”;
(iii) after sub-section ( 6), the following sub-section shall be inserted, namely:—
“(7) For the purpose of and without prejudice to the generality of sub-
section (1) of section 13 and sub-clause (iii) of clause (c) of sub-section (6) ofsection 12, the Commission shall grant scholarship and fellowship every yearto eligible persons and direct them to coordinate with the Ministry of Healthand Family Welfare; Indian Council of Medical Research and any other institutionas it deems fit.”.
6. After section 12 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted,
namely:—
“12A. (1) The Commission shall establish, in every district in the National
Capital Region and Adjoining Areas, a trust, as a non-profit body, to be called theDistrict Air Pollution Monitoring Foundation.
(2) The District Air Pollution Monitoring Foundation shall monitor the emission or
discharge of environmental pollutants from various sources whatsoever that haveimplications on air quality in the district in such manner as may be prescribed.
(3) The composition and functions of the District Air Pollution Monitoring Foundation
shall be such as may be prescribed.”.
7. In section 13 of the principal Act, for sub-section ( 1), the following sub-section
shall be substituted, namely,—
“(1) The Commission shall furnish to the Central Government an annual report
containing such details of the steps taken, proposals made, researches awaited andnumber of deaths occurred, number of people hospitalised during the year in theNational Capital Region and Adjoining Areas (district-wise) due to air pollution andother measures undertaken by it in pursuance of its functions under section 12, insuch form and manner as may be specified by regulations.”.
8. In section 16 of the principal Act, after sub-section ( 2), the following proviso shall
be inserted, namely,—
“Provided that the fund allocation for research relating to problems of
environmental pollution mentioned in clause ( vi) of sub-section ( 2) of section 12 is
done every year and shall be at least ten per cent. of the total expenditure of thecommission in a year.”.Amendmentof section 12.
Insertion of
new section12A.
Amendment
of section 13.
Amendment
of section 16.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 45
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
As Indira Gandhi, India’s former ‘green’ Prime Minister and an eminent environmentalist
once said, “The problems created by the pollution of air and water, and by fear of thedepletion of the mineral resources of the earth, have created a belated realization that weshould be conservers, not destroyers, of this planet”. Laws dealing with air and waterpollution, i.e. The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 and Water (Preventionand Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 were enacted during her tenure as Prime Minister ofIndia. On 17 May 1972, Indira Gandhi wrote to her Industry Minister: “The Water PollutionBill has been passed. I do not know what is delaying the Bill regarding air pollution. Thisshould be expedited”. Nothing could be more pressing, today, than upgrading the laws thatgovern the working of the agencies that fight against environmental pollution. The worldhas moved so much forward since the enactment of the Commission for Air QualityManagement in the National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas (Amendment) Act, 2021.
This Bill seeks to make amendments to the principal Act to enable the Commission to
perform its functions better, aligning with the changing global scenario. The Bill, inter alia,ensures that:
(i) the Commission allocates sufficient funds, every year, for research on air
pollution;
(ii) the Commission maintains a record of health hazards faced by the people
residing in the NCR and the adjoining region, the number of deaths and hospitalizationsoccurred every year due to air pollution;
(iii) the District level institution called ‘District Air Pollution Monitoring
Foundation’ is established to monitor the emission or discharge of environmentalpollutants from various sources;
(iv) the commission acknowledges and incentivises the sources that emit a
lesser quantity of pollutants to the environment;
(v) the Commission consults representatives of the Ministry of Health and
Family Welfare on the issues of air pollution and includes them in the ‘Sub-Committeeon Research and Development’.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI ; GAURAV GOGOI
November 21, 2022
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 6 of the Bill provides for establishment of a trust to be known as the District
Air Pollution Monitor Foundation in every district in the National Capital Region andadjoining areas by the Commission. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, will involve expenditurefrom the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that an annual recurring expenditure ofrupees Ten Crore is likely to be incurred from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees Five Crore is also likely to be involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 47
BILL NO. 256 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Energy Conservation Act, 2001
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Energy Conservation (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 2 of the Energy Conservation Act, 2001 (hereinafter referred to as the
principal Act),––
(i) after clause ( d), the following clauses shall be inserted, namely:––
(da) “carbon credit certificate” means the certificate issued by the Central
Government or any agency authorised by it under section 14AA;’’; and
(db) “carbon credit trading scheme” means the scheme for reduction of
carbon emissions notified by the Central Government under clause ( w) of
section 14;’’;
(ii) after clause ( q), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:––
“(qa) “registered entity” means any entity, including designated
consumers, registered for carbon credit trading scheme specified under clause(w) of 5 section 14;’’; andShort title and
commencement.
Amendment
of section 2.52 of 2001.
(iii) after clause (u), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:––
“(ua) “virtual digital asset” means virtual digital asset as defined in sub-
section ( 47A) of section 2 of the Income-Tax Act, 1961.’’.
3. In section 13 of the principal Act after clause ( t), the following clause shall be
inserted, namely:—
“(ta) empanel technical experts, particularly Indian Citizens, to promote energy
efficiency and carbon credit trading activities undertaken to meet the objectives ofthe Act;”.
4. In section 14 of the principal Act,—
(i) after clause ( e), the following clause shall be inserted:—
“(ea) direct Energy Intensive Industries to maintain minimum requirement
of carbon credit certificates to buy carbon credit certificates, and specify theminimum requirement”;
(ii) after clause ( v), the following clauses shall be inserted, namely:––
“(w) specify the carbon credit trading scheme;
(x) establish mechanism to monitor and prevent illegal activities, involving
carbon credit certificate by converting it into virtual digital asset;
(y) establish mechanism to adjust the supply of carbon credit certificates
to be auctioned in the market and maintain a reserve of carbon credit certificatesfor the said objective; and
(z) specify minimum share of consumption of non-fossil sources by
designated consumers as energy or feedstock, provided different share of
consumption may be specified for different types of non-fossil sources fordifferent designated consumers;”.
5. After section 14A of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted,
namely:—
“14AA. ( 1) The Central Government, or any agency authorised by it shall
maintain a Registry of carbon credit certificates.
(2) The Central Government or any agency authorised by it may issue carbon
credit certificate to the registered entity which complies with the requirements of thecarbon credit trading scheme and extinguish the carbon credit certificates from theregistry upon redemption and update the records:
Provided that the Central Government shall limit the issuance of carbon credit
certificates, year on year, thereby reducing its availability in the carbon market.
(3) The Central Government shall facilitate real time tracking of transaction of
carbon credit certificates between registered entities, carbon emission projection anddetails of carbon credit certificates possessed by the registered entities and maintainthe same on public domain.
(4) The Central Government shall also designate an agency under clause ( d) of
section ( 15) to ensure that the details possessed by the registered entities under sub-
section ( 2) are not manipulated.
(5) The registered entity shall be entitled to purchase or sell the carbon credit
certificate in accordance with carbon credit trading scheme specified under clause ( w)
of section 14.”.Amendmentof section 13.
Amendment
of section 14.
Insertion of
new section14AA.
Carbon Credit
Certificate.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 49
6. For section 16 of the principal Act, the following section shall be substituted,
namely:––
“16. (1) There shall be constituted a Fund for the purposes of promotion of
efficient use of energy and its conservation by the State Government to be called theState Energy Conservation Fund and there shall be credited thereto—
(a) all grants and loans that may be made by the State Government or the
Central Government or any other organisation or individual for the purposes ofthis Act;
(b) all fees received by the State Government or the designated agency
under this Act;
(c) all sums received by the State Government or the designated agency
from such other sources as may be decided by the State Government.
(2) The Fund shall be utilised for meeting the expenses––
(a) of the designated agency in the discharge of its functions; and
(b) for the objects and purposes authorised by or under this Act.
(3) The Fund created under sub-section ( 1) shall be administered by such
person or authority and in such manner as may be prescribed by the rules made by theState Government:
Provided that the State Government may appoint an Auditor to ensure that the
Fund is utilised for the intended purpose. ”.
7. In section 18 of the principal Act, before the existing Explanation, the following
proviso shall be inserted, namely:––
“Provided that the Central Government shall not impose complete ban on the
export of the carbon credit certificates to the foreign countries, that may affect India’scommitments or obligations to any international agreement.”.
8. In section 26, for sub-section ( 1A), the following sub-section shall be substituted,
namely:—
“(1A) If any person fails to comply with the directions issued under clauses ( n)
and ( z) of section 14, he shall be liable to a penalty which shall not exceed ten lakh
rupees for each such failure:
Provided that he shall also be liable to an additional penalty which shall not be
less than twice the price of every metric ton of oil equivalent or the price of everycarbon credit certificate whichever is less prescribed under this Act, which is inexcess of the prescribed norms.”.Substitution ofnew sectionfor section 16.
Establishment
of Fund byStateGovernment.
Amendment
of section 18.
Amendment
of section 26.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The establishment of the carbon market in India is a need of the hour. Making sure
that the market falls in line with the global market trend is also equally important. A carbonmarket with a strong framework and checks and balances will last long withstanding economicshocks such as price rise and inflation. Because, industries/companies (registered entities)may pass on any increase in their costs to their consumers, thereby affecting the generalpublic. While introducing the carbon trading concepts in India, the equal focus must begiven to emission reduction of pollutants as given to the promotion of the use of non- fossilfuel sources.
Incorporating global best practices is another important aspect of introducing the
carbon market to India. The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative is the first cap-and-investregional initiative implemented in the United States. The RGGI caps and reduces powersector CO2 emissions by issuing CO2 allowances, projecting the RGGI cap in CO2 allowances.The EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) works on the principle of ‘cap-and-trade’ too. Theemission reduction is achieved by putting a limit/cap on the total amount of certaingreenhouse gases emitted by the entities each year, which is reduced over me. This Billseeks to incorporate necessary checks and balances in the Act, thus preventing delegationof too much power to the ruling dispensation which is dangerous for any democracy.
The Energy Conservation (Amendment) Bill, 2022, inter alia, seeks to—
(a) empower the Central Government to prevent illegal activities involving
carbon credit certification by converting it into virtual digital assets;
(b) give preference to Indian companies to establish the carbon market and
implement the rules regarding the same, in India;
(c) maintain a buffer stock of carbon credit certificates in India, to manage any
economic shock in future;
(d) establish a registry of carbon credit certificates;
(e) give more powers to State Governments to monitor the utilization of the
State energy conservation fund for the intended purpose of the Act;
(f) ensure the penalty for the violators of the law does not become lenient over
the years.
The Bill seeks to achieve the aforesaid objectives.
N
EW DELHI; GAURAV GOGOI
November 21, 2022.
————
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 6 of the Bill provides for constitution of the State Energy Conservation Fund.
It also provides for crediting of grant and loans to the fund by the Central Government. TheBill, therefore, if enacted would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. Arecurring expenditure of about rupees ten crore is likely to be involved per annum from theConsolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees five crore is also likely to be involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 51
BILL NO. 44 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Representation of the People Act, 1950.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Representation of the People (Amendment) Act,
2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 20A of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, for sub-section ( 3),
the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(3) Every person registered under this section shall, if otherwise eligible to
exercise his franchise, be allowed to vote at an election at the nearest Embassy orHigh Commission or Consulate General of India, if the person is residing outsideIndia.”Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section20A.43 of 1950.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The framers of the Constitution of India viewed the right to vote as one of the most
fundamental elements of democratic citizenship. Seven decades ago, they undertook a boldexperiment by adopting universal adult suffrage, as enshrined in Article 326 of theConstitution of India. Our founding mothers and fathers were clear on this basic principle –that voting rights were for all Indian citizens, irrespective of caste, colour, creed, sex, placeof Birth, educational attainment, or disablity.
The sustained strength of India’s democracy can be measured from the fact that while
in 1951, at the time of India’s first general election, only 17 per cent of the eligible citizens wereregistered as electors and 45 per cent of them turned out to vote, in 2019, during India’s latestgeneral election, over 91 per cent of the eligible citizens were registered with 67 per cent ofthem coming out to vote, which is the highest voter turnout in India’s electoral history.
However, a worrying trend is the disenfranchisement of Non-Resident Indians (NRIs)
from the electoral process. As per latest data by the Ministry of External Affairs, out of the
total 1.33 crore NRIs living in various parts of the globe, a miniscule 0.9 per cent are reg-istered to vote, according to figures by the Election Commission of India. Of the 1.22 lakhregistered NRI electors, less than 21 per cent voted in the 2019 general elections.
Indian diaspora has grown manifold since the mid-19th and early 20th century, when
Indians first started emigrating overseas for work. According to the World Migration Report, bythe International Organisation for Migration under the United Nations, India has the largestemigrant population in the world, with 6.4 per cent of the total 28 crore international migrants
tracing their origin to India. The Indian diaspora holds considerable influence over our nation’s
culture, society, and economy. In its latest Migration and Development Brief, the World Bankhas stated that for the first time, a single country, India, is on track to receive more than USD 100Billion in yearly remittances. Remittances will record a 12 per cent increase from 2021. India’sremittance flows account for nearly 3 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in2022. Yet, NRIs’ direct involvement in India’s electoral politics has been limited.
The Representation of the People Act, 1950 was amended in 2010, making way for a
special provision, allowing for all Indian citizens to be enrolled in the electoral rolls in the
constituency which is their place of residence in India as mentioned in their passport. While
an appreciable first step, the dismal NRI voter figures warrant introspection. A key reasonfor low NRI voter turnout could be an onerous requirement – while they can vote, NRIsmust be physically present in their constituency in India on the day of the election. For alarge majority, interrupting their lives overseas, to travel to India in order to exercise theirright to vote, is something they cannot afford.
As a result, NRIs’ concerns are completely side-lined from electoral politics. A possible
solution to bridge this issue is making provisions for all the NRIs’ eligible to vote at the
nearest Embassy or High Commission or Consulate General of India in order to enhance
their voter turnouts and political participation.
As envisioned by our Constitution framers, in a democracy as vibrant as ours, no
Indian voter should be left behind. This Bill is an attempt to create a legislative frameworkto allow for enhanced expatriate participation in India’s democracy.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to amend the Representation of the People Act, 1950 with a
view to make provisions for the persons residing outside India to exercise franchise at thenearest Embassy or High Commission or Consulate General of India in order to enhancetheir voter turnouts and political participation.
Hence, this Bill.
N
EW DELHI ; KARTI P. CHIDAMBARAM
January 18, 2023.
————
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 2 of the Bill vide proposed amendment to section 20A provides for the persons
residing outside India to exercise franchise at the nearest Embassy or High Commission orConsulate General of India. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditure from theConsolidated Fund of India. However, at this stage, it is not possible to estimate the recurring
and non-recurring expenditure likely to be incurred from the Consolidated Fund of India.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 53
BILL NO. 234 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Central Universities Act, 2009.BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Central Universities (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by
notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. After section 3F of the Central Universities Act, 2009 (hereinafter referred to as the
principal Act), the following section shall be inserted, namely:—
“3G. There shall be established a University, which shall be a body corporate, to
be known as the Darjeeling Central University, having its territorial jurisdictionextending to the whole of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration and the territoriesto the north of River Ganga in West Bengal as specified in the First Schedule to thisAct.”
3. In the First Schedule to the principal Act, after serial number 16 and the entries
relating thereto, the following serial number and entries shall be inserted, namely:—
“17. West Bengal Darjeeling Whole of Gorkhaland Territorial
Central University. Administration and territories to
the north of River Ganga in theState of West Bengal.”.Short title andcommencement.
Insertion of
new section3G.
Amendment
of the FirstSchedule.25 of 2009
Establishment
of DarjeelingCentralUniversity.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Central Universities Act, 2009 was enacted to establish and incorporate
universities for teaching and research in various States and for matters connected therewithor incidental thereto.
Darjeeling has remained a hub of education not only in India, but also across the
South and South-East Asian countries. Darjeeling region, is home to some of the bestschools in India and students from all over Asia come to study in the hills. Establishment ofan institution of higher and technical learning in the region, has been a long-standingaspiration and pertinent demand of the people. Establishing a Central University in Darjeelingcan help to turn it into one of the hubs for higher education in India and an importanteducation center in all of South and South East Asia.
In 2011, an in-principal agreement for the establishment of a Central University in the
Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) had been reached between the CentralGovernment, West Bengal Government, and the Gorkha representatives. Despite passageof new ten years since the agreement, steps towards establishment of the university havenot been undertaken.
Moreover, out of 55 Central Universities, there is only one Visva Bharati that is
located in West Bengal, and it was founded by Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore in 1921. Sincethen, no other Central University has been established in West Bengal. The population ofthe State has crossed 10 crores and only one Central University is not enough to cater tothe needs of the students.
At present, there is no Central University in the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration
region and Northern Districts of West Bengal. Therefore, establishing a new CentralUniversity in the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration will ensure increase in accessibilityand quality of higher education and to facilitate and promote avenues of higher educationand research for the people of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration, North Bengalregion of West Bengal. This shall also cater to the regional aspirations for years to come.
The Central Universities (Amendment) Bill, 2022 seeks to amend the Central
Universities Act, 2009 inter alia to provide for the establishment of a University in the name
of “Darjeeling Central University” having Territorial jurisdiction in the Gorkhaland TerritorialAdministration and North Bengal region in the State of West Bengal.
The Bill seeks to achieve the above objects.
New Delhi ; RAJU BISTA
21 November , 2022.
——————
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 2 of the Bill seeks to insert a new section 3G in the Central Universities Act,
2009 which provides for the establishment of a new University, to be known as the ‘DarjeelingCentral University’, as a body corporate having territorial jurisdiction extending to thewhole of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration and territories of north of River Ganga inWest Bengal.
The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund
of India. At this stage, it is not possible to give exact estimate of expenditure, both recurringand non-recurring, which will be involved from the Consolidated Fund of India, if the Bill isenacted into a law. However, it is estimated that a recurring expenditure of about rupees fiftycrore will be involved per annum from the Consolidated Fund of India. A non-recurringexpenditure of about rupees six hundred crores is also likely to be involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 55
BILL NO. 279 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for the establishment of an Agricultural Produce Price Fixation Board
to fix the remunerative support price of agricultural produce including fruits andvegetables on annual and seasonal basis and for timely intervention bythe Government at the time of steep fall in prices of such produce in the open marketand for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Agricultural Produce Price Fixation Board Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:—
(a) “agricultural produce” includes wheat, paddy, pulses, sugarcane, cotton,
oil seeds, coarse grains like maize, millet, jowar, bajra, gram, soyabean, fruits andvegetables such as potato, onion, tomato, cauliflower, cabbage including such otheragricultural or horticultural produce which are used for human consumption or forany medicinal purposes;
(b) “appropriate Government” means in the case of a State, the State Government
and in the other cases, the Central Government;
(c) “Board” means the Agricultural Produce Price Fixation Board established
under section 3;
(d) “Government agency” means and includes any agency of the Government
by whatever name called or which receives grants from the Government and which isengaged in procurement, distribution and canalising agricultural produces; and
(e) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
3. (1) The Central Government shall, as soon as may be, but not later than six months
from the date of commencement of this Act, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitutea Board to be known as Agricultural Produce Price Fixation Board.
(2) The headquarters of the Board shall be at Alappuzha in the State of Kerala.
(3) The Board shall consist of:—
(a) a Chairperson and a Deputy Chairperson having relevant educational
qualifications and experience in field of agriculture, to be appointed by the CentralGovernment in such manner as may be prescribed;Short title andextent.
Defnitions.
Constitution
of anAgriculturalProduce PriceFixationBoard.
(b) one member from each zonal office of the Board set up under sub-
section ( 5);
(c) one member each to represent the Union Ministries dealing with Agriculture,
Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Food Processing Industries,Chemicals and Fertilisers and Finance;
(d) one member to represent the Indian Council of Agricultural Research;
(e) four members to be appointed by the Central Government from amongst the
farmers and agricultural labourers, in rotation from different States in such manner asmay be prescribed; and
(f) four members of Parliament, of whom two shall be from Lok Sabha and two
from Rajya Sabha, to be nominated by the Presiding Officers of the respective Houses.
(4) The Board shall be a body corporate by the name aforesaid having perpetual
succession and a common seal, with power to acquire, hold and dispose off property, bothmovable and immovable, and to contract and shall by the said name sue and be sued.
(5) The Board shall set up one zonal office each in the eastern, western, northern,
north eastern, central and southern parts of the country comprising of such States andUnion territories, as may be determined by the Board and each zonal office shall consist ofsuch number of members as may be prescribed.
(6) The term of office of the Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson and the manner of
filling vacancies and the procedure to be followed in the discharge of their functions shallbe such as may be prescribed.
4. (1) The Board shall —
(i) fix and declare minimum remunerative support prices of agricultural produce
before every sowing season after examining the recommendations of all the zonaloffices:
Provided that different prices may be fixed for different produce and for different
zones;
(ii) fix the issue prices of foodgrains for retail sale to consumers every year;
(iii) perform its functions in close liaison with Government agencies, institutions
including co-operative societies and such other authorities concerned with theprocurement, supply, distribution, trade of agricultural produce and avoid duplicationof efforts; and
(iv) give wide publicity to the remunerative prices fixed for agricultural produce
through electronic and print media throughout the country.
5. (1) It shall be the duty of each zonal office of the Board to recommend to the Board
the remunerative support prices of agricultural produce in respect of its jurisdiction.
(2) Every zonal office of the Board, before recommending the minimum support
remunerative prices of agricultural produce, shall take into account all relevant factors, butin particular, the following, namely:—
(a) average capital investment made by farmers in growing the produce;
(b) average labour charges;
(c) interest on loans borrowed for growing the produce;
(d) premium for crop insurance, if any;
(e) maintenance cost of the land;
(f) expenditure on fertilizers, pesticides, seeds and electricity, etc.;Functions of
the Board.
Function of
the zonaloffice.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 57
(g) any concession, rebate or subsidy provided by Government in relation to
agricultural produce;
(h) prevailing open market price of each product;
(i) climatic conditions and incidence of natural calamities like floods, droughts,
hailstorms, cyclones and untimely rains; and
(j) average monthly household expenditure of a farmer.
6. (1) In case any farmer fails to sell his produce in the open market at the desired
prices, the Central Government shall purchase his produce at the price fixed by the Boardthrough Government agencies.
(2) If there is a steep fall in the prices of agricultural produce in the open market, it
shall be the duty of the appropriate Government to intervene through its agencies in themarket to ensure that farmers shall get minimum support price of the produce and take suchother measures as it may deem necessary to handle the situation and protect the interestsof the farmers.
7. (1) If any farmer is not satisfied with the declaration of price fixed for any agricultural
produce, he may file an appeal to the Authority designated for the purpose by the CentralGovernment within thirty days for reviewing of such price.
(2) The designated Authority specified under sub-section ( 1), shall give its decision
within fifteen days from the date of filing of such appeal.
8. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide adequate funds to the Board for carrying out the purpose of this Act.
9. The provisions of this Act and the rules made thereunder shall have effect
notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith contained in any other law for the timebeing in force.
10. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form orbe of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulmentshall be without prejudice to the validity of any- thing previously done under that rule.Governmentagencies topurchaseagriculturalproduce.
Appeal to
CentralGovernmentregarding pricefixation.
Central
Governmentto providefunds.
Power to
make rules.Act to have
overridingeffect.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The farmers always expect remunerative prices of their agricultural produce in order
to repay their loans which they borrowed for growing agricultural produce and to meetsocial obligations and household expenditure. But unfortunately, it is an usual phenomenonthat in the immediate post-harvest period the prices of most of the agricultural producedecline very sharply and farmers are left high and dry and at the mercy of unscrupuloustraders who exploit them to the maximum possible. Data reveals that very often, even thecost of production is not recovered by farmers.
At present, the Commission on Agricultural Costs and Prices under the Union Ministry
of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare for determining the Minimum Support Price (MSP),considers ( 1) Demand and supply; ( 2) Cost of Production; ( 3) Price trends in the market,
both domestic and international; ( 4) Inter crop price parity; ( 5) Terms of trade between
agriculture and non-agriculture; ( 6) Likely implication of MSP on consumers of that product.
Using these various parameters, MSP is often fixed even below the cost of production,ignoring the right to life and livelihood of the producer. Therefore, there is a need for pricedetermination for farmers to take the sole mandate of securing adequate net returns to afarmer, over and above the comprehensive cost of production, rather than consideringother parameters. In view of the above, to uphold the right to life and livelihood of farmers,which are their fundamental rights, it is proposed to constitute a statutory autonomousAgricultural Produce Price Fixation Board having representation of farmers and agriculturallabourers to fix the remunerative prices for agricultural produce.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; A.M. ARIFF
July 13, 2022
————
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for the establishment of Agricultural Produce Price
Fixation Board. It further provides for setting up of zonal offices. Clause 4 inter alia provides
that the Board shall give wide publicity through electronic and print media about the pricesfixed. Clause 6 provides that the Central Government shall purchase agricultural produce atthe prices fixed by the Board. Clause 8 provides for payment of adequate funds to the Boardfor carrying out the purposes of the Act. The Bill, therefore, if enacted and brought intooperation, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated thata sum of rupees two thousand crore may be involved as recurring expenditure per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees one thousand crore may also be involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 10 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is, therefore, of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 59
BILL NO. 272 OF 2022
A Bill to provide temporary benefits to the terminated employees including payment of
unemployment allowance, medical expenses for a certain period after terminationof service and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:–
1. (1) This Act may be called the Terminated Employees (Temporary Benefits)
Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:—
(a) “appropriate Government” means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(b) “employee” means any person employed on wages by an employer, either
directly or through a contractor, to do any skilled, semi-skilled or unskilled, manual,operational, supervisory, managerial, administrative, technical, clerical or any otherwork, whether the terms of employment be express or implied, and also includes aperson declared to be an employee by the appropriate Government;
(c) “employer” means the owner or director of any establishment or organisation
which is not owned, controlled or funded by the appropriate Government or anundertaking and who directly or indirectly or through an agent or any other person,employs any person on regular, casual, contractual or temporary basis or exercisecontrol over the wages, hours of working and other working conditions of hisemployees;
(d) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act;Short title and
commencement.
Definitions.
(e) “primary health care” means essential health care services including family
planning, immunization, prevention of locally endemic diseases, treatment of commondiseases or injuries, provision of essential facilities, health education, provision offood and nutrition accessible to individuals and provided by the appropriateGovernment;
(f) “secondary health care” includes second tier of health care system, in which
patients from primary health care are referred to specialists in higher hospitals fortreatment; and
(g) “terminated employee” means an employee whose services have been
terminated by his employer on any ground other than the following grounds, namely:–
(i) proven misconduct causing physical or mental harm or both; or
(ii) fraud; or
(iii) breach of trust; or
(iv) cheating; or
(v) indulging in misappropriation of money with fraudulent means; or
(vi) having been convicted for an offence by a criminal court; or
(vii) having been convicted for an offence other than a criminal offence
punishable by a sentence for a period of more than two years; and
(h) “tertiary health care” includes third level of health care system, in which
specialized consultative care including Specialised Intensive Care Units, advanceddiagnostic support services and specialized medical personnel is provided on referralfrom primary and secondary health care.
3. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in
force, every employer shall provide to the terminated employee or his dependant familymembers the following benefits, namely:—
(a) payment of unemployment allowance at the rate not less than seventy
percent. of the wages which were being paid to such employee prior to his terminationin such manner as may be prescribed; and
(b) payment for medical expenses incurred which shall not be less than fifty
percent. of the total cost in case of expenses under primary health care and not lessthan one lakh rupees in case of expenses under secondary and tertiary healthcare insuch manner as may be prescribed.
(2) The terminated employee shall be eligible for benefits under clauses ( a) and ( b)
only if such an employee had been employed for a period of not less than three hundred andsixty-five days by the same employer.
(3) The medical treatment expenses under clause ( b) of sub-section ( 1) shall also be
provided to the dependant family members of the terminated employee for a period of onehundred and twenty days from the month subsequent to the month of termination of theemployee.
(4) Any agreement between the employer and employee or the agent of the employee
that seek to nullify the provisions of this Act shall be deemed to be null and void ab initio .
4. The unemployment allowance under section 3 shall be paid for a period of ninety
days from the date of termination of service of employee or until the employee whoseemployment has been terminated is employed again, whichever is earlier in time:
Provided that where the terminated employee is a widow, the unemployment allowance
shall be paid for a period of one hundred and twenty days.Benefits to beprovided totheterminatedemployees.
Duration of
payment ofunemploymentallowance.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 61
5. Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force,
the benefits provided under section 3 shall not be computed for the purpose of payment ofIncome Tax.
6. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute
an Authority to ensure implementation of the provisions of this Act.
(2) The composition of and other terms and conditions of the Authority shall be such
as may be prescribed.
(3) The Authority shall, after a period of five years from the date of its constitution,
review the benefits referred to in section 3.
(4) Notwithstanding anything in this Act, the Authority may, if it deems necessary,
exempt certain category of employers from the application of this Act.
7. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide adequate funds for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
8. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as appears to it to be necessary or expedientfor removing the difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made after the expiry of a period of two years
from the date of commencement of this Act.
9. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything contained to
the contrary in any other law for the time being in force.
10. (1) The appropriate Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make
rules for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act by the Central Government shall be laid, as soon as
may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a totalperiod of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successivesessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or thesuccessive sessions aforesaid, both House agree in making any modification in the rule orboth the Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effectonly in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any suchmodification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previouslydone under that rule.
(3) Every rule made by the State Government under this Act shall be laid, as soon as
may be after it is made, before the State Legislature.Benefits to benon-taxable.
Constitution
ofAppropriateAuthority.
Central
Governmentto providefunds.
Power to
removedifficulties.
Act to have
overridingeffect.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The globalised free and capitalist market has evolved into a system requiring adequate
regulation and monitoring of employees welfare on the one hand and defining who qualifiesas an employer on the other. The tendency to maximize profits at the cost of the welfare ofthe employees and exploitation of the necessity of the workers has resulted in unfavourableconditions for employees. The rise of the gig economy, gamification of the employees and
the economy, and the ever expanding informal sector in India has on one hand broughtsuccess and wealth while, on the other hand but has also introduced uncertainty in thefuture of the employees.
Today the Indian economy is more than ever exposed to international eventualities
and its effect on the daily lives of the people is highly pronounced. In light of this, theexisting social security net is required to be strengthened and expanded. Such a step willserve not only the interests of workers but will also provide adequate financial support tothem in distressed time. The Government of India must ensure that the Directive Principlesstated in articles 38, 39( e) and 42 of Part IV of the Constitution are implemented in keeping
with the responsibilities of a welfare State.
The need is to put an obligation on the State to secure a social order for the promotion
of welfare of the people, provide public assistance in cases of unemployment, old age,sickness, disablement and also ensure that the health and strength of workers is not abuseddue to economic necessity.
The Bill, therefore, with a view to ensure social security, seeks to provide for payment
of unemployment allowance and medical expenses to the terminated employees and theirdependant family members for a certain period of time.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; LAVU SRI KRISHNA DEVARAYALU
March 17, 2020.
————
PRESIDENT’S RECOMMENDATION UNDER ARTICLES 117( 1) AND 274( 1) OF THE
CONSTITUTION
[Copies of Letter Nos. DGE-H-11021/28/2021-SS-I and H-11021/28/ 2021-SS-I dated
12 September and 16 November, 2022 from Shri Bhupender Yadav, Minister of Labour andEmployment and Environment, Forest and Climate Change to the Secretary General, LokSabha.]
I. The President, having been informed of the subject-matter of the Terminated
Employees (Temporary Benefits) Bill, 2022 by Shri Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu,Member of Parliament, recommends the introduction of the Bill in Lok Sabha underclause ( 1) and the consideration of the Bill under clause ( 3) of article 117 of the
Constitution.
II. The President, having been informed of the subject-matter of the Terminated
Employees (Temporary Benefits) Bill, 2022 by Shri Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu,Member of Parliament, recommends the introduction of the Bill in Lok Sabha underclause ( 1) of article 274 of the Constitution.
[*Bill, being printed in 2022, the year in the title of the Bill has been changed from 2020
to 2022.]
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 63
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 6 of the Bill provides for the constitution of an Authority to ensure
implementation of the provisions of this Bill. Clause 7 provides that the Central Governmentshall provide adequate funds for carrying out the purposes of this Act. The Bill, therefore,if enacted, would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimatedthat a recurring expenditure of about rupees ten crore per annum would involve from theConsolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees thirty crore is also likely to be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 10 of the Bill empowers the appropriate Government to make rules for carrying
out the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegationof legislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 65
Bill No. 202 of 2022
A BILL to provide for the promotion and development of the Chilli industry, constitution
of a Chilli Board and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:-
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be called the Chilli (Promotion and Development) Act, 2022.
(2)It extends to the whole of India.
(3)It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,extent andcommencement.
2.In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "advisories" means non-binding standards and guidance issued by the
Board for promotion and development of the chilli industry;
(b) "Board" means the Chilli Board established under section 3 of this Act;
(c) "Chairperson" means the Chairperson of the Board appointed under clause
(a) of sub-section ( 3) of section 3 of this Act;
(d) "chilli industry" means the industry engaged in the production, manufacture,
export, supply, trade and commerce of chilli
(e) "directions" means binding standards and guidance issued by the Board for
promotion and development of the chilli industry;
(f) "export" means taking out of India by sea, land or air;
(g) "exporter" means any person engaged in the business of export of chilli;
(h) "Fund" means the Chilli Promotion and Development Fund constituted
under section 15;
(i) "grower" means the owner of chilli cultivation, and includes any agent of
such owner, and mortgagee, lessee or any other person in actual possession of such
chilli cultivation;
(j) "import" means bringing into India by sea, land or air;
(k) "importer" means any person engaged in the business of import of chilli;
(l) "member" means a member of the Board appointed under sub-section ( 3) of
section 3 of this Act and includes the Chairperson;
(m) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(n) "specified" means specified by regulations made by the Board under this
Act;
(o) "small grower" means a grower the size of whose cultivation does not
exceed ten hectares;
(p) "stakeholders" means any person, entity or organisation engaged in the
production, manufacture, export, supply, trade and commerce of chilli; and
(q) "worker" means any person who works in chilli cultivation excluding the
grower.
CHAPTER II
THE CHILLI BOARD
3.(1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute,
for the purposes of this Act, a Board, to be called the Chilli Board.
(2)The Board shall be a body corporate by the name aforesaid, having perpetual
succession and a common seal, with power to acquire, hold and dispose of property, both
movable and immovable, and to contract and shall by the said name, sue and be sued.Definitions.
Constitution
andincorporationof the Board.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 67
(3)The Board shall consist of the following members:
(a) a Chairperson to be appointed by the Central Government in such manner as
may be prescribed;
(b) three Members of Parliament, of whom two shall be elected by the House of
the People and one by the Council of States;
(c) three members to represent respectively the Ministries of the Central
Government dealing with-
(i) Commerce;
(ii) Agriculture; and
(iii) Finance;
(d) four members to represent major chilli producing States to be appointed by
the Central Government in such manner as may be prescribed;
(e) ten members to represent the growers, workers and exporters in the chilli
industry to be appointed by the Central Government in such manner as may beprescribed;
(f) five members to represent such institutes or authorities having
specialisation in research in the chilli industry, agriculture, foreign trade, packagingand food safety to be appointed by the Central Government in such manner as may be
prescribed.
(4)The qualifications for appointment of the Chairperson and other members of the
Board and the manner of filling vacancies among the members of the Board shall be such as
may be prescribed.
4.(1) The term of office of, salaries, remuneration or other allowance payable to, and
the other conditions of service of, the Chairperson and other members of the Board shall be
such as may be prescribed.
(2)The office of member of the Board shall not disqualify its holder for being chosen
as or for being a member of either House of Parliament.
(3)Any officer of the Central Government when deputed by that Government to the
Board shall have the right to attend meetings of the Board and take part in the proceedings
thereof but shall not be entitled to vote.
5.No act or proceeding of the Board shall be invalid merely by reason of:
(a) any vacancy in, or any defect in the constitution of, the Board;
(b) any defect in the appointment of a person as Chairperson or member of the
Board; or
(c) any irregularity in the procedure of the Board not affecting the merits of the
case.
6.(1) The Chairperson shall preside over the meetings of the Board, and without
prejudice to any provision of this Act, exercise and discharge such other powers and
functions of the Board as may be prescribed.
(2) In the absence of a Chairperson in a meeting, the Board may elect any member who
is present to preside over such meeting.Terms of
office andconditions ofservice ofChairpersonsand othermembers.
Vacancies,
etc., not toinvalidateproceedings ofthe Board.
Chairperson
to presideover meetings.
7.(1) The Board may constitute such advisory or executive committees, appoint
such officers and staff as it deems necessary for the efficient discharge of its functionsunder this Act.
(2) The method of recruitment and terms and conditions of service of officers and
staff employed, as the case may be, shall be such as may be prescribed.
8.(1) The Board shall be responsible for promotion and development of the chilli
industry in the country.
(2)Without prejudice to the generality of sub-section ( 1), the Board shall:
(a) take such steps as it deems necessary in order to achieve objectives enlisted
under section 9;
(b) monitor the export, import and price of chilli and propagate data and other
information regarding the demand for and marketability of chilli in the country and inthe foreign market;
(c) render scientific and technical advice aimed at improving the production,
manufacture, supply and distribution of chilli;
(d) undertake, assist and encourage scientific, technological and economic
research in the area of chilli production;
(e) collect statistics from stakeholders in the chilli industry;
(f) plan and implement human resource training and skill development in line
with the needs of chilli industry;
(g) take steps either by itself or through accredited agencies to maintain quality
standards for chilli produced in the country;
(h) collaborate and cooperate with national and international scientific and
economic bodies for the benefit of the chilli industry;
(i) collaborate and cooperate with departments of the Central or State
Governments on all matters relating to the promotion and development of chilliindustry;
(j) protect the intellectual property rights of the Indigenous varieties of chillies
in the country and abroad;
(k) subscribe to the share capital of or entering into any arrangement or other
arrangements (whether by way of partnership, joint venture or any other manner)with any other body corporate for the purpose of promoting the development of chilliindustry or for promotion and marketing of chilli in the country or elsewhere;
(l) advise the Central Government on all matters relating to the promotion and
development of the chilli industry, including but not limited to the import and exportof chilli;
(m) advise the Central Government with regard to participation in any
international conference or scheme relating to the chilli industry;
(n) provide advisory services on matters including but not limited to research,
testing and training to such other class of persons upon the payment of such fee orother charges as may be specified;
(o) formulate incentive schemes for the chilli industry;
(p) conduct seminars, workshops research activities and other programmes for
development and promotion of chilli industry in the country; and
(q) any other actions in the interest of chilli industry.Functions of
the Board.Committees,
officers andstaff.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 69
CHAPTER III
PROMOTION AND DEVELOPMENT
9.The Central Government and the Board, as the case may be, while exercising its
powers, discharging its functions, or undertaking any other activity under this Act shall beguided by the following objectives namely:
(a) optimising the production, sale and consumption of chilli, which may include:
(i) promoting the export of chilli;
(ii) promoting the sale and trade of chilli through e-commerce platforms;
(iii) improving the quality of chilli cultivated in the country for
consumption in the country and export;
(iv) promoting branding, product diversification, value addition,
packaging and furthering the interests of stakeholders involved in the chilliindustry;
(v) promoting sustainable cultivation and increasing production and
productivity of chilli;
(vi) providing support and encouragement to small growers for using and
implementing new technology in chilli cultivation;
(vii) recommending fair and remunerative prices for chilli growers;
(viii) safeguarding the interests of chilli workers; and
(ix) increasing awareness among the general public about the chilli industry
in the country.
(b) promoting economic, scientific and technical research into the chilli industry,
which may include:-
(i) collecting, analysing, and disseminating economic, scientific and
technical data, information, statistics, and studies related to the chilli industryin the country;
(ii) encouraging the adoption of best available technologies so as to
minimize the adverse impact of climate change;
(iii) promoting an understanding of plant ecology, physiology, and
pathology among growers; and
(iv) encouraging the adoption of global best practices by the chilli industry
in the country.
10. For the purposes of this Act, the Board may issue directions or advisories to
stakeholders and such other persons in the chilli industry or any class thereof, as it maydeem fit:
Provided that every direction issued shall be complied with by any person engaged in
the chilli industry to who such direction has been issued.
CHAPTER IV
C
OMPLIANCES
11. (1) Every stakeholder shall obtain a certificate of registration issued by the Board
in such form, subject to such conditions and payment of such fee, and with effect from suchdate as may be specified:
Provided that the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette,
exempt such person or class of persons as may be specified.Objectives tobe followedfor promotionanddevelopment.
Issuance of
direction andadvisories bythe Board.
Registration.
(2)The certificate of registration shall be issued or rejected after due verification in
such manner and within such period as may be specified.
(3)The certificate of registration shall be deemed to have been issued after the expiry
of the period specified under sub-section ( 2), if no deficiency has been communicated to
applicant within that period.
(4)A certificate of registration issued, or deemed to have been issued under this
section shall remain valid for a period of fifteen years, or such period beyond fifteen yearsas may be specified by the Board, from the date on which it was issued, or deemed to beissued, as the case may be, except when the certificate is cancelled or suspended pursuantto an inspection under section 12.
12. Every stakeholder liable to be registered under section 11 shall submit to the
Board such returns at such times, in such form, and containing such particulars, as may beprescribed:
Provided that the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette,
exempt such person or class of persons as may be specified.
13. (1) Where the Board has reason to believe that any stakeholder:-
(a) has contravened any direction issued to such person under section 10;
(b) liable to be registered under section 11 has failed to obtain registration or
has obtained registration through fraud or misrepresentation;
(c) liable to submit returns under section 12 has failed to submit returns, or has
submitted false returns;
(d) has contravened any other provision of the Act,
it may authorise such officer, as may be prescribed, by an order in writing in
such manner and subject to such conditions as may be specified, to conduct aninspection.
(2)In the course of inspection under sub-section ( 1), the authorised officers may,
subject to such conditions and in such manner as may be prescribed:
(a) enter any place or premises where any activities related to the chilli industry
are undertaken;
(b) require the production of any books, registers, records or other articles or
papers kept therein; and
(c) ask for any information relating to the sale or purchase of chilli.
(3) Upon completion of the inspection, the authorised officer shall submit to the
Board a report containing:
(a) recommendations on whether there is a contravention of the provisions of
this Act; and
(b) in cases where there is found to be a contravention of the provisions of this
Act, recommendations on the imposition of a penalty, suspension or cancellation ofregistration or such other particulars as may be prescribed.
(4) Upon receipt of the report referred to in sub-section ( 3), after considering the
recommendations provided therein, the Board shall pass an order as may be deemed fit insuch form, manner and subject to such conditions as may be prescribed for:
(a) closing the matter forthwith; or
(b) imposing a civil penalty which may extend to ten thousand rupees; or
(c) suspending or cancelling of registration under section 11; or
(d) or for conditions mentioned in clauses ( b) and ( c):Submission of
returns.
Inspection and
penalties.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 71
Provided that the amount of any penalty imposed under this section, if not paid, may
be recovered as if it were an arrear of land revenue:
Provided further that no order of suspension or cancellation of registration shall be
passed under this sub-section unless the person concerned has been given a reasonable
opportunity of being heard in respect of the grounds of such suspension or cancellation, asthe case may be.
14. (1) Any person aggrieved by an order passed under the provisions of sub-section
(4) of section 13 may, within such period of the passing of the order, prefer an appeal to the
Central Government, on payment of such fee, in such form and manner, and subject to
such other conditions as may be prescribed.
(2)The Central Government may confirm, modify or reverse the order appealed against:
Provided that before disposing of an appeal, the parties shall be given a reasonable
opportunity of being heard.
CHAPTER V
F
INANCE , ACCOUNTS AND AUDITS
15. (1) The Board shall constitute a Fund to be called the Chilli Promotion and
Development Fund.
(2) The Chilli Promotion and Development Fund shall be credited:
(a) all sums transferred to or vested in the Board;
(b) any grants and loans made to the Board by the Central Government;
(c) all fees levied and collected in respect of certificates of registration issued
and any other fees or charges collected under this Act or the rules and regulations
made thereunder;
(d) all sums received by the Board from such other sources as may be decided
upon by the Central Government; and
(e) all assets transferred from the Spices Board Fund under the Spices Board
Act, 1986 ( Act 10 of 1986).
(3)The Fund shall be applied to:
(a) meet the salary, pension, remuneration and other allowances of the members,
officers, and staff of the Board as applicable;
(b) meet the expenses relating to such measures as the Board may undertake
under this Act from time to time in order to achieve the objectives enlisted in section9, and in exercise of its general powers and functions under section 8;
(c) meet the other administrative expenses of the Board and any other expenses
authorised by or under this Act;
(d) repay loans; and
(e) settle any liabilities arising out of legal proceedings.
16. The Board may, from time to time, with the previous sanction of the Central
Government and under such conditions as may be prescribed, borrow any sum required for
any of the purposes for which it is authorised to expend under this Act, from:—
(a) any bank or other financial institution by taking loan; or
(b) the public by issue of bonds or debentures or any such instrument in the
form and manner approved by the Central Government.Appeal.
Chilli
PromotionandDevelopmentFund.
Power to
borrow.
17. The Board shall prepare in such form and manner, at such time, and such intervals,
as may be prescribed, its budget, showing the estimated receipts and expenditure of theBoard and forward the same to the Central Government.
18. The accounts of the Board shall be maintained and audited in such manner as
may, in consultation with the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India, be prescribed andthe Board shall furnish to the Central Government before such date, as may be prescribed,its audited copy of accounts together with the auditors' report thereon.
19. (1) The Board shall prepare, in such form and manner and at such time each
financial year, as may be prescribed, its annual report, giving a full account of its activitiesduring the previous financial year, and submit a copy thereof to the Central Government.
(2)The annual report prepared under sub-section ( 1) shall contain:—
(a) a description of all the activities of the Board for the previous year;
(b) the plan of the Board for the upcoming year; and
(c) any such other details as may be provided under any law for the time being
in force.
20. The Central Government shall cause the auditor's report under section 18 and
annual report under section 19 to be laid, as soon as may be after they are received, beforeeach House of Parliament.
CHAPTER VI
M
ISCELLANEOUS
21. (1) If at any time the Central Government is of the opinion:
(a) that on account of grave emergency, the Board is unable to discharge the
functions and duties imposed on it by or under the provisions of this Act; or
(b) that the Board has persistently made default in complying with any direction
issued by the Central Government under this Act, in achieving the objectives enlistedin section 9 or in exercising its general powers and functions under section 8, and asa result of such default the financial position of the Board or the administration of theBoard has deteriorated; or
(c) that circumstances exist which render it necessary in the public interest so
to do,
the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, supersede
the Board for such period, not exceeding six months, as may be specified in thenotification.
(2) Upon the publication of a notification under sub-section ( 1) superseding the
Board:
(a) all the members shall, as from the date of supersession, vacate their offices
as such;
(b) the general powers and functions which may, by or under the provisions of
this Act, by exercised or discharged by or on behalf of the Board, shall until the Boardis reconstituted under sub-section ( 3), be exercised and discharged by such person
or persons as the Central Government may direct; and
(c) all property owned or controlled by the Board shall, until the Board is
reconstituted under sub-section ( 3), vest in the Central Government.
(3) On the expiration of the period of supersession specified in the notification issued
under sub-section ( 1), the Central Government may reconstitute the Board by a fresh
appointment and in such case any person or persons who vacated their offices underclause ( a) of sub-section ( 2), shall not be deemed disqualified for appointment:Budget.
Accounts and
audit.
Annual report.
Auditor's
report andannual reportto be laidbeforeParliament.
Power of the
CentralGovernmentto supersedethe Board.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 73
Provided that the Central Government may, at any time, before the expiration of the
period of supersession, take action under this sub-section.
(4) The Central Government shall cause a notification issued under sub-section ( 1)
and a full report of any action taken under this section and the circumstances leading tosuch action to be laid before each House of Parliament at the earliest.
22. (1) Without prejudice to the foregoing provisions of this Act, the Board, in
discharge of its general powers and functions under this Act, shall be bound by suchdirections as the Central Government may give in writing to it from time to time:
Provided that the Board shall, as far as practicable, be given an opportunity to express
its views before any direction is given under this sub-section.
(2) The decision of the Central Government whether a question is one of policy or not
shall be final.
23. The Central Government may by notification in the Official Gazette, direct that any
power exercisable and functions performed by it under this Act may be exercised andperformed in such cases and subject to such conditions, if any, as may be prescribed inthe notification by such officer or authority as may be prescribed therein.
24. No suit, prosecution or other legal proceedings shall lie against the Central
Government, the Board, or any officer, member, or employee thereof for anything which isdone or intended to be done in good faith under this Act or the rules or regulations made,or standards notified thereunder.
25. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
to carry out the provisions of this Act.
(2)In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such
rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:—
(a) the qualification for appointment of the members of the Board and the
manner of filling of vacancies among the members of the Board under sub-section ( 4)
of section 3;
(b) the procedure to be followed at meetings of the Board and at committees
thereof for the conduct of business, and the number of members which shall form aquorum at any meeting;
(c) the holding of a minimum number of meetings of the Board every year;
(d) the term of office of, salaries, remuneration, or other allowances payable to,
and the other terms and conditions of service of, the Chairperson and other membersof the Board under sub-section ( 1) section 4;
(e) the other powers and functions of the Board which shall be discharged by
the Chairperson under sub-section ( 1) of section 6;
(f) the officers who shall be authorised by the Board to conduct inspection
under sub-section ( 1) of section 13;
(g) the form and the manner of, and the conditions to be met and fee to be paid
for, preferring an appeal to the Central Government under sub-section ( 1) of section
14;
(h) the conditions to be met for borrowing any sum under section 16;
(i) the form and the manner of, the time at which and the intervals for the
preparation of a Budget under section 17;
(j) the form and the manner in which the accounts of the Board shall be audited
and the date before which the audited copy of the accounts may be furnished to thePower ofCentralGovernmentto issuedirections.
Power to
delegate.
Protection of
action takenin good faith.
Power to
make rules.
Central Government under section 18;
(k) the form and the manner and the time at which the annual report shall
be prepared under section 19; and
(l) any other matter which is to be, or may be, prescribed or in respect of
which provision is to be, or may be, made by rules.
26. (1) Subject to the provisions of section 9, and with the approval of the Central
Government, the Board may by notification in the Official Gazette make such regulationsconsistent with this Act and any rules made thereunder to carry out its functions under thisAct.
(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such
regulations may provide for all or any of the following matters namely:
(a) the method of collecting statistics from such stakeholders in the chilli
industry;
(b) the method of recruitment and terms and conditions of service of any officers
appointed, and any staff employed under sub-section ( 2) of section 7;
(c) the fee or other charges for providing advisory services under clause (n) of
sub-section ( 2) of section 8; and
(d) the form and the manner of, the conditions to be met and fee to be paid for,
and the date of effect of certificate of, registration under sub-section ( 1) of section 11;
(e) the manner of verification of an application to obtain certificate of registration
and the period within which such certificate shall be issued or rejected under sub-section ( 2) of section 11;
(f) the period of validity of a certificate of registration under sub- section ( 4) of
section 11;
(g) the form and the manner of, the particulars to be contained in, and the times
at which, returns shall be submitted under section 12;
(h) the conditions subject to which the Board may authorise officers to conduct
an inspection by an order in writing under sub- section ( 1) of section 13;
(i) conditions subject to and manner in which inspection is to be conducted
under sub-section ( 2) of section 13;
(j) the particulars to be contained in the report to be submitted by an executive
officer upon completion of investigation under sub- section ( 3) of section 13;
(k) the form, manner, and conditions subject to which the Board shall pass an
order under sub-section ( 4) of section 13;
(l) any other matter which is to be, or may be, prescribed or in respect of which
provision is to be, or may be, made by regulations.
27. Every rule and regulation made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be
after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period ofthirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions,and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or the successivesessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or regulationor both Houses gree that the rule or regulation should not be made, the rule or regulationshall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be;so however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to thevalidity of anything previously done under that rule or regulation.Power tomakeregulations.
Rules and
regulations tobe laid beforeParliament.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 75
28. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order, published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act as may appear to be necessary for removing thedifficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made under this section after the expiry of three
years from the commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is
made, before each House of Parliament.
29. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or any other law for the time
being in force, on and from the date of commencement of this Act, all matters pertaining tochilli under the Spices Board Act, 1986 ( Act 10 of 1986) shall be deemed to be governed by
the provisions of this Act.
(2) On and from the date of commencement of this Act, any stakeholder in the chilli
industry that has a valid registration, certification or licence, by whatever name called,under the Spices Board Act, 1986 ( Act 10 of 1986), shall be deemed to be registered under
section 11, and shall be deemed to remain so registered till the registration or license as thecase may be, remains valid under the Spices Board Act, 1986 ( Act 10 of 1986).
30. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent
therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force.
31. In the Spices Board Act, 1986 in the Schedule, the entry namely, '3. Chilly', shall be
omitted.Transitionalprovisions.
Act to have
overridingeffect.
Amendment
of Act 10 of1986Power to
removedifficulties.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Spices Board Act, 1986 was enacted for the purpose of development of export of
26 specified spices, including chilli. Among these spices, chilli assumes great significancefor a variety of reasons. India is the largest producer and exporter of chilli in the world.It contributes to roughly 37 per cent. of the total global chilli production, with an estimatedproduction of 14 million tonnes. It has about 8 million hectare of land under chilliproduction, amounting to 39 per cent. of the total area under chilli production in the world.
India's export of chilli and chilli products is valued at more than Rs. 6,000 crores,
with the export quantity having almost doubled in the last decade. Within the basket ofspices exported from India, chilli contributed to more than 40 per cent. of the volume and30 per cent. of the value. One of the primary reasons for the high demand, popularity andrenown of Indian chilli, especially in lucrative markets of the USA and UK, is its superiorcommercial qualities of colour and pungency.
These factors make chilli one of the most prominent spices in the country and across
the world. However, the potential of the chilli industry is immense and remains to be fullyexploited. Due to the fact that chilli has been clubbed with 25 other spices under the SpicesBoard, it has been difficult to provide concerted attention to and allocate sufficient resourcesfor the promotion and development of the chilli industry in the country. A separate ChilliBoard will help address these problems while also allowing the Spices Board to focus itsefforts on promoting other spices under its ambit.
The Bill, therefore, provides for the removal of chilli from the purview of the Spices
Board Act, 1986 and instead facilitate its promotion and development through theconstitution of a separate Chilli Board. It also provides for allied matters such as registrationof stakeholders, inspections and penalties, appeals, budget, audits and annual reports.Furthermore, it establishes a Chilli Promotion and Development Fund towards payment ofsalaries, allowances, etc. of the members, officers, and staff of the Board and meeting otheradministrative expenses of the Board. The Bill also makes the necessary provisions tofacilitate the smooth transition of chilli industry from the scope of the Spices Board to thenew Chilli Board. Through this Bill, the Indian chilli industry can achieve greater heights ofprosperity and reach its true economic potential whilst also promoting the overall welfareof all stakeholders involved.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; LA VU SRI KRISHNA DEVARAYALU
11 July, 2022
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 77
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for the constitution of the Chilli Board. It also provides
for appointment of the Chairperson and other members of the Board. Clause 4 provides forthe term of office of, salaries, remuneration or other allowance payable to, and the otherconditions of service of, the Chairperson and other members of the Board. Clause 7 providesfor the constitution of advisory or executive committees, appointment of officers andemployment of staff of the Board. Clause 15 provides for the constitution of a Fund calledthe Chill Promotion and Development Fund. The Bill, therefore, if enacted will involveexpenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a recurring expenditureof about rupees twenty crore per annum would involve from the Consolidated Fund ofIndia.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees twenty five crore is also likely to be
involved from the Consolidated Fund of India.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 25 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill.
Clause 26 of the Bill empowers the Board, with approval of the Central Government, to
make regulations for carrying out the purposes of the Bill.
As the matters in respect of which rules, regulations or orders may be made are
matters of procedure and administrative detail and it is not practicable to provide for themin the Bill itself. The delegation of legislative power is, therefore, of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 79
Short title,
extent andcommencement.BILL NO. 247 OF 2022
A Bill to provide protection against sexual harassment at workplace to people of all
genders including women, men and other genders and for the prevention andredressal of complaints of sexual harassment and for matters connected therewithor incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
CHAPTER I
P
RELIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be called the Sexual Harassment at Workplace ( Prevention,
Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "aggrieved person" means—Definitions.
(i) in relation to a workplace, a person, of any age whether employed or
not which includes employees and customer, client, visitor, patient or any suchperson, who allege to have been subjected to any act of sexual harassment bythe respondent;
(ii) in relation to dwelling place or house, a person of any age who is
employed in such a dwelling place or house;
(b) "appropriate Government" means-
(i) in relation to a workplace which is established, owned, controlled or
wholly or substantially financed by funds provided directly or indirectly-
(A) by the Central Government or the Union territory administration,
the Central Government;
(B) by the State Government, the State Government;
(ii) in relation to any workplace not covered under sub-clause ( i) and
falling within its territory, the State Government;
(c) "Chairperson" means the Chairperson of the Local Committee nominated
under sub-section ( 1) of section 7;
(d) "District Officer" means an officer notified under section 5;
(e) "domestic worker" means a person who is employed to do the household
work in any household for remuneration whether in cash or kind, either directly orthrough any agency on a temporary, permanent, part time or full time basis, but doesnot include any member of the family of the employer;
(f) "employee" means a person employed at a workplace for any work on
regular, temporary, ad hoc or daily wage basis, either directly or through an agent,including a contractor and gig workers with or, without the knowledge of the principalemployer, whether for remuneration or not, or working on a voluntary basis orotherwise, whether the terms of employment are express or implied and includes a co-worker, a contract worker, probationer, trainee, apprentice or called by any other such
name;
(g) "gig worker" means a person who performs work or participates in a work
arrangement and earns from such activities outside of traditional employer-employeerelationship;
(h) "employer" means-
(i) in relation to any department, organisation, undertaking, establishment,
enterprise, institution, office, branch or unit of the appropriate Government ora local authority, the head of that department, organisation, undertaking,establishment, enterprise, institution, office, branch or unit or such other officeras the appropriate Government or the local authority, as the case may be, mayby an order specify in this behalf;
(ii) in any workplace not covered under sub-clause ( i), any person
responsible for the management, supervision and control of the workplace.
Explanation .—For the purposes of this sub-clause "management"
includes the person or board or committee responsible for formulation andadministration of police for such organisation;
(iii) in relation to workplace covered under sub-clauses ( i) and ( ii), the
person discharging contractual obligations with respect to his or her employees;
(iv) in relation to a dwelling place or house, a person or a household who
employs or benefits from the employment of domestic worker, irrespective of
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 81
the number, time period or type of such worker employed, or the nature of the
employment or activities performed by the domestic worker;
(i) "Internal Committee" means an Internal Committee constituted under
section 4;
(j) "Local Committee" means the Local Committee constituted under section 6;
(k) "Member" means a Member of the Internal Committee or the Local
Committee, as the case may be;
(l) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(m) "Presiding Officer" means the Presiding Officer of the Internal Complaints
Committee nominated under sub-section ( 2) of section 4;
(n) "respondent' means a person against whom the aggrieved person has made
a complaint under section 9;
(o) "sexual harassment" includes any one or more of the following unwelcome
acts or behavior (whether directly or by implication) namely:-
(i) physical contact and advances; or
(ii) a demand or request for sexual favours; or
(iii) making sexually coloured remarks; or
(iv) showing pornography; or
(v) any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual
nature;
(p) "workplace" includes—
(i) any department, organisation, undertaking, establishment, enterprise,
institution, office, branch or unit which is established, owned, controlled orwholly or substantially financed by funds provided directly or indirectly by theappropriate Government or the local authority or a Government company or acorporation or a co-operative society;
(ii) any private sector organisation or a private venture, undertaking,
enterprise, institution, establishment, society, trust, non-governmentalorganisation, unit or service provider carrying on commercial, professional,vocational, educational, entertainmental, industrial, health services or financialactivities including production, supply, sale, distribution or service;
(iii) hospitals or nursing homes;
(iv) any sports institute, stadium, sports complex or competition or games
venue, whether residential or not used for training, sports or other activitiesrelating thereto;
(v) any place visited by the employee arising out of or during the course
of employment including transportation by the employer for undertaking suchjourney;
(vi) a dwelling place or a house;
(q) "unorganised sector" in relation to a workplace means an enterprise owned
by individuals or self-employed workers and engaged in the production or sale ofgoods or providing service of any kind whatsoever, and where the enterprise employsworkers, the number of such workers is less than ten.
3. (1) No person shall be subjected to sexual harassment at any workplace.
(2) The following circumstances, among other circumstances, if it occurs, or is present
in relation to or connected with any act or behavior of sexual harassment may amount tosexual harassment:-
(i) implied or explicit promise of preferential treatment in their employment; or
(ii) implied or explicit threat of detrimental treatment in their employ- ment; or
(iii) implied or explicit threat about their present or future employment status;
or
(iv) interference with their work or creating an intimidating or offensive or
hostile work environment for them; or
(v) humiliating treatment likely to affect their health or safety.
CHAPTER II
C
ONSTITUTION OF INTERNAL COMPLAINTS COMMITTEE
4. (1) Every employer of a workplace shall, by an order in writing, constitute a Committee
to be known as the "Internal Committee":
Provided that where the offices or administrative units of the workplace are located at
different places or divisional or sub-divisional level, the Internal Committee shall beconstituted at all administrative units or offices.
(2) The Internal Committees shall consist of the following members to be nominated
by the employer, namely:-
(a) a Presiding Officer who shall be a woman employed at a senior level at
workplace from amongst the employees:
Provided that in case a senior level woman employee is not available, the
Presiding Officer shall be nominated from other offices or administrative units of theworkplace referred to in sub-section ( 1):
Provided further that in case the other offices or administrative units of the
workplace do not have a senior level woman employee, the Presiding Officer shall benominated from any other workplace of the same employer or other department ororganisation;
(b) not less than two Members from amongst employees preferably committed
to the cause of prevention of sexual harassment or who have had experience in socialwork or have legal knowledge;
(c) one member from amongst non-governmental organisations or associations
committed to the cause of prevention of sexual harassment or a person familiar withthe issues relating to sexual harassment:
Provided that at least one-half of the total Members so nominated shall be women.
(3) The Presiding Officer and every Member of the Internal Committee shall hold
office for such period, not exceeding three years, from the date of their nomination as maybe specified by the employer.
(4) The Member appointed from amongst the non-governmental organisations or
associations shall be paid such fees or allowances for holding the proceedings of theInternal Committee, by the employer, as may be prescribed.
(5) Where the Presiding Officer or any Member of the Internal Committee,—
(a) contravenes the provisions of section 16; or
(b) has been convicted for an offence or an inquiry into an offence under any
law for the time being in force is pending against him; or
(c) has been found guilty in any disciplinary proceedings or a disciplinary
proceeding is pending against them; orPrevention ofsexualharassment.
Constitution
of InternalCommittee.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 83
(d) has so abused their position as to render their continuance in office prejudicial
to the public interest,
such Presiding Officer or Member, as the case may be, shall be removed from
the Internal Committee and the vacancy so created or any casual vacancy shall befilled by fresh nomination in accordance with the provisions of this section.
CHAPTER III
C
ONSTITUTION OF LOCAL COMMITTEE
5. (1) The appropriate Government may notify a District Magistrate or Additional
District Magistrate or the Collector or Deputy Collector as a District Officer for everyDistrict to exercise powers or discharge functions under this Act.
(2) The appropriate Government shall publish the notified list of District Officers on
the portal of the Labour Department of each State.
6. (1) Every District Officer shall constitute in the district concerned, a committee to
be known as the Local Committee to receive complaints of sexual harassment fromestablishments where the Internal Committee has not been constituted due to having lessthan ten workers or if the complaint is against the employer himself.
(2) The District Officer shall designate one nodal officer in every block, taluka and
tehsil in rural or tribal area and ward or municipality in the urban area, to receive complaintsand forward the same to the concerned Local Committee within a period of seven days.
(3) The jurisdiction of the Local Committee shall extend to the areas of the district
where it is constituted.
(4) The District Officer shall publish the details of the nodal officer on the portal of the
Labour Department of each State.
7. (1) The Local Committee shall consist of the following members to be nominated by
the District Officer, namely:-
(a) a Chairperson to be nominated from amongst the eminent women in the field
of social work and committed to the cause of women;
(b) one Member to be nominated from amongst the women working in block,
taluka or tehsil or ward or municipality in the district;
(c) two Members, of whom at least one shall be a woman, to be nominated from
amongst such non-governmental organisations or associations committed to thecause of women or a person familiar with the issues relating to sexual harassment,which may be prescribed:
Provided that at least one of the nominees should, preferably, have a background
in law or legal knowledge:
Provided further that at least one of the nominees shall be a woman
belonging to the Scheduled Castes or the Scheduled Tribes or the Other BackwardClasses or minority community notified by the Central Government, from time to time;
(d) the concerned officer dealing with the social welfare or women and child
development in the district, shall be a member ex officio.
(2) The Chairperson and every Member of the Local Committee shall hold office for
such period, not exceeding five years, from the date of their appointment as may be specifiedby the District Officer.
(3) Where the Chairperson or any Member of the Local Committee-
(a) contravenes the provisions of section 16; or
(b) has been convicted for an offence or an inquiry into an offence under any
law for the time being in force is pending against them; or
(c) has beenfound guilty in any disciplinary proceedings or a disciplinary
proceeding is pending against them; orNotificationof DistrictOfficer.
Constitution
andjurisdiction ofLocalCommittee.
Composition,
tenure andother termsand conditionof LocalCommittee.
(d) has so abused their position as to render their continuance in office prejudicial
to the public interest, such Chairperson or Member, as the case may be, shall beremoved from the Committee and the vacancy so created or any casual vacancy shallbe filled by fresh nomination in accordance with the provisions of this section.
(4) The Chairperson or Members of the Local Committee other than the Members
nominated under clauses ( b) and ( d) of sub-section ( 1) shall be entitled to such fees or
allowances for holding the proceedings of the Local Committee as may be prescribed.
8. (1) The Central Government may, after due appropriation made by Parliament by
law in this behalf, make to the State Government grants of such sums of money as theCentral Government may think fit, for being utilised for the payment of fees or allowancesreferred to in sub- section ( 4) of section 7.
(2) The State Government may set up an agency and transfer the grants made under
sub-section ( 1) to that agency.
(3) The agency shall pay to the District Officer, such sums as may be required for the
payment of fees or allowances referred to in sub-section ( 4) of section 7.
(4) The accounts of the agency referred to in sub-section ( 2) shall be maintained and
audited in such manner as may, in consultation with the Accountant General of the State, beprescribed and the person holding the custody of the accounts of the agency shall furnish,to the State Government, before such date, as may be prescribed, its audited copy ofaccounts together with auditors' report thereon.
CHAPTER IV
C
OMPLAINT
9. (1) Any aggrieved person may make, in writing, a complaint of sexual harassment at
workplace to the Internal Committee if so constituted, or the Local Committee, in case it is
not so constituted, within a period of three months from the date of incident and in case of
a series of incidents, within a period of three months from the date of last incident:
Provided that where such complaint cannot be made in writing, the Presiding Officer
or any Member of the Internal Committee or the Chairperson or any Member of the LocalCommittee, as the case may be, shall render all reasonable assistance to the aggrievedperson for making the complaint in writing:
Provided further that the Internal Committee or, as the case may be, the Local Committee
may, for the reasons to be recorded in writing, extend the time limit not exceeding threemonths, if it is satisfied that the circumstances were such which prevented the aggrievedperson from filing a complaint within the said period.
(2) Where the aggrieved person is unable to make a complaint on account of their
physical or mental incapacity or death or otherwise, their legal heir or such other person asmay be prescribed may make a complaint under this section.
(3) Where the respondent is not an employee in the workplace at which the incident
of sexual harassment took place, and if the aggrieved person so desires, the InternalCommittee if so constituted, or the Local Committee, in case it is not so constituted, shallinitiate action under the Indian Penal Code ( 45 of 1860) or any other law for the time being
in force, against the respondent.
10. (1) The Internal Committee or, as the case may be, the Local Committee, may,
before initiating an inquiry under section 11 and at the request of the aggrieved person takesteps to settle the matter between the aggrieved person and the respondent throughconciliation:
Provided that no monetary settlement shall be made as a basis of conciliation.(2) Where settlement has been arrived at under sub-section ( 1), the Internal Committee
or the Local Committee, as the case may be, shall record the settlement so arrived andGrants andaudit.
Complaint of
sexualharassment.
Conciliation.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 85
forward the same to the employer or the District Officer to take action as specified in the
recommendation.
(3) The Internal Committee or the Local Committee, as the case may be, shall provide
the copies of the settlement as recorded under sub-section ( 2) to the aggrieved person and
the respondent.
(4) Where a settlement is arrived at under sub-section ( 1), no further inquiry shall be
conducted by the Internal Committee or the Local Committee, as the case may be.
11. (1) Subject to the provisions of section 10, the Internal Committee or the Local
Committee, as the case may be, shall, where the respondent is an employee, proceed tomake inquiry into the complaint in accordance with the provisions of the service rulesapplicable to the respondent and where no such rules exist, in such manner as may beprescribed or in case of a domestic worker, the Local Committee shall, if prima facie caseexist, forward the complaint to the police, within a period of seven days for registering thecase under section 509 of the Indian Penal Code ( 45 of 1860), and any other relevant
provisions of the said Code where applicable:
Provided that where the aggrieved person informs the Internal Committee or the
Local Committee, as the case may be, that any term or condition of the settlement arrived atunder sub-section ( 2) of section 10 has not been complied with by the respondent, the
Internal Committee or the Local Committee shall proceed to make an inquiry into the complaintor, as the case may be, forward the complaint to the police:
Provided further that where both the parties are employees, the parties shall, during
the course of inquiry, be given an opportunity of being heard and a copy of the findingsshall be made available to both the parties enabling them to make representation against thefindings before the Committee.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in section 509 of the Indian Penal Code ( 45
of 1860), the court may, when the respondent is convicted of the offence, 15 order paymentof such sums as it may consider appropriate, to the aggrieved person by the respondent,having regard to the provisions of section 15.
(3) For the purpose of making an inquiry under sub-section ( 1), the Internal Committee
or the Local Committee, as the case may be, shall have the same powers as are vested in acivil court the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 ( 5 of 1908) when trying a suit in respect of the
following matters, namely:—
(a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him
on oath;
(b) requiring the discovery and production of documents; and
(c) any other matter which may be prescribed.
(4) The inquiry under sub-section ( 1) shall be completed within a period of ninety
days.
CHAPTER V
I
NQUIRY INTO COMPLAINT
12. (1) During the pendency of an inquiry on a written request made by the
aggrieved person, the Internal Committee or the local Committee, as the case may be, mayrecommend to the employer to—
(a) transfer the aggrieved person or the respondent to any other workplace; or
(b) grant leave to the aggrieved person up to a period of three months; or
(c) grant such other relief to the aggrieved person as may be prescribed.
(2) The leave granted to the aggrieved person under this section shall be in addition
to the leave they would be otherwise entitled.Inquiry intocomplaint.
Action during
pendency ofinquiry.
(3) On the recommendation of the Internal Committee or the Local Committee, as the
case may be, under sub-section ( 1), the employer shall implement the recommendations
made under sub-section ( 1) and send the report of such implementation to the Internal
Committee or the Local Committee, as the case may be.
13. (1) On the completion of an inquiry under this Act, the Internal Committee or the
Local Committee, as the case may be, shall provide a report of its findings to the employer,or as the case may be, the District Officer within a period of ten days from the date ofcompletion of the inquiry and such report be made available to the concerned parties.
(2) Where the Internal Committee or the Local Committee, as the case may be, arrives
at the conclusion that the allegation against the respondent has not been proved, it shallrecommend to the employer and the District Officer that no action is required to be taken inthe matter.
(3) Where the Internal Committee or the Local Committee, as the case may be, arrives
at the conclusion that the allegation against the respondent has been proved, it shallrecommend to the employer or the District Officer, as the case may be—
(i) to take action for sexual harassment as a misconduct in accordance with the
provisions of the service rules applicable to the respondent or where no such servicerules have been made, in such manner as may be prescribed; and
(ii) to deduct, notwithstanding anything in the service rules applicable to the
respondent, from the salary or wages of the respondent such sum as it may considerappropriate to be paid to the aggrieved person or to their legal heirs, as it may determine,in accordance with the provisions of section 15:
Provided that in case the employer is unable to make such deduction from the
salary of the respondent due to absence from duty or cessation of employment it maydirect to the respondent to pay such sum to the aggrieved person:
Provided further that in case the respondent fails to pay the sum referred to in
clause ( ii), the Internal Committee or as, the case may be, the Local Committee may
forward the order for recovery of the sum as an arrear of land revenue to the concernedDistrict Officer.
(4) The employer or the District Officer shall act upon the recommendation within
sixty days of its receipt by him.
14. (1) Where the Internal Committee or the Local Committee, as the case may be,
arrives at a conclusion that the allegation against the respondent is malicious or the aggrievedperson or any other person making the complaint has made the complaint knowing it to befalse or the aggrieved person or any other person making the complaint has produced anyforged or misleading document, it may recommend to the employer or the District Officer, asthe case may be, to take action against the said person or the person who has made thecomplaint under sub-section ( 1) or sub-section ( 2) of section 9, as the case may be, in
accordance with the provisions of the service rules applicable to her or him or where nosuch service rules exist, in such manner as may be prescribed:
Provided that a mere inability to substantiate a complaint or provide adequate proof
need not attract action against the complainant under this section:
Provided further that the malicious intent on part of the complainant shall be established
after an inquiry in accordance with the procedure prescribed, before any action isrecommended.
(2) Where the Internal Committee or the Local Committee, as the case may be, arrives
at a conclusion that during the inquiry any witness has given false evidence or producedany forged or misleading document, it may recommend to the employer of the witness or theDistrict Officer, as the case may be, to take action in accordance with the provisions of theInquiry report.
Punishment
for false ormaliciouscomplaint andfalse evidence.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 87
service rules applicable to the said witness or where no such service rules exist, in such
manner as may be prescribed.
15. For the purpose of determining the sums to be paid to the aggrieved person under
clause ( ii) of sub-section ( 3) of section 13, the Internal Committee or the Local Committee,
as the case may be, shall have regard to-
(a) the mental trauma, pain, suffering and emotional distress caused to the
aggrieved person;
(b) the loss in the career opportunity due to the incident of sexual harassment;
(c) medical expenses incurred by the victim for physical or psychiatric treatment;
(d) the income and financial status of the respondent; and
(e) feasibility of such payment in lump sum or in instalments.
16. Notwithstanding anything contained in the Right to Information Act, 2005 ( 22 of
2005), the contents of the complaint made under section 9, the identity and addresses ofthe aggrieved person, respondent and witnesses, any information relating to conciliationand inquiry proceedings, recommendations of the Internal Committee or the Local Committee,as the case may be, and the action taken by the employer or the District Officer under theprovisions of this Act shall not be published, communicated or made known to the public,press and media in any manner:
Provided that information may be disseminated regarding the justice secured to any
victim of sexual harassment under this Act without disclosing the name, address, identity orany other particulars calculated to lead to the identification of the aggrieved person andwitnesses.
17. Where any person entrusted with the duty to handle or deal with the complaint,
inquiry or any recommendations or action to be taken under the provisions of this Act,contravenes the provisions of section 16, the person shall be liable for penalty in accordancewith the provisions of the service rules applicable to the said person or where no suchservice rules exist, in such manner as may be prescribed.
18. (1) Any person aggrieved from the recommendations made under sub-section
(2) of section 13 or under clause ( i) or clause ( ii) of sub-section ( 3) of section 13 or sub-
section ( 1) or sub-section ( 2) of section 14 or section 17 or non-implementation of such
recommendations may prefer an appeal to the court or tribunal in accordance with theprovisions of the service rules applicable to the said person or where no such service rulesexist then, without prejudice to provisions contained in any other law for the time being inforce, the person aggrieved may prefer an appeal in such manner as may be prescribed.
(2) The appropriate Government shall maintain an online repository on each State's
Labour Department website where details of the appellate authority to whom appeal may bepreferred under the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 shall be published.
(3) The appeal under sub-section ( 1) shall be preferred within a period of ninety days
of the recommendations.
CHAPTER VI
D
UTIES OF EMPLOYER
19. Every employer shall—
(a) provide a safe working environment at the workplace which shall include
safety from the persons coming into contact at the workplace;
(b) display at any conspicuous place in the workplace, the penal consequences
of sexual harassments; and the order constituting, the Internal Committee under sub-Determinationofcompensation.
Prohibition of
publication ormaking knowncontents ofcomplaint andinquiryproceedings.
Penalty for
publication ormakingknowncontents ofcomplaint andinquiryproceedings.
Appeal.
Duties of
employer.
section ( 1) of section 4;
(c) organise workshops and awareness programmes at least once every calendar
year, by a legal professional having experience/practice in the relevant laws or anyprofessional/group certified in conducting trainings pertaining to prevention of sexualharassment, for sensitising the employees with the provisions of the Act and trainingprogrammes for the members of the Internal Committee to redress complaints incompliance with the provisions of the Act;
(d) file Annual Compliance Reports along with the details of the training which
shall include details of the trainer who facilitated, number of employees and InternalCommittee members who attended the training sessions and such other information;
(e) provide necessary facilities to the Internal Committee or the Local Committee,
as the case may be, for dealing with the complaint and conducting an inquiry;
(f) assist in securing the attendance of respondent and witnesses before the
Internal Committee or the Local Committee, as the case may be;
(g) make available such information to the Internal Committee or the Local
Committee, as the case be, as it may require having regard to the complaint madeunder sub-section ( 1) of section 9;
(h) provide assistance to the person if he/she/they so chooses to file a complaint
in relation to the offence under the Indian Penal Code ( 45 of 1860) or any other law for
the time being in force;
(i) treat sexual harassment as a misconduct under the service rules and initiate
action for such misconduct; and
(j) monitor the timely submission of reports by the Internal Committee.
CHAPTER VII
D
UTIES AND POWERS OF DISTRICT OFFICER
20. The District Officer shall,—
(a) monitor the timely submission of report furnished by the Local Committee;
and
(b) take such measures as may be necessary for engaging non-governmental
organisations for creation of awareness on sexual harassment.
CHAPTER VIII
MISCELLANEOUS
21. (1) The Internal Committee or the Local Committee, as the case may be, shall in
each calendar year prepare, in such form and at such time as may be prescribed, an annualreport and submit the same to the employer and the District Officer.
(2) The District Officer shall forward a brief report on the annual reports received
under sub-section ( 1) to the State Government.
22. The employer shall include in its report the number of cases filed, if any, and their
disposal under this Act in the annual report of his organisation or where no such report isrequired to be prepared, intimate such number of cases, if any, to the District Officer.
23. The appropriate Government shall monitor the implementation of this Act and
maintain date on the number of cases filed and disposed of in respect of all cases of sexualharassment at workplace.Duties andpowers ofDistrictOfficer.
Committee to
submit annualreport.
Employer to
includeinformation inannual report.
Appropriate
Governmentto monitorimplementationand maintaindata..
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 89
24. The appropriate Government may, subject to the availability of financial and other
resources,—
(a) develop relevant information, education, communication and training
materials, and organise awareness programmes, to advance the understanding of thepublic of the provisions of this Act providing for protection of people against sexualharassment at workplace; and
(b) formulate orientation and training programmes for the members of the Local
Committee.
25. (1) The appropriate Government, on being satisfied that it is necessary in the
public interest or in the interest of employees at a workplace to do so, by order in writing,—
(a) call upon any employer or District Officer to furnish in writing such
information relating to sexual harassment as it may require; and
(b) authorise any officer to make inspection of the records and work- place in
relation to sexual harassment, who shall submit a report of such inspection to it withinsuch period as may be specified in the order.
(2) Every employer and District Officer shall produce on demand before the officer
making the inspection all information, records and other documents in his custody havinga bearing on the subject matter of such inspection.
26. (1) Where the employer fails to—
(a) constitute an Internal Committee under sub-section ( 1) of section 4;
(b) take action under sections 13, 14 and 22; and
(c) contravenes or attempts to contravene or abets contravention of other
provisions of this Act or any rules made thereunder, the employer shall be punishablewith fine which may be equivalent to 2% of the annual global turnover of the entityand could go upto 4% of the annual global turnover or fifty thousand rupees,whichever is higher.
(2) If any employer, after having been previously convicted of an offence punishable
under this Act subsequently commits and is convicted of the same offence, the said employershall be liable to—
(i) twice the punishment, which might have been imposed on a first
conviction, subject to the punishment being maximum provided for the sameoffence:
Provided that in case a higher punishment is prescribed under any other
law for the time being in force, for the offence for which the accused is beingprosecuted, the court shall take due cognizance of the same while awarding thepunishment;
(ii) cancellation, of their licence or withdrawal, or non-renewal, or approval,
or cancellation of the registration, as the case may be, by the Government orlocal authority required for carrying on their business or activity.
27. (1) No court shall take cognizance of any offence punishable under this Act or
any rules made thereunder, save on a complaint made by the aggrieved person authorisedby the Internal Committee or Local Committee in this behalf.
(2) No court inferior to that of a Metropolitan Magistrate or a Judicial Magistrate of
the first class shall try any offence punishable under this Act.
(3) Every offence under this Act shall be non-cognizable.
28. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the provisions of this Act.
(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such
rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:—AppropriateGovernmentto takemeasures topublicise theAct.
Power to call
forinformationand inspectionof records.
Cognizance of
offence bycourts.
Power of
appropriateGovernmentto make rules.Penalty for
non-compliancewithprovisions ofAct.
(a) the fees or allowances to be paid to the Members under sub- section ( 4)
of section 4;
(b) nomination of members under clause ( c) of sub-section ( 1) of section 7;
(c) the fees or allowances to be paid to the Chairperson, and Members under
sub-section ( 4) of section 7;
(d) the person who may make complaint under sub-section ( 2) of section 9;
(e) the manner of inquiry under sub-section ( 1) of section 11;
(f) the powers for making an inquiry under clause ( c) of sub-section ( 2) of
section 11;
(g) the relief to be recommended under clause ( c) of sub-section ( 1) of section 12;
(h) the manner of action to be taken under clause ( i) of sub-section ( 3) of
section 13;
(i) the manner of action to be taken under sub-sections ( 1) and ( 2) of
section 14;
(j) the manner of action to be taken under section 17;
(k) the manner of appeal under sub-section ( 1) of section 18;
(l) the manner of organising workshops, awareness programmes for sensitising
the employees and orientation programmes for the members of the Internal Committee
under clause ( c) of section 19; and
(m) the form and time for preparation of annual report by Internal Committee
and the Local Committee under sub-section ( 1) of section 21.
(3) Every rule made by the Central Government under this Act shall be laid as soon as
may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total
period of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive
sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or the
successive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule orboth Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect
only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such
modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously
done under that rule.
(4) Any rule made under sub-section ( 4) of section 8 by the State Government shall be
laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each House of 5 the State Legislature where
it consists of two Houses, or where such Legislature consists of one House, before that
House.
29.
(1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions, not
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as may appear to it to be necessary for removingthe difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made under this section after the expiry of a
period of two years from the commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is
made, before each House of Parliament.
30. (1) The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace ( Prevention, Prohibition and
Redressal) Act, 2013 [Act No. 14 of 2013] shall stand repealed on and from the dates the
notification referred to in sub-section ( 2) of section 1 is issued.
(2) Notwithstanding such repeal, anything done or any action taken under the Act so
repealed under sub-section (1), shall be deemed to have been done or taken under the
corresponding provisions of this Act.Power toremovedifficulties.
Repeal and
Savings.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 91
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Sexual harassment at a workplace is considered to violate a person's fundamental
right to equality, life and liberty. It creates an insecure and hostile work environment for
employees, thereby adversely affecting their social and economic empowerment and thegoal of inclusive growth.
The Supreme Court of India in the case of Vishaka vs. State of Rajasthan, (1997) 7 SCC
323, affirmed that sexual harassment at workplace is a form of discrimination against women
and recognised that it violates the constitutional right to equality and provided guidelines
to address this issue pending the enactment of a suitable legislation. Based on these
guidelines, a legislation to provide safe, secure and enabling environment to every woman,
irrespective of her age or employment status was enacted by way of the Sexual Harassmentof Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013.
The Constitution of India embodies the concept of equality under articles 14 and 15
and prohibits discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, or place of birth or any
of them. Article 19(1)(g) gives the fundamental right to all citizens to practise any profession,
or to carry on any occupation, trade, or business. This right pre-supposes the availability of
an enabling environment for employees of all genders, which is egalitarian, safe, and secure
in every aspect. Article 21, which relates to the right to life and personal liberty, includes the
right to live with dignity, hence all employees irrespective of their gender must be treated
with due respect, decency, and dignity at the workplace.
The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 has provided formal and
legal recognition to the transgender community. Hence, it has become imperative to ensurelegislation on prevention of sexual harassment cuts across genders and is more inclusive.
According to a study conducted by the National Human Rights Commission in 2018, about
6% of transgenders are employed in private sectors and NGOs. Besides this, a significant
number of transgenders work in the unorganized sector.
Hence, to ensure an enabling working environment which safeguards and protects
every individual in the workplace without any discrimination based on their gender, in both
organised and unorganised sectors against all kinds of harassment, the proposed legislationcontains provisions to protect every individual, irrespective of their gender, rank or position
from any act of sexual harassment in workplace.
It is thus, proposed to amend this comprehensive legislation to make it more inclusive
in nature by not limiting the scope of this legislation only to women, and to validate that the
possibility of such sexual harassment incidents occurs even amongst other genders who
are not included within the ambit of this legislation and ensure to provide due protection
and safeguard their fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution of India.
The Bill seeks to achieve the above objectives.
N
EW DELHI; LA VU SRI KRISHNA DEVARAYALU
November 21, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Sub-clause (1) of clause 6 of the Bill empower every District Officer to constitute a
Local Committee in the District concerned and sub-clause (2) provides for additional Local
Committees at Block, Taluk or Tehsil in rural or tribal areas and ward or municipality in urban
area, wherever required. Sub-clause (4) of clause 7 provides for payment of fees or allowances
to the Chairperson and Members of the Local Committee for conducting the proceedings of
the Committee.
2. Sub-clause (1) of clause 8 of the Bill provides that the Central Government may,
after due appropriation made by Parliament, by law in this behalf, make to the State
Government grant of such sum of money as the Central Government may think fit for beingutilised for the payment of fees and allowances to the Chairperson and Members of the
Local Committee.
3. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund
of India. However, it is not possible at present to give the estimates of recurring expenditure
and non-recurring expenditure, which would be involved out of the Consolidated Fund of
India at this stage.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 93
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Sub-clause ( 1) of clause 28 of the Bill provides that the Central Government may, by
notification in the Official Gazette, make rules for carrying out the provisions of the proposed
legislation. Sub-clause ( 2) specifies the matters in respect of which such rules may be made.
These matters, inter alia, include -
(a) the fees or allowances to be paid to the Presiding Officer and Members
under sub-clause ( 4) of clause 4;
(b) the fees or allowances to be paid to the Chairperson, and Members under
sub-clause ( 4) of clause 7;
(c) the person who may make complaint under sub-clause ( 2) of clause 9;
(d) the manner of enquiry under sub-clause ( 1) of clause 11;
(e) the powers for making enquiry under item ( c) of sub-clause ( 2) of clause 11;
(f) the relief to be recommended under item ( c) of sub-clause ( 1) of clause 12;
(g) the manner of action to be taken under item ( i) of sub-clause ( 3) of clause 13;
(h) the manner of action to be taken under sub-clauses ( 1) and ( 2) of clause 14;
(i) the manner of action to be taken under clause 17;
(j) the manner of appeal under sub-clause ( 1) of clause 18; and
(k) the form and time for preparation of annual report by Internal Committee and
the Local Committee under sub-clause ( 1) of clause 21.
2. Sub-clause ( 3) of clause 28 provides that every rule made by the Central Government
shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament. Sub-clause
(4) of that clause provides that any rule made by the State Government shall be laid before
each House of the State Legislature where it consists of two Houses, or where such Legislature
consists of one House, before that House.
3. The matters in respect of which the Central Government may make rules are matters
of procedure and administrative detail and it is not practicable to provide for them in the Bill
itself. The delegation of legislative power is, therefore, of a normal character.
BILL NO. 227 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:-
1.(1) This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Governmentb may, by notification
in the official Gazette, appoint.
2.In article 58 of the Constitution, in clause (2), for the words "local or other authority'',
the words "local or other authority or institution of self-government'' shall be substituted.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of article 58.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 95
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments passed by Parliament in 1992 introduced
local self governance throughout the territory of India. The Acts came into force as theConstitution (73rd Amendment) Act, 1992 on April 24, 1993 and the Constitution (74thAmendment) Act, 1992 on June 1, 1993.
These amendments added two new parts to the Constitution, namely,-
•73rd Amendment added Part IX titled "The Panchayats" adding Articles 243 to
243 (O) dealing with Panchayats; and
•74th Amendment added Part IXA titled "The Municipalities" adding Articles 243(P)
to 243 (ZG) dealing with Municipality.
Articles 243(G) and 243(W) prescribe the powers, authorities and responsibilities etc.
of Panchayats and Municipalities respectively. The XI and XII schedule of the Constitutiondefine the matters in respect of which schemes for economic development and social justiceare to be implemented by Panchayats with regards to Article 243(G) and by Municipalitieswith regards to Article 243(W) respectively. The Constitution, hence, deals with Panchayatsand Municipalities in great detail.
The 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments substantially changed the Constitu-
tion of India and the manner in which representation of the citizens, governance anddevolution of powers in the nation was to be conducted.
However, while monumental in themselves, the amendments failed to change the
qualifications for the election of the President of the Union of India.
Article 58(2) states the ineligibility for election as President of India by cause of
holding an Office of Profit and the above two chapters were introduced without reflectingwithin the article the change in the makeup of the State as undertaken by the institution ofthe third level of governance under Panchayats and Municipalities by these amendments.
The inclusion of Panchayats and Municipalities as separate and distinct bodies in the
Constitution as established by the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments requires theirinclusion as a disqualification under Office of Profit for the election to the nation'sPresidency. This is because the highest holder of office in the nation should not be influencedin any manner by any authority in the discharge of his/her duties.
Now in view of the above mentioned proposed amendment the Panchayats and
Municipalities will also be enshrined within the executive offices of the State as offices ofprofit for the Presidency of the nation as distinct bodies rather than their present inclusionunder 'any local or other authority'.
Hence it has become expedient to introduce the words "or Institution of self-
government''within Article 58(2) of the Constitution of India.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; P.P. CHAUDHARY
23 November , 2022.
BILL NO. 294 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2022.
2.In the Seventh Schedule to Constitution,—
(i) in List II - State list, entry 17 shall be omitted; and(ii) in List III - Concurrent List, after entry 32, the following entry shall be
inserted, namely:—
"32A. Water, that is to say, water supplies, irrigation and canals, drainage
and embankments, water storage and water power subject to the provisions ofentry 56 of list I.".Short title.
Amendment
of the SeventhSchedule.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 97
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Life is impossible without water. All living beings including human, animals and plants
need water for their survival. Therefore, it is desirable that requisite amount of water isavailable without any hindrance for drinking and irrigation.
Around ninety-seven per cent of the water on the Earth is salty water and only three
per cent is fresh water; slightly over two-thirds of this fresh water is frozen in the form ofglaciers and polar ice caps. The remaining unfrozen fresh water is found mainly as groundwater.
Ground water is a renewable resource, yet the world's supply of ground water is
steadily decreasing with the depletion of water table, most prominently in Asia and NorthAmerica. It is still not clear that how much natural renewal balance of fresh water is availableor whether ecosystem will be threatened for want of fresh water in near future. The frame-work for allocating water resources to water users where such a framework exists is known aswater rights.
At present, water is a State subject and is considered as primary responsibility of the
State Governments.
The Bill seeks to amend that Seventh Schedule to the Constitution with a view to
transfer entry 17 of List II - State List pertaining to 'Water', to List III-Concurrent List so thatthe Parliament and the Central Government can also play their due role for conservation andsustainable use of water to meet the growing needs of the society.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; P.P. CHAUDHARY
November 23, 2022.
BILL NO. 237 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2022.
2. In the Seventh Schedule to Constitution,—
(i) in List II - State List, entry 14 shall be omitted; and
(ii) in List III - Concurrent List, after entry 17B, the following entry shall be
inserted, namely:—
"17C. Agriculture, including agricultural education and research,
protection against pests and prevention of plant diseases.".Short title.
Amendment
of the SeventhSchedule.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 99
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Agriculture has got pivotal role in Indian economy. Though the share of agriculture
in the national income is declining, it has a substantial share in Gross Domestic Productionof the country. Agriculture is the mainstay of livelihood in rural areas. As nearly as65 percent. to 70 per cent. of our total population is engaged in agriculture related activities.Agriculture sector can be revitalized by concerted efforts to be made by the State Governmentas well as the Union Govenment. However, the role of the Union Government is negligible inthe development of agriculture sector for the reason that agriculture has been listed in theState List and is considered as primary responsibility of the State Governments.
The Bill seeks to amend the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution with a view to
transfer entry 14 of List II-State List pertaining to 'Agriculture', to List III-Concurrent List sothat the Parliament and Central Government can also play their due role for development ofagriculture.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; P.P. CHAUDHARY
November 23, 2022.
BILL NO. 127 OF 2021
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-second Year of the Republic of lndia as
follows:-
1. (1)This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2021.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution, in List Ill- Concurrent List, after entry
17B, the following entry shall be inserted, namely:—
"l7C. Environmental protection and matters relating to climate change.".Short title and
commencement.
Amendment
of the SeventhSchedule.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 101
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Constitution of India recognises the importance of environmental protection as a
Directive Principle of State Policy under article 48A and also under the Twelfth Schedule. TheConstitution is cognizant of environmental challenges being faced by the world and hasentries in the Seventh Schedule which deal with certain aspects of environmental protectionsuch as forests and protection of animals and birds. However, there is an increase in urgencyof environmental protection in light of the challenges posed by climate change. There is nospecific entry expressly for environmental protection and climate change in the SeventhSchedule. As a result, in the past, legislative competence for enacting some of the majorenvironmental laws had to be derived from extraordinary provision of article 252 of theConstitution. Thus, there is a need for, specific entry relating, to environmental protectionaria climate change. This is also in line with the recommendations of the Tiwari Committee setup by the Central Government which gave its report in 1980.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to amend the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution with a
view to add an entry "Environmental protection and matters relating to climate change" inList-III (Concurrent List) so that Central Government could play its due role in the field ofenvironment and climate change.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; JAGDAMBIKA PAL
March 9, 2021.
BILL NO. 119 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Motor V ehicles Act, 1988.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Motor Vehicles (Amendment), 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 2 of the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988 (hereinafter referred to as the principal
Act),—
(a) clause (1B) shall be remembered clause as (IC) and before the clause (IC) as
so remembered, the following clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(1B) "aggressive driving behaviour" means unsafe driving performed
deliberately with ill intent or disregard for safety including the following drivingbehaviours:
(i) tailgating;
(ii) speeding;
(iii) erratic lane changes;
(iv) honking;
(v) cutting off other drivers;
(vi) failing to signal;
(vii) running on red lights;Short title and
commencement.
Definitions. 59 of 1988.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 103
(viii) racing;
(ix) failure to obey traffic lights;
(x) shouting, yelling, or taking frustrations out on other drivers;
(xi) bumping other vehicle on purpose;
(xii) getting out of the vehicle or confronting other drivers; and
(xiii) careless, negligent driving, not follow traffic laws, endangering
other drivers, pedestrians and properties;''; and
(b) after clause (37), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:-
"(37A) "road rage" means aggressive driving behaviour stemming from a
driver's uncontrolled anger at the actions of another motorist including hittingvehicle running vehicles off the road pulling over, getting out and engaging in aphysical confrontation; inciting passenger(s) to fight the other driver; usingany weapon to inflict harm on another driver or vehicle and making a rude handgesture behind the wheel.
3. After Chapter VIII of the principal Act, the following Chapter and sections thereunder
shall be inserted namely:—
CHAPTER VIII A
R
OAD RAGE
138A. Whoever, intentionally hits his vehicle with which of any other person or
runs behind someone off the road or pulls over, gets out and engages in a physicalconfrontation or incites his passenger(s) to fight the other driver or uses any sort ofweapon to inflict harm on another driver or vehicle, or makes a rude hand gesturebehind the wheel, would be said to commit an offence of act of road rage.
138B. Whoever commits the offence of road rage shall be punished with rigorous
imprisonment for a term of two months, and shall also be liable to a fine which shall notbe less than rupees five thousand.
138C. Whoever commits an offence punishable under sections 182, 183, 184,
185, 186, 190, 192, 192A, 194, 196, 197 and 201 for the first time or drives a motor vehiclein a manner which is dangerous to the public including aggressive driving behaviours,and thereafter involve in the act of road rage, shall be said to have committed anoffence of aggravated act of road rage.
138D. Whoever commits the offence of aggravated act of road rage shall be
punished for the first offence with the punishment mentioned under sub-section 182,183, 184, 185, 186, 190, 192, 192A, 194, 196, 197 and 201 and for subsequent offenceswith imprisonment for a term of six months, and shall also be liable to a fine which shallnot be less than rupees ten thousand.
138E. Whoever contravenes any provision of this Act or of any rule, regulation
or notification made thereunder shall, if no penalty is provided for the offence bepunishable for the first offence with fine which may extend to rupees one thousandand for any second or subsequent offence with fine which may extend to rupees twothousand.
138F. Whoever disobeys any direction lawfully given by any person or authority
empowered under the Act to give such direction, or obstructs any person or authorityin the discharge of any functions which such person or authority is required orempowered under this Act to discharge, shall, if no other penalty is provided for theoffence shall be punishable with fine which shall not be less than rupees two thousand.Insertion ofnew ChapterVIIIA.
Offence of
Road Rage.
Punishment
for theoffence ofroad rage.
Aggravated
act of RoadRage.
Punishment
for theaggravated actof road rage.
General
provision forpunishment ofoffences.
Punishment for
disobedience oforders,obstruction andrefusal ofinformation.
138G. The Central Government and every State Government shall take all measures to
ensure that,—
(1) the provisions of this Chapter are given wide publicity through media including the
television, radio and the print media at regular intervals to make the general public aware ofthe provisions of this Chapter; and
(2) the officers of the Central Government and the State Governments and other
concerned persons (including the police officers) are imparted periodic training on the mattersrelating to the implementation of the provisions of this Chapter.
138H. Where any person is convicted of any offence punishable under this Act, it shall
be competent for the Court convicting such offender to cause the name and place of residenceof such person to be published by the police in the local newspaper where such offence hadtaken place, together with the fact that such offender had been convicted of the offenceunder this Act and such other particulars as the Court may deem fit and appropriate, to beallowed to be published. Also, provided that no such publication shall be made until theappeal, if any, filed against such order is finally disposed of.
138I. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by
law in this behalf, provide requisite funds for carrying out the purposes of this Chapter.
4. In section 202 of the principal Act, in sub-section ( 1), for the words and figures
"under section 184", the words and figures "under section 138C or section 184" shall besubstituted.
5. In section 207 of the principal Act, in sub-section ( 1), for the words and figures
"section 39", the words and figures "section 39 or section 138A or section 138C or section138E" shall be substituted.Publicawarenessabout the roadrage.
Publication of
fact ofconviction.
Provision of
Funds byCentralGovernment.
Amendment
of section207.Amendment
of section202.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 105
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
India is ranked second in the world in terms of road links. At the same time, the number
of road mishaps, road accidents, and road injury in India is also one of the highest in theworld. Aggressive and negligent driving has been a big issue on our streets for some time,and it appears to just be deteriorating and getting worse. With an increasing number ofyoung people getting into the driver's seat, most mishaps and accidents are caused becauseof an ineffective and reckless driving pattern. Sensation chasing, driving in anger, retaliation,weariness, and stress are some of the components which contribute to perilous driving andpeople get into circumstances that can be effortlessly and easily avoided. Many lives havebeen lost as a result of growing intolerance among road users, and this unwelcome hatredthat people carry on the road is unquestionably a dreadful flaw that leads to untimely deathsin great numbers. Incidents of shouting, yelling, rude behaviour, and even violence areaccounted for often on our roads to where it has procured its name: road rage. The instancesof road rage are on the rise and the numbers are increasing every year.
Road rage is aggressive or angry behaviour exhibited by motorists. These behaviours
include rude and verbal insults, physical threats or dangerous driving methods targeted atother drivers, pedestrians or cyclists in an effort to intimidate or release frustration. Roadrage can lead to alterations, damage to property, assaults and collisions that result in seriousphysical injuries or even death. Strategies include longhorn honks, swerving, tailgating,brake checking and attempting to fight. These practices incorporate impolite and verbal put-downs, actual dangers, or risky driving techniques designated toward another driver or non-drivers with an end goal to scare, terrify or release irritation and dissatisfaction. Such behaviourpatterns can prompt quarrels can cause harm to property and person, whose outcome canresult in serious physical and mental injuries or even death or demise. In a simple sense,when a driver enacts or commits some moving traffic offences to jeopardize the life ofanother person or property or attack with an engine vehicle or other risky weapon by thedriver of one engine vehicle on the driver of another engine vehicle can be termed as roadrage. Road rage is characterized as the result of forceful and aggressive driving that emergesfrom conflicts with different drivers. Road rage is a criminal accusation in which the driver isat the fault. Road rage is an extraordinary sight and it normally brings about a great deal ofenmity and sometimes results in mishaps and wounds.
Acts of Road rage has increased in general. It is time that we should come up and
together find the solution for this uncontrolled behaviour. As road rage is not defined underMotor Vehicles Act, there are no explicit provisions making road range a punishable offence.In conclusion, India needs this legislation to criminalise the act of road rage.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to amend the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 with a view to include
'road rage' as an offence punishable under the parent Act.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; JAGDAMBIKA PAL
19 February , 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill vide proposed section 138G provides for the Central Government
and State Government to give wide publicity to the provision regarding road rage. It alsovide proposed section 138I provides for the Central Government to provide adequate funds
for carrying out the purposes of the Bill. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involveexpenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a sum of rupeesfifty crore would be involved as a recurring expenditure per annum.
No non-recurring expenditure is likely to be incurred.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 107
BILL NO. 4 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Right to Information Act, 2005.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Right to Information (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2)It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2.In section 2 of the Right to Information Act, 2005 (hereinafter referred to as the
principal Act), in clause ( f), for the words ''papers'', the words ''papers, photos'' shall be
substituted.
3.In section 6 of the principal Act, for sub-section (2) , the following sub-section shall
be substituted, namely:—
"(2) An applicant making request for obtaining information shall give reason for
requesting the information including those details that may be necessary for contactinghim.".
4.In section 7 of the principal Act, in sub-section ( 2), the following proviso shall be
inserted, namely:
''Provided that if the Central Public Information Officers or State Public Information
Officers, as the case may be, provide the information after the period of thirty days ofthe receipt of the request, the Central Public Information Officers or State PublicInformation Officers, as the case may be, shall furnish the reasons in writing for suchdelay.''.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 2.
Amendment
of section 7.Amendment
of section 6.22 of 2005.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Right to Information Act, 2005 was enacted to provide transparency in the
functioning of public authority. One of the major objective of the act was also ensuringaccountability of the people working in those public institutions. The act seeks to provideaccess to information, contain corruption and strengthen ethos of democracy. To achieve allthese objectives, a regular upgradation of the rules and regulations become necessary.There has been instances where information seekers have harassed people and enjoyedadvantage through undue influence. Hon'ble Justice S.H. Kapadia, Former Chief Justice ofIndia has also pointed once that ''The Right to Information Act is a good law, but it is beingabused''. Hence, it becomes important to ensure that whether the applicants who are seekinginformation are using for rightful purpose or not.
The Principal Act provides for the time period to give information. But it does not have
any provision in case of non-compliance by the public information commission. As per thedata, a total of 3.14 lakh complaints or appeals are pending with 26 information commissionacross India in October 2022. This can be solved by compelling the information commissionto dispose those complaints. To make commission more accountable, it is important to putsome burden on them. Thus, to fill this gap in the principal act, the present amendment isbeing proposed.
With the advancement of new technology, photos have become one of the major
sources of information. A lot of information can be gathered through photo itself. Therefore,it becomes important to include photos in the meaning of ''information''. To fulfil all theseobjectives, it has become important to bring amendment in the Right to Information Act,2005.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; JAGDAMBIKA PAL
November 22, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 109
BILL NO. 39 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and the Code of Criminal Procedure,
1973.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be called the Criminal Laws ( Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
CHAPTER II
AMENDMENTS TO THE INDIAN PENAL CODE, 1860
2. In Chapter II of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (hereinafter in this Chapter referred to as
the Penal Code), after section 52A, the following section shall be inserted, namely:—
"52 B. The words "Social boycott" refer to any action or gesture, oral or written,
by a member of a community or a caste panchayat, such as those mentioned, but notrestricted to, in the descriptions hereinafter following, namely:
First .—The prevention or obstruction, or attempt to prevent or obstruct any
person from partaking or observing any social, religious or traditional custom or usageor ceremony or from taking part in any social, religious or community functions,procession, assembly or meeting;Short title andcommencement.
Social boycott.Insertion of
new section52B.45 of 1860.
Second .—The refusal or denial or attempt to refuse or deny any person the right
to perform marriage, funeral or any other religious or customary rites and ceremoniesas the persons of his community ordinarily perform;
Third. —The act or attempt to commit or cause social ostracism on any grounds;
Fourth .—The refusal or purposeful exclusion of any person from engagingin
the society by hampering social or commercial ties of such person with his community,thereby affecting his right to life and personal liberty;
Fifth .—The prevention or obstruction, or attempt to prevent or obstruct any
person from accessing any place ordinarily used or intended to be used for any religious,charitable or public purpose that is either established or maintained wholly or partly bythe person's own community, for and on behalf of the community using the fundscontributed by such community and is normally available for use to or by any otherperson of his community;
Sixth .—The prevention or obstruction, or attempt to prevent or obstruct any
person from accessing any school, educational institution, medical institution, cemetery,burial ground or any other place used by, or intended to be used by, or for the benefitof his community;
Seventh .—The prevention or obstruction, or attempt to prevent or obstruct any
person from enjoying any benefit under a charitable trust or waqf created for thebenefit of his community;
Eighth .—The act of inciting or provoking or encouraging any person, directly
or indirectly to sever social, religious, professional or business relations with otherpersons of his community;
Ninth .—The prevention or obstruction, or attempt to prevent or obstruct any
person of belonging to his community from enjoying human rights;
Tenth .—The discrimination or act of discriminating against a person by his
community on the basis of morality, political inclination, sexuality, gender expressionor any other basis;
Eleventh .—The expulsion, directly or indirectly, of any person from his
community;
Twelfth .—Any other similar acts."
3. After section 298 of the Penal Code, the following Chapter, shall be inserted, namely:—
CHAPTER XVA
O
FFENCES RELATING TO SOCIAL BOYCOTT
298A. Whoever imposes, or causes to impose any kind of social boycott on a person,
shall, on conviction, be punished with imprisonment for not less than three years, but whichmay extend to seven years, or with fine which may extend to five lakhs rupees, or with both.
298B. Whoever gatheres, congregates, assembles, or participates in a meeting of a
caste panchayat, at any time and at any place, with the view or intent to deliberate on theissue of imposing social boycott on any person, shall, on conviction be punished withimprisonment for not less than three years, but which may extend to seven years or with finewhich may extend to five lakhs rupees, or with both.
CHAPTER III
A
MENDMENT TO THE CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE , 1973
4. In the First Schedule to the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, under the heading
"1. OFFENCES UNDER THE INDIAN PENAL CODE", after entries related to section 298, theInsertion ofnew sections298A and B.
Imposing
social boycotton a person orgroup ofpersons.
Deliberating
on the issue ofimposingsocial boycott.
Amendment of
First Schedule.2 of 1974.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 111
following entries shall be inserted, namely:—
12 3 4 5 6
CHAPTER XV A.— OFFENCES RELATING TO SOCIAL BOYCOTT
"298A Imposing Imprisonment Cognizable Bailable Magistrate
social for not less of the firstboycott on than three years, class
a person or but which maygroup of extend to sevenpersons. years, or with
fine which mayextend to fivelakhs rupees, orwith both.
298B Deliberating Imprisonment Ditto Ditto Ditto
on the issue for not lessof imposing than three years,social but which mayboycott. extend to seven
years, or withfine which mayextend to fivelakhs rupees,
or with both.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Article 21 of the Constitution guarantees the life and personal liberty to all persons.
It also guarantees the right to such persons to live a dignified life. The bare text of the articlereads as, "No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to aprocedure established by law". Despite a constitutional obligation on the state to protect thefundamental rights of its citizens, India witnesses a parallel system; one that imposes harshsocio-economic extra judicial punishments on persons and communities that in their orthodoxand conservative views, transgress certain social mores or diktats.
Social boycotts imposed by "caste panchayats" result in deprivation of basic human
rights and ostracisation of those who are boycotted. This is done through planned andsystematic social exclusion from not just religious ceremonies and gatherings, but also byplacing restrictions on physical and social mobility, imposition of physical and socialsegregation and isolation, denial of employment, and even goes to the extent of halting saleof necessities of life, such as food and water. In a free and fair society, there must be no spaceor opportunity given for such extrajudicial actions that hamper an individual, or a community'sright to life and personal liberty. The existence of social boycotts to this very day, has led topsychological, physiological and economic impact and trauma on marginalised communities.It is necessary to criminalize such actions that go against the spirit of our Constitution.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; NISHIKANT DUBEY
January 16, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 113
BILL NO. 26 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 1A of the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 (hereinafter referred to as the
principal Act):—
(i) after sub-section ( a), the following sub-section shall be inserted, namely:—
(aa) ''epidemic'' means the occurrence in a community or region of cases of
a dangerous illness, specific health-related behaviour, or human disease that iscaused by an infectious agent or, any genetically engineered organism or abiological toxin that poses a risk of significant harm to public health, immediateShort title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 1A.3 of 1897.
or gradual spread to regions beyond the affected community-national or
international, or other health-related events clearly in excess of normal expectancy.
(ii) after sub-section ( b) the following sub-section shall be inserted namely:—
(bb) ''patient'' means any person who contracts any dangerous epidemic
disease as determined by scientific testing or a medical diagnosis.
3. After section 2B of the principal Act, the following shall be inserted, namely:—
''2C. The Central Government shall ensure supply of essential drugs and
therapeutics to citizens during the epidemic through public health facilities as well asthrough outreach measures, whenever required, with priority to lower-income sectionsand those covered by Government healthcare schemes for free care.
2D. The Central Government and the State Governments shall, ensure that—
(i) during the epidemic, measures taken to limit the rights of an individual
are such as are strictly necessary to resolve the crisis, and are time-bound,proportionate, and non-discriminatory; and
(ii) guidelines for surveillance to address the pressing social need are
adopted in accordance with the law and are proportionate and the limitations onthe right to privacy are least intensive to achieve the desired result.
''2E. Every, citizen, during the epidemic, shall have the following rights, but not
limited to—
(i) right to equal treatment regardless of race, color, sex, language, religion,
birth or other status;
(ii) right to free flow of information with only reasonable restrictions on
freedom of expression;
(iii) right to receive an independent medical assessment from a medical
practitioner of his choice;
(iv) right to emergency medical care in any Government or private hospital
without compromise on quality or safety and without having to pay full or anadvance fee to the hospital;
(v) right to have a written and transparent account of the costs incurred
for the treatment;
(vi) right to be compensated for loss, if any, caused by any isolation and
medical treatment; and
(vii) right to know information on the situation of the outbreak of the
disease, the prevention and control thereof and measures to cope therewith.
2F. Each citizen shall actively cooperate with the agencies of the Central and the
State Governments that perform activities for the prevention and control of theepidemic, such as treatment and isolation measures.
2G. ( 1) The Central and the State Government shall provide health services to
prison inmates during the epidemic at the same standard as are provided to communitiesoutside of prison.
(2) In prisons, medical personnel shall, in emergency situations, make an independent
assessment of each patient's condition and shall refer suitable cases to specialized treatmentin or outside the prison facility."Insertion ofnew sections2C, 2D, 2E,2F and 2G.
Supply of
essential drugsandtherapeutics.
Responsibilities
of theGovernmentwhile takingmeasuresduring theepidemic.
Rights of
citizens duringthe epidemic.
Responsibility
of citizens.
Health
facilities toprison inmatesduring theepidemic.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 115
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The advent of the Corona virus exposed lacunas in existing legislation to effectively
tackle public health emergencies in India. Currently, it does not have a single consolidatedlaw to deal with public health emergencies. Two major laws, the epidemic Diseases Act, 1897and the Disaster Management Act, 2005 were invoked to deal with COVID-19 preparednessand response. However, the centurial old Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 lacks comprehensiveguidelines for governance and responsible authorities, accountability, and a rights-basedapproach. Further, the Disaster Management Act is more suited to deal with disasters ratherthan epidemics.
Even the recent amendment in the Epidemic Diseases Act , 1897 in 2020 only listed
punitive actions for offences against the healthcare service personnel, but included norights of the individuals. The definition clause in the Act defines various offences butexcludes the most essential terms of ''epidemic'' and ''patient''. The Act in the current form laysdown no mechanism for the dissemination of drugs, availability of medical facilities orquarantine period. While providing itself powers to take special measures and prescriberegulations during an epidemic, the State establishes no responsibilities to undertake foritself.
During the Corona virus pandemic, the country witnessed a surge in deaths owing to
the lack of emergency medical healthcare. It intensified the pressure across a wide range offundamental rights, a key pillar of the rule of law. The Supreme Court of India in the case ofBandhua Mukti Morcha vs. Union of India & Ors. (1984) interpreted the right to health underArticle 21 of the Constitution of India which guarantees the right to life.
The significance of clear and consistent public health emergency law cannot be denied.
However, the current legal ecosystem falls short in ensuring a modern legal framework to
ensure stability in an epidemic.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; NISHIKANT DUBEY
January 16, 2023.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill inter alia provides that the Central Government shall ensure
supply of essential drugs and therapeutics to citizens during the epidemic. It also providesthat the Central Government shall ensure for every citizen, emergency medical care in anyGovernment or private hospital without having to pay full or an advanced fee to the hospitaland citizen who is isolated and medically treated due to an infectious disease shall becompensated for any damage caused by such isolation and medical treatment.
The Bill, if enacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India.
However, it is not possible to access the actual financial expenditure likely to be incurred at
this stage.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 117
BILL NO. 27 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission )
Act, 2006.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in
Admission) Amendment Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 2 of the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Act,
2006 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act),—
(i) after clause ( e), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(ca) ''appropriate Government'' means in the case of a State, the
Government of that State and in other cases, the Central Government.''
(ii) after clause ( e), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(ea) ''government school'' means any recognised school managed by the
appropriate Government, imparting elementary or higher secondary educationor both and includes—Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 2. 5 of 2007.
(i) a school established, owned or controlled by the appropriate
Government or a local authority;
(ii) an aided school receiving aid or grants to meet whole or part of
its expenses from the appropriate Government or the local authority; and
(iii) corporation schools, municipal schools, tribal welfare schools,
forest department schools and other schools managed by the Governmentdepartments."
3. In section 3 of the principal Act, after sub-clause ( iii), the following sub-clause
shall be inserted, namely:—
''(iv) out of the annual permitted strength in each branch of study or faculty, ten
per cent. seats shall be reserved horizontally for the students of Government schoolsin so far as by doing so the total reservation does not exceed fifty per cent. in any case:
Provided that where reservation exceeds fifty per cent. by the reservation of ten
per cent. seats for students of Government schools, reservation of seats shall beprovided up to the maximum extent possible without breaching the ceiling of totalreservation of fifty per cent.''Amendmentof section 3.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 119
STA TEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
India is the world's 2nd largest populated country and hosts pluralism in culture,
religion, ethnicity, language and multilayered caste system which often imposes challengeson the Indian Government to structure and manage a harmonious society. The challengesinclude creating equal employment opportunities, providing and allocating equal distributionof resources and funds of the Government and making education available to all citizens ofIndia without discrimination on the grounds of their religion, caste, race, sex, socio-economicbackground etc. In order to overcome such challenges, the Government uses reservation asa tool for the smooth administration of the country.
The term reservation can be described as 'certain policy measures or the techniques
adopted by the Indian Governance in order to empower, promote and uplift those socialsegments or members of community which have remained backward, or discriminated, orhistorically oppressed, by reserving their access to seats or quota for admission intoeducational institutes, in Governmental jobs, and legislatures.
Students from Government schools and those studying in private schools hail from
different socio-economic backgrounds. Considering these disparities, it would be unfair toweigh them on an equal footing. Students from Government schools must get access toquality education and a chance to fulfil their dreams. Those who are brilliant must not bestopped because of social or economic boundaries. Professional courses are the steppingstone towards a bright future of young talents in the country. Providing reservation tostudents from Government schools in Central Educational Institutions would be a step in theright direction considering the principles of equality under article 14 and non-discriminationunder article 15 as enshrined under the Constitution of India. If implemented across thecountry, this reservation policy may also help in increasing the enrolments in Governmentschools.
Affirmative action by the Government is the need of the hour to place students from all
walks of life at an equal footing to secure their future and thereby ensure that students fromweaker socio-economic backgrounds do not suffer in the long run. Suitable amendment is,therefore, required in the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission)Act, 2006.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; NISHIKANT DUBEY
January 16, 2023.
BILL NO. 289 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 23 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (hereinafter referred to as the
principal Act), sub-section ( 3) shall be omitted.
3. In section 35A of the principal Act,—
(1) for the marginal heading, the following marginal heading shall be substituted,
namely:—
"Additional and exemplary costs in respect of false or vexatious claims or defences".(2) in sub-section ( 1), for the words "of cost by way of compensation", the words "of
additional and exemplary costs" shall be substituted.
(3) after sub-section ( 1), following provisos shall be inserted, namely:—
"Provided that the court shall, while determining the additional and exemplary
cost, take into consideration the party's adverse socio-economic condition and thehardship that may be caused by imposing such costs:Short title andcommencement.
5 of 1908.
Amendment
of section35A.Amendment
of section 23.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 121
Provided further that out of the costs so awarded, part of the costs shall be
ordered to be paid to the party against whom the claim or defence of false or vexatiousnature has been set up and part of it shall be ordered to be deposited in the JudicialInfrastructure Fund set up under section 149A."
4. For section 89 of the principal Act, the following section shall be substituted,
namely:—
"89.( 1) Where it appears to the court, having regard to the nature of the dispute
involved in the suit or other proceeding that the dispute is fit to be settled by one ofthe non-adjudicatory alternative dispute resolution processes, namely, conciliation,judicial settlement, settlement through Lok Adalat or mediation the court shall, preferablybefore framing the issues, record its opinion and direct the parties to attempt theresolution of dispute through one of the said processes which the parties prefer or thecourt determines:
Provided that where the parties prefer conciliation, they shall furnish to the
court the name or names of the conciliators and on obtaining his or their consent, thecourt may specify a time limit for the completion of conciliation and thereupon, theprovisions of sections 65 to 81 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, as far asmay be, shall apply mutatis mutandis and to this effect, the court shall inform the
parties and a copy of the settlement agreement reached between the parties shall besent to the court concerned:
Provided further that in the absence of the settlement, the conciliator shall send
a brief report on the process of conciliation and the outcome thereof to the court.
(3) Where the dispute has been referred:—
(a) for judicial settlement, the court shall endeavour to effect a compromise
between the parties and shall follow such procedure as may be prescribed;
(b) to Lok Adalat, the provisions of sub-section ( 3) to (7) of section 20, sections
21 and 22 of the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 shall apply in respect of thedispute so referred and the Lok Adalat shall send a copy of the award to the courtconcerned and in case no award is passed, send a brief report on the proceedings heldand the outcome thereof;
(c) for mediation, the Court shall refer the dispute to a suitable institution or
person or persons with appropriate directions such as time-limit for completion ofmediation and reporting to the Court.
(4) The court shall on receipt of copy of the settlement agreement or the award of Lok
Adalat, if it finds any inadvertent mistakes or obvious errors, it shall draw the attention of theconciliator or the Lok Adalat who shall take necessary steps to rectify the agreement oraward suitably with the consent of parties.
(5) Without prejudice to section 8 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 and
other provisions, the court may also refer the parties to arbitration if both parties enter intoan arbitration agreement or file applications seeking reference to arbitration during thependency of a suit or other civil proceeding and in such an event, the arbitration shall begoverned, as far as may be, by the provisions of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996and the suit or other proceeding shall be deemed to have been disposed off accordingly.".
5. In section 95 of the principal act, in sub-section ( 1), for the word "not exceeding fifty
thousand rupees", the word "not exceeding one lakh rupees" shall be substituted.
6. After section 149 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely:—
"149A. The High Court shall set up and administer Judicial Infrastructure Fund
for the purposes of development of infrastructure in subordinate courts under itsjurisdiction."Amendmentof section 89.
Settlement of
disputesoutside thecourt.
26 of 1996.
26 of 1996.
Amendment
of section 95.
Amendment of
section 149.26 of 1996.26 of 1996.
7. In Order VII of the principle Act, in rule 14, sub-rule ( 4), for the word "plaintiff's
witness" the word "defendant's witness" shall be substituted.
8. In Order VIII of the principle Act, in rule 1A, in sub-rule ( 4), in clause ( a), for the word
"plaintiff's witness" the word "defendant's witness" shall be substituted.
9. In Order X of the principal Act,—
(a) for rule 1A, the following rule shall be substituted, namely:—
"(1A). At the stage of framing issues or the first hearing of the suit, the
Court shall direct the parties to opt either mode of the settlement outside thecourt as specified in sub-section ( 1) of section 89 and for this purpose may
require the parties to be personally present and in case of non-attendance withoutsubstantial cause, follow the procedure for compelling the attendance of witness.The court shall fix the date of appearance before such forum or authority orpersons as may be opted by the parties or chosen by the court.";
(2) rule 1B shall be omitted; and
(3) for rule 1C, the following rule shall be substituted, namely:—
"(1C). Where a suit is referred under rule 1A and the presiding officer of
conciliation forum or authority or the person to whom the matter has beenreferred is satisfied that it would not be proper in the interest of justice toproceed with the matter further, in view of the stand taken by the respective.".
10. In Order XVII of the principal Act, in rule 1, the proviso shall be omitted.
11. In Order XX of the principal Act, in rule 6A, for the words, "fifteen days" the words,
"thirty days" shall be substituted.Amendmentof Order VII.
Amendment
of Order VIII.
Amendment
of Order X.
Direction of
the court toopt for anyone mode ofalternativedisputeresolution.
Appearance
before thecourtconsequentupon thefailure ofefforts ofconciliation.
Amendment
of Order XVII.
Amendment
of Order XX.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 123
STA TEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Supreme Court in the case of Durgesh Shamra vs. Jayshree held that if two courts
are subordinate to different High Courts, one High Court has no power, jurisdiction orauthority to transfer a case pending in any court subordinate to that High Court to a Courtsubordinate to another High Court. It is only the Supreme Court (this Court) which may orderthe transfer. Thus, makes section 23( 3) of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.
Section 89 of the Code which provides for settlement of disputes outside the court is
inappropriately worded, as pointed out by the Supreme Court in the case of AfconsInfrastructure Ltd. vs. Cherian Varkey Construction Co. (P) LTD. The language adopted has
created difficulty in giving effect to the provision. Section 89 should be recast as indicatedabove. Secondly, the allied provisions, namely, Order X, rules 1A to 1C had been recast inaccordance with the provision of section 89. With an aim to make the conciliation schemeeffective, it is proposed to make it obligatory for the court to refer the dispute after the issuesare framed for settlement either by way of arbitration, conciliation, mediation, judicialsettlement or through Lok Adalat. However, the procedure of section 89 is defeating thepurpose of its enactment. Thus, firstly, the Supreme Court in the Afcon Infrastructure caseand 19th Law Commission in its report no. 238 titled as "Amendment of Section 89 of theCode of Civil Procedure, 1908 and Allied Provisions" recommended certain changes whichhas been incorporated in this act.
In addition to it, various Judgments of the Supreme Court and High Courts had time
and again emphasized that the lack of appropriate provisions relating to costs has resulted ina steady increase in malicious, vexatious, false, frivolous and speculative suits. Any attemptto reduce the pendency or encourage alternative dispute resolution processes or to streamlinethe civil justice system will fail in the absence of appropriate provisions relating to costs. TheSupreme Court in the case of Sanjeev Kumar Jain vs. Raghubir Saran Charitable Trust
addressed the issues relating to costs. Thus, in order to deal with the matter in depth the LawCommission in its report no. 240 titled as "costs in civil litigation" addressed this issuekeeping in view the triple goals of ( i) ensuring realistic and reasonable costs to the successful
party, ( ii) curbing false and frivolous litigation, and ( iii) discouraging unnecessary
adjournments.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SHRIKANT EKNATH SHINDE
23 November , 2022
BILL NO. 263 OF 2022
A Bill to amend the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Mental Healthcare (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 17 of the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017 (hereinafter referred to as the
principal Act), in clause ( a), for the words "best interests", the words "will and preference"
shall be substituted.
3. In section 21 of the principal Act, in sub-section ( 4), the following explanation shall
be inserted, namely:—
"Explanation .—For the purposes of this sub-section ( 4), "medical insurance"
includes the indemnification of the insurer or the hospital in the cases requiring butnot limited to:—
(i) hospitalization;
(ii) psychotherapy;Short title and
commencement.
10 of 2017.Amendment
of section 17.
Amendment
of section 21.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 125
(iii) medication;
(iv) cognitive behavioral therapy;
(v) counseling; or
(vi) any other form of treatment deemed fit for the patient by a medical
practitioner or a clinical psychologist.".
4. In section 65 of the principal Act, for the first proviso of sub-section ( 3), the following
proviso shall be substituted, namely:—
"Provided that till the period the Authority specifies the minimum standards for
different categories of mental health establishments, after due inspection of suchmental health establishments by authorities, it shall issue a provisional certificate ofregistration to the mental health establishment.".Amendment ofsection 65.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Mental Healthcare Act, 2017 has been lauded as the legislation of the people but
there are several lacunas in the Act which neglect the agency of the mentally ill person under
the Act and overlooks the responsibility of the State to provide for a safe space for thetreatment of the patient. From addiction to dementia to schizophrenia, almost 1 billion people
worldwide suffer from a mental disorder. Lost productivity as a result of two of the most
common mental disorders, anxiety and depression, costs the global economy US$1 trillioneach year. Poor mental health amongst employees costs Indian companies a combined $14
billion a year due to absenteeism, attrition and other reasons. India unfortunately lags behind
in mental health when compared to other countries. To give an example, the rest of the worldspends about 5 to 18 per cent. of their GDP on mental health whereas India spends only
0.05 per cent. Whereas the problem is huge, according to the latest WHO statistics, there are
an estimated forty-five million Indians who suffer from depression and another 45 millionwho suffer from anxiety.
Section 17( a) of the principal Act casts a duty on the nominated representative to
consider the "best interests" of the mentally ill person, while discharging their duty under
the act. However, the use of the term 'best interests", makes the Act a reluctant acceptance toIndia's obligation to Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities which asserts
that the will of the person with disability shall not be undermined, therefore the amendment.
The COVID-19 pandemic laid bare the huge gaps in the healthcare system, especially
in access to affordable mental healthcare. According to a scientific brief released by theWorld Health Organization in March, 2022, the global prevalence of mental illness like
depression and anxiety increased by 25 per cent. since the pandemic. Access to affordable
mental healthcare, especially after the pandemic has become a basic need for all individuals.The Act instructs insurers to make provisions for medical insurance for treatment of mental
illness. In the year 2018, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (hereinafter
IRDAI) of India had also directed the India Insurance companies to cover mental disordersas per the Act.
However, a Public Interest Litigation filed in the Supreme Court revealed that the
insurance companies are in violation of Sec. 21(4) of the Act. Following which the IRDAI had
instructed the insurance companies to introduce policies for mental illness by October 2020.Following the IRDAI directive, insurance companies began to offer insurance for mental
illness but only in case of hospitalization.
Treatment of mental illness is not limited to medication or hospitalization. It also
includes rehabilitation, counseling and psychotherapy. Some mental illnesses like depression,anxiety, Bipolar Disorder and other behavioral disorders which are chronic in nature may not
necessitate hospitalization but require other aids for treatment like psychotherapy and
medication. Such treatment can be very hard on the pockets thereby causing economicburden on the family of the patient. An amendment to the Act, extending insurance benefits
for mental illness which do not necessarily require hospitalization with a goal to reduce
financial burden on the families of people suffering from mental illness is necessary, thereforethe amendment is proposed.
Section 65 of the Act provides for registration of the Mental Healthcare Establishments,
but the first proviso to Section 65(3) of the Act allows for issuance a provisional certificate of
registration to the mental health establishment without any inspection of the same. Sincemental healthcare establishments are a place of primary care for the mentally ill patients, it
can be detrimental to the safety of the patients to allow for even temporary registration of the
establishment without due diligence from the end of the State. Therefore it is imperative thateven the provisional certificate be issued only after due inspection of the establishment,
therefore the amendment.
Hence this bill.
N
EW DELHI; SHRIKANT EKNATH SHINDE
22 November , 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 127
BILL NO. 233 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Securitization and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and
Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Securitization and Reconstruction of Financial Assets
and Enforcement of Security Interest (Amendment) Act 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 31 of the Securitization and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and
Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002, after clause ( j), the following clauses shall be
inserted, namely:—
"(k) principal debtors who was unemployed for the last three months;
(l) families that have lost their primary bread earner due to COVID or other
disease;
(m) debtors who have an amount due of less than thirty per cent of the principal
amount and interest thereon.".Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of clause 31.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The repeated instances of provision of Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial
Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002, which has been excessively used toattach properties of defaulter, often through unfair procedures leading to helpless debtorsor even their children committing suicide due to harassment and humiliation ingrained in theexecution of archaic practices. The harsh provisions warrants legislative intervention byamending provisions that are rendering the act inhuman.
The need for factoring unemployment due to matter beyond ones control such as
Covid and recession - led termination of employment causing defaulting of repayment ofloan from a humane perspective is required so that the right to live and right to dignity andother provisions enshrining the rights of citizens are upheld and are not seen from the prismof shylockian perspective.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; KODIKUNNIL SURESH
November 22, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 129
BILL NO. 20 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Act,
2023.
(2) It shall come into force with immediate effect.
2. In the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014, after Part X, the following new
Part and sections thereunder shall be inserted, namely:—
"PART XA
SPECIAL CATEGORY STATUS TO THE SUCCESSOR STATE OF
ANDHRA PRADESH
94A. ( 1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in
force, the successor State of Andhra Pradesh shall be deemed to have been conferred thestatus of special category State for a period of ten years from the date of commencement ofthis Act.Short title andcommencement.
Insertion of
new Part XA.
Special
CategoryStatus to theState ofAndhraPradesh.6 of 2014.
(2) The successor State of Andhra Pradesh shall by virtue of being conferred a special
category State under sub-section(1), be provided the following incentives and benefits:—
(i) ninety per cent. of the State expenditure on all centrally-sponsored schemes
and external aid to be borne by the Central Government and the remaining ten per cent.to be given to the successor State of Andhra Pradesh as interest free loan;
(ii) preferential treatment in the distribution of funds by the Central Government;
(iii) benefits of debt-swapping and debt-relief schemes;
(iv) concession in the customs duty, corporate tax, income tax, Central Goods
and Services Tax (CGST) and Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST) to attractindustries and investment in the State; and
(v) provision that the unutilised money of the State in any financial year shall not
lapse and be carried forward to the next financial year.''.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 131
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The bifurcation of the erstwhile State of Andhra Pradesh resulted in an uneven
distribution of metropolitan cities and resource rich regions. Hyderabad being forfeited fromthe residuary State of Andhra Pradesh put the State in a disadvantaged position in terms ofdistribution of assets and liabilities of common institutions which are mostly located in thecity. There are 107 institutions listed under Schedule X of the Andhra Pradesh ReorganisationAct, 2014, of which 97 are located in Telangana proving the impediment in progress of theAndhra Pradesh.
Secondly, repeated assurances have been given on the part of the Central Government
that a special development package for the residuary state of Andhra Pradesh would beprovided with adequate incentives, particularly for Rayalaseema and north coastal regions.The region has been identified for grant of special development package, similar toBundelkhand region and KBK districts of Odisha. Statistics have indicated the plight ofthese regions and an incessant delay in conducting the decadal Census is proving to betough with Andhra Pradesh. The state is losing out on a number of benefits, as populationremains an important criteria for grants by the Centre.
While the buffer time of ten years for completion of bifurcation is just two years away
from now, there are several benefits pending to be granted for the state. Despite being awelcome move, a development package often results in delay in release funds, lack of financesto clear the pending bills and delays in payments for the ongoing works. The presence ofsuch constraints, resulting from an unjust and inequitable bifurcation of the erstwhile Stateof Andhra Pradesh, Special Category Status being granted to the state proves to be a viablesolution.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI ; MARGANI BHARAT
March 4, 2022.
————
PRESIDENT 'S RECOMMENDATION UNDER ARTICLES 117 (1), 117(3) AND 274(1) OF THE
CONSTITUTION
[Copy of Letter No. 16017/01/2022-S.R dated 11 January, 2023 from Shri Nityanand Rai,
Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs to the Secretary General, Lok Sabha].
The President, having been informed of the subject matter of the Andhra Pradesh
Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2022* (Insertion of new Part XA) by Shri Margani Bharat,M.P., recommended the introduction under articles 117( 1) and 274( 1) and the consideration
under article 117( 3) of the Constitution of the Bill in Lok Sabha.
[*The Bill being printed in 2023, the year in the title of Bill has been changed from 2022 to 2023.]
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 2 of the Bill vide proposed section 94A seeks to provide Special Category
Status to the successor State of Andhra Pradesh by providing certain concessions, subsidiesand other assistance to the successor State of Andhra Pradesh. The Bill, therefore, if enacted,will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India for conferring special status tothe successor State of Andhra Pradesh. As the sums of money which will be given to thesuccessor State of Andhra Pradesh as concessions and subsidy by appropriation, by law,made by Parliament, cannot be stated now it is not possible to give the estimate of recurringexpenditure which would be involved out of the Consolidated Fund of India.
No non-recurring expenditure is likely to be involved out of the Consolidated Fund of
India.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 133
BILL NO. 49 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Information Technology Act, 2000.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Information Technology (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government, may by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 2 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (hereinafter referred to as the
principal Act), in sub-section ( 1),—
(a) after clause ( l), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(la) "content" refers to the words, video, audio or any means of
communication created by the users of a social media;";
(b) existing clause ( za) shall be renumbered as clause ( zb) and before the clause
(zb) so as renumbered, the following clause shall be inserted, namely:—
(za) "online account" refers to the space allotted to a website user where
the content generated by them are displayed and database stored by theintermediary; andShort title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 2.21 of 2000.
(c) existing clauses ( zg) and ( zh) shall be renumbered as ( zh) and ( zi) and before
the clause ( zh) so renumbered, the following clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(zg) "social media" means any website that is publicly accessible with or
without creating an online account on it and the content generated by the useris displayed publicly on this website including webpages where users can interactwith each other in any manner.".
3. After Section 66F of the principal Act, following section shall be inserted,
namely:—
"66G. Any person who creates content on any social media site in the nature
of,—
(a) any information that is grossly offensive or has menacing character; or
(b) any information which he knows to be false, but for the purpose of
causing annoyance, inconvenience, danger, obstruction, insult, injury, criminalintimidation, enmity, hatred or ill will, known to cause communal distrust andeven violence, persistently by making use of such computer resource or acommunication device;
(c) any social media content for the purpose of causing annoyance or
inconvenience or to deceive or to mislead the addressee or recipient about theorigin of such messages; and
(d) any social media content for the purpose of spreading hateful content
that create resentment against any particular group of people based on caste,religion, sex, place of birth,
shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to
three years and with fine.". Punishmentfor spreadinghatefulcommunalpropagandaunderminingthe fraternityof Indiathrough socialmedia, etc.Insertion of
newsection 66G.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 135
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Social Media has grown to be a dominant actor in the social and political lives of our
people in the last decade. From just a pastime of sorts, social media have grown to capturethe imagination of the people. Today, it acts as the primary means of socialisation,communication and interaction with the larger society. However, unregulated behaviour inthe social media is shown to have large scale impact in the way people perceive and interactwith the world. If the online behaviour is not regulated in such a manner to uphold thedecency, morality and other values as enshrined in the constitution, it can easily endangerthe hard earned liberty in the society. We have seen examples in this decade itself, whensocial media was used to fan communal passion. This has led to real life violence and evenloss of life. The cases of lynching and many instances of communal violence that our nationsaw in the last decade could be attributed to hateful propaganda being spread through socialmedia platforms. Moreover, organised entities could be seen to spread stereotypes, creatingrift between communities and foment internecine feud between the people of India. To curball those activities, those who spread the poison of communal hatred through social mediashould be punished appropriately. Also, the Information Technology Act of our nationcuriously doesn't include the definition of "Social Media" or new age technologies thatconstitute social media. This bill makes an humble attempt to define these entities and alsonudge the Government to amend the bill in such a manner that all the challenges of our timesare addressed through a revised Information Technology Bill that is in tune with the spirit ofour times.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; DEAN KURIAKOSE
January 16, 2023.
BILL NO. 29 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act,
2005.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee
(Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government, may by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 22 of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005
(hereinafter referred to as the principal Act),—
(a) in sub-section ( 1), the following provisos shall be inserted, namely:—
Provided that the Central Government shall provide the funds to States in advance
to meet the estimated cost under sub-section ( 1), to ensure that payment of wages to
every unskilled, skilled and semi-skilled worker is made within five days of completionof work:Short title andcommencement.
42 of 2005. Amendment of
section 22.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 137
Provided further that if the Central Government fails to release funds for three
months due to any reason, the State Government shall be eligible for a penalty of threeper cent of amount outstanding per month:
Provided also that the funds allocated by the Central Government to the scheme
shall be calculated keeping in view the prevailing inflation rates, aspirations of thepeople and projected demand for work.
3. After section 22 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely:—
"22A. The State Government shall ensure that,—
(a) it has sufficient funds for payment of wages to skilled and semi-skilled and
cost of unemployment allowances for at least one month based on projected numberof workers for ensuing month;
(b) the payment of wages to skilled and semi-skilled are made within five days of
the completion of the work;
(c) if any worker files a complaint regarding non-payment of wages with the
Programme Officer, the complaint shall be settled and wages paid, if any, within aperiod of fifteen days:
Provided that if the Programme Officer fails to settle the complaint, the District
Programme Coordinator shall settle the case and wages shall be paid within a period often days from the expiry of fifteen days allotted to the Programme Officer.".Insertion ofnew section22A.
State
Governmentto ensurepayment ofwages.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA) is a seminal
legislation that has been designed to improve the situation of rural poor. Not only it acts asa poverty alleviation measure, but it also improves the spending capacity of the ruralpopulation. Various studies have shown that it has contributed to a healthy demand pullinflation rate, which has improved the economic health of the country. The transfer of cashin lieu of self-selected work is correlated with improvement in social indicators while boostingthe dignity of the rural worker.
There has been many international studies that prove the efficacy of the programme. It
has been a corner stone that improved the lives of rural poor as the country navigated manychallenges. During those times, for instance during the COVID induced slowdown, the ruralpoor depended upon the work guaranteed through MGNREGA to sustain themselves.However, there has been no proportionate increase in funds allocated in tune with thedemand of work. Also, many States have been complaining about the centre not releasingfunds due to them on time. Such a situation has arisen because there if no legal compulsionforced upon the Central Government to do so. If the act is amended to ensure that suchprovisions are added, it leads to a situation where the issue is depoliticised and the centrewill have no option but release the amount due in time so that the ordinary worker is notdenied timely payment of his hard labour.
The bill also seeks to address this moral issue of the State reneging on its duty of
paying the wages on time to the citizen who take up work under MGNREGA. It is necessaryto alleviate rural poverty and also keep up the trust that a prestigious Central Governmentscheme like MGNREGA enjoys. This has to be legally ensured by the Parliament.
N
EW DELHI; DEAN KURIAKOSE
January 16, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 139
BILL NO. 42 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This act may be called the Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 2 of the Wild Life Protection Act, 1972 (hereinafter referred to as the
principal Act),—
(a) existing clause ( 1) shall be renumbered as clause (1B) and before clause (1B)
as so renumbered, the following clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(1) "agriculture" with all its grammatical variations and cognate
expressions includes floriculture, horticulture, sericulture, the raising of crops,grass or garden produce, dairy farming, poultry farming, cutting of wood orgrass, gathering of fruit, raising of man-made forest or rearing of seedlings orplants;";Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 2.53 of 1972.
(1A) "agricultural produce" includes paddy, wheat, sugarcane, millet, barley,
ragi, madwa, cotton, maize, soyabean, rapeseed, mustard, peanut, coconut, sunflower,groundnut, safflower, sesamum, niger seed, gram, tur, urad, moong, masoor (lentil),peas, jute, cashew nut, pepper, turmeric, tobacco, potato, tomato, onion, mango, apple,orange, kinnoo, mousambi and other such foodgrains or commodity as may beprescribed:
(b) after clause ( 10), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(10A) "cultivating farm" means a piece of land used for agriculture or livestock
rearing; and
(c) after clause (25B), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:—
(25C) "residential property" means a building or habitation used for dwelling by
any person.".
3. In Section 11of the principal Act, after sub-section ( 2), the following sub-section
shall be inserted, namely:—
"(2A) The killing or wounding of any wild animal by a person inside his cultivating
farm or residential property where the wild animal has entered and has caused damage toagricultural produce or livestock shall not be an offence.". Amendmentof section 11.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 141
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 is a seminal piece of legislation that has helped in
the preservation of wild life in India. Over the years, it has led to the protection of manyspecies that are indeed a pride to our nation and are a treasure to entire mankind. Protectionextended to majestic animals like the Royal Bengal Tiger and the greater-one horned Rhinohas helped in improving their numbers and saving the species from extinction. However,there is also widespread criticism to the act that it has led to excessive bureaucratization andhas also taken away the rights of common people. Especially affected are the farmers whoinhabit areas bordering forest lands. Here, they brave the inclement weather and constantthreat of wild animals to create farm goods that is consumed by the whole nation. Many atimes, they are helpless when an animal ravages their land. Especially is the case of wild boar-an animal that preys upon the helpless farmers. Many national and international studieshave proven that there is no threat to the wild boar populations in terms of dwindlingnumbers. In fact, their numbers have increased in the forests due to ready availability offood from the farms and farmers being unable to control them by killing them when they enterfarmlands. If the farmer is given the right to kill wild boars and other animals that enter theirfarm and cause destruction, it will help the control the wild board Attack. It will also be aseminal step in managing the human-wild life conflict.
The resolution of that conflict lies in adopting locally appropriate steps that include
killing of animals that cause extensive damage to the farms. Instead of taking a one size fitsall approach that mandates that the Central Government declare vermin for any area in thecountry, more scientific and practical choice is to allow the farmers kill animals that enter theirfields and create destruction to farms and human life. Also, the people living near forestsneed to be liberated from unnecessary legal hassles due to cases registered against them forkilling animals in self-defence or to save a human life.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; DEAN KURIAKOSE
January 16, 2023.
BILL NO. 1 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for the establishment of a permanent Bench of the Supreme Court of
India at Hyderabad in the State of Telangana.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Supreme Court of India (Establishment of a Permanent
Bench at Hyderabad) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. There shall be established a permanent Bench of the Supreme Court of India at
Hyderabad and such number of Judges of the Supreme Court of India being not less thanfive, as the Chief Justice of India may, with the approval of President, from time to timenominate, shall sit at Hyderabad in order to exercise the jurisdiction and powerfor the timebeing vested in the Supreme Courtof India in respect of cases 5 arising in the States ofAndhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and theUnion territories of Puducherry, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Lakshadweep and Andaman andNicobar Islands and in such other territories, as may be notified by the Central Governmentwith the approval of the Chief Justice of India.Short title andcommencement.
Establishment
of apermanentBench of theSupreme Courtat Hyderabad.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 143
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The framers of the Constitution envisaged the need for additional Benches of
the Supreme Court and, accordingly, inserted article 130 which talks about the Seat of theSupreme Court and the Chief Justice of India has been given the responsibility to take a finalcall, with the approval of the President, on this. Article 130 reads as—
'The Supreme Court shall sit in Delhi or in such other place or places as the
Chief Justice of India may, with the approval of the President, from time to time, appoint.'.
There are nearly 70,000 cases pending, be it matters relating to regular hearing or
admission, in the Supreme Court. The present strength of Supreme Court is 33 which meanseach Supreme Court Judge has to handle nearly 6,000 cases and if one looks at the overallJudge-Population ratio in the country, it is 19 judges per 10 lakh population. This clearlyindicates that there is avalanche of litigations, including in the apex court, and hence there isa need to implement the spirit of article 130 and set up Seats of Supreme Court in variousregions of the country.
The 10th Law Commission, in its 95th Report, in 1984, recommended for constitutional
division with the Supreme Court by splitting the Supreme Court into two, nearly ( i)
Constitutional Court at Delhi; and ( ii) Court of Appeal sitting in Northern, Southern, Eastern
and Western parts of the country.
The 11th Law Commission in its 125th Report titled, "The Supreme Court-A Fresh
Look", submitted in 1988, reiterated the recommendations made by the 10th Law Commissionin its 95th Report. The Law Commission felt that it will help to reduce the distance to betravelled by litigants and the cost to be borne by them.
The 18th Law Commission, in its 229th Report submitted in 2009, also recommended
for setting up of Constitution Bench—exclusively deal with Constitutional matters - at Delhiand four Cassation Benches be set up in four regions of the country. The Northern Bench atDelhi; the Southern Bench at Hyderabad or Chennai; the Eastern Bench at Kolkata; and theWestern Bench at Mumbai.
This clearly indicates that there is a constitutional provision and plethora of
recommendations by Law Commission and other bodies and Committees for setting up ofCassation Benches of Supreme Court at different regions of the country.
The objective of the proposed Bill emanates from the recommendations of the Law
Commission, Committees and various genuine demands that Supreme Court at Delhi bemade as a Constitutional Court rather than remaining largely a Court of Appeal which is thecase now. Secondly, if one looks at Supreme Court docket, the number of cases coming toSupreme Court from various High Court varies. For example, nearly 20% of appeal comingfrom Punjab and Haryana High Court; nearly 11% are coming from Delhi High Court whencompared to other High Courts, such as Bombay, Uttar Pradesh or Hyderabad which hear farmore cases. It is because of the distance from Hyderabad or Kerala or Tamil Nadu or Karnatakaand the costs involved to reach Supreme Court in Delhi, people are giving up idea of knockingthe doors of Supreme Court. This clearly tantamount to denial of justice and fundamentalright since the apex court is not geographically accessible to all. So, the proposed regionalBenches would work as appellate courts and deal with cases emanated from variousHigh Courts in that region.
Hyderabad, being one of the largest cities in the country, is very well connected by
road, rail and air to different parts of South India. It has all necessary infrastructure and,being the software hub of the country, it would be all the more justified and prudent to set upa Bench of the Supreme Court at Hyderabad.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; GADDAM RANJITH REDDY
July 7, 2021
PRESIDENT'S RECOMMENDATION UNDER ARTICLES 117( 1) AND 117( 3) OF
THE CONSTITUTION
[Copies of Letter Nos. K-15017/10/2021-US.I/II dated 14 March, 2022 and K-15017/ 10/
2021-US.I/II dated 13 December, 2022 from Shri Kiren Rijiju, Minister of Law and Justice tothe Secretary General, Lok Sabha].
I. The President, having been informed of the subject matter of the Supreme Court
of India (Establishment of a Permanent Bench at Hyderabad) Bill, 2021* byDr. Gaddam Ranjith Reddy, Member of Parliament, recommends the considerationof the Bill under article 117( 3) of the Constitution in Lok Sabha.
II. The President having been informed of the subject matter of the Supreme Court of
India (Establishment of a Permanent Bench at Hyderabad) Bill, 2021* by Dr. GaddamRanjith Reddy, Member of Parliament, recommends the introduction of the Billunder article 117( 1) of the Constitution in Lok Sabha.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 145
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 2 of the Bill provides for establishment of a permanent Bench of the
Supreme Court at Hyderabad in the State of Telangana. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, wouldinvolve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a recurringexpenditure of about rupess two crore per annum would involve from the ConsolidatedFund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure to the tune of rupees one hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
BILL NO. 253 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development
(Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by
otification in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 2 of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006,
(hereinafter referred to as the principal Act).
(i) after clause (l), the following clause shall be inserted namely:—
"(la) 'self-help group' means a small informal group owned, controlled or
managed by women consisting of ten or more individuals, who are homogenouswith respect to social and economic background and come together voluntarilyfor promoting savings habits among members and for a common cause to raiseand manage resources for the benefit of group members.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 2.27 of 2006.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 147
Explanation. —For the purpose of this clause, the term "controlled"
includes the right to appoint majority of the directors or to control the managementor policy decisions exercisable by a person or persons acting individually or inconcert, directly or indirectly, including by virtue of their shareholding ormanagement rights or shareholders agreements or voting agreements or in anyother manner."; and
(ii) after clause (p), the following clause shall be inserted namely:
"(q) "women led enterprise" means an industrial undertaking or a business
concern or any other establishment, by whatever name called, engaged in themanufacture or production of goods, in any manner, pertaining to any industryspecified in the First Schedule to the Industries (Development and Regulation)Act, 1951 (65 of 1951) or engaged in providing or rendering of any service orservices, which is owned, managed or controlled by a woman or a group ofwomen.
Explanation. —or the purpose of this clause,
(a), "controlled" include the right to appoint majority of the directors
or to control the management or policy decisions exercisable by a personor persons acting individually or in concert, directly or indirectly, includingby virtue of their shareholding or management rights or shareholdersagreements or voting agreements or in any other manner; and
(b) "managed" includes the decision making power, ownership and
capacity to hold profit, as the case may be.".
3. In section 7 of the principal Act, in sub-section ( 1) after the words "co-operative
society", the words "self-help groups, women led enterprises" shall be inserted.
4. After clause ( 1) of section 14 of the principal Act, the following proviso shall be
inserted, namely:
"Provided that the Central Government shall reserve twenty-five percent of the
Fund or Funds for the welfare and development of self-help groups.".
5. In Chapter V of the principal Act, in the heading, for the words, "MICRO AND
SMALL ENTERPRISES", the words, "MICRO, SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES"shall be substituted.
6. In section 15 of the principal Act, after the existing proviso, the following proviso
shall be inserted namely:
"Provided further that the supplier shall upload invoices for an amount notified
by the Central Government, on information utilities set up under the Insolvency andBankruptcy Code, 2016 (31 of 2016).".
7. In section 18 of the principal Act, for the words, "Micro and Small Enterprises", the
words "Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises" shall be substituted.
8. In section 20 of the principal Act, for the words, "Micro and Small Enterprise", the
words, "Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises", shall be substituted.
9. In section 21 of the principal Act,
(a) for the words, "Micro and Small", wherever they occur, the words, "Micro,
Small and Medium" shall be substituted; and
(b) in sub-section ( 1), in clause ( ii), for the words, "micro or small", the words,
"micro, small or medium" shall be substituted.Amendmentof section 7.
Amendment
of section 14.
Amendment
of Heading.
Amendment
of section 15.
Amendment
of section 18.
Amendment
of section 20.
Amendment
of section 21.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
India's economic and financial has suffered due to a critical missing piece: women.
Women across all segments, be it entrepreneurs or retail customers, face multiple barrierssuch as legal, socio-cultural and infrastructural barriers in accessing finance in an equitablemanner. These are spread across such as restricted mobility, lack of traditional collateral,lower ownership of mobile phones and access to the internet, lower financial literacy levels.The unmet credit gap for women-owned enterprises is 70.37 per cent which translates to afinancing gap of rupees 1.37 lakh crore and presents a huge market opportunity for financialinstitutions.
The need is to include women led enterprises under the Micro, Small and Medium
Enterprises Act, 2006 in order to enable better targeting of women centric schemes, initiativesand products; collection of gender disaggregated data; and a consolidated digital platformfor such enterprises - all of which contribute towards creating an enabling ecosystem forwomen entrepreneurs. The need is to empower women led enterprises by giving thempreferential for procurement of goods and services.
It is also necessary to introduce Self Help Groups (SHGs) under the MSME Act, 2006
in order to economically empower these groups and promote entrepreneurship. A duty onthe State is also to be made for setting set up funds for self help groups in order to promoteentrepreneurship.
Furthersome, it is also required to include Medium enterprises in order to provide for
the safeguards, recourse and complaint mechanisms under the Act to be extended to mediumenterprises as well. A complaint mechanism requiring the MSMEs to upload invoices onInformation Utilities, to act as a safeguard against delayed payments is also required.
It is noteworthy that the MSME sector is responsible for around one-third of India's
GDP and has tremendous room for expansion. The importance of the sector in India's economicgrowth cannot be over-emphasized. With the presence of over 63 million MSMEs employingover 110 million people staggered across services, the manufacturing sector contributesnearly 30 per cent to the GDP. Therefore, it is imperative that a legislative backing is renderedto MSME to ensure their overall empowerment.
Hence, this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; HEENA VIJAYKUMAR GA VIT
23 November , 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 149
Short title and
commencement.
Amendment
of article 312.BILL NO. 238 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force with immediate effect.
2. In article 312 of the Constitution, in clause ( 1), for the words "all-India Judicial
service", the words "all-India Judicial Service and an all-India Education Service" shall besubstituted.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
In the wake of the pandemic that has hit the education systems of the entire world
hard, it becomes very necessary for a country like India to have a stable, standard, reliableand controlled system of educating its population. Unlike countries like the United Kingdomor any other developed country for that matter, has a limited population to deal with that issupported by a declining and aging population for which brilliant brains from other countriesspecially India are taken out to keep up their standards high.
The bill proposes to add Indian Education Service to the list to enhance the standards
of education in the country by bringing in more consistence and quality in terms of teachersand education. India has come a long way after its liberalisation or independence from theugly British Raj which makes it among the top destination for investment, outsourcing, andmanufacturing, primarily in the service sector. India now being a major economy still lacks inaspects of vocational education, as almost no emphasis has been laid upon such areas ofeducation, skill development and on field training, which should be added in order to givethe future of the nation a brief over-view of the industries helping then in making an informeddecision in terms of the career that they might want to choose.
The success of any country largely depends on its educated citizens and this can be
realised only if the education system functions well. This must be the reason why theNational Policy on Education, 1986, revised in 1992, stressed the need for strengthening theeducation system in the country. The government should have complete faith in the teachingcommunity and the teachers' associations should play a significant role in improvingeducation, upholding professional integrity to enhance the dignity and status of the teacher.Keeping this in mind, on behalf of teacher's federations representing teachers at all levels,from nursery to university level in India, a memorandum was presented to the Centre sometime back requesting urgent attention to establish the Indian Education Service.
The entire teaching community of India will appreciate the commitments which the
policy has made to the nation, to the people, to the education, and the management system.The management system is a high priority item in education and it should receive urgentattention and support. Along with a number of dynamic steps in the economic anddevelopment fields, the educational management should also get top priority.
The following needs to be kept in mind for improving the education scenario in our
country. Teaching should be regarded as a profession. It is a form of public service, whichrequires teachers expert knowledge and specialised skills, acquired and maintained throughrigorous and continued research and study. It also calls for a sense of personal and corporateresponsibility for the development and welfare of the pupils they are in-charge of.
The Ministry of Education has come out with this proposal as part of National Education
Policy-2016 and invited views from stakeholders until end of this month. The idea of anIndian Education Service (IES) was first floated in the late 1980s by the then Human ResourceDevelopment Minister. By creating IES, specialists in education will occupy top administrativeposts and motivate their subordinates to work with dedication and commitment.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; HEENA VIJAYKUMAR GAVIT
23 November , 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 151
BILL NO. 241 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act,
2007.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows,—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior
Citizens (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 21 of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act,
2007 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act), after clause ( iii), the following clause shall
be inserted, namely,—
"(iv) every senior citizen with an annual income of less than rupees twelve
lakhs shall be entitled to a fixed pension amount not exceeding rupees thirty-fiveShort title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 21.
thousand per month from the Senior Citizen Welfare Fund, established under the
Finance Act, 2015, in such manner as may be prescribed.".
3. In section 22 of the principal Act, after sub-section ( 2), the following sub-section
shall be inserted, namely,—
"(3) The State Government shall prescribe a comprehensive action plan with
regard to digital and financial protection and wellbeing of senior citizen with respect tocyber frauds, identity theft, online banking frauds and take fast track action in thatbehalf.".
4. In section 32 of the principal Act, in sub-section ( 2), after clause ( f), the following
clause shall be inserted, namely,—
"(fa) a comprehensive action plan for providing protection against offenses like
identity theft, financial fraud and cybercrime with regards to senior citizens under sub-section ( 3) of section 22.".Amendment
of section 22.
Amendment
of section 32.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 153
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 was enacted on
29th December, 2007 to ensure need-based maintenance for parents and senior citizens andtheir welfare. It's been more than a decade now that the Act is in place, serving the needyparents and senior citizens, with the active co-operation of the State Governments andUnion Territory Administrations.
With the gradual breakdown of joint family system in the society, number of cases of
neglect, crime, exploitation and abandonment of parents and senior citizens are in the rise.Various High Courts have also issued orders directing the Government to review provisionsof the Act.
Pensions are an assurance of continuation of consumption levels required for dignified
living in the face of reduction in income due to physiological atrophy and comparativelyrestricted income-generating opportunities. Amendment to section 21 seeks to provideuniversal pension for the elderly with an income of less than twelve lakhs. Currently theUnion Government contributes Rs. 200 per month, which is less than (or less than US$3).Over the next 33 years, by 2050, 324 million Indians, or 20 percent of the population, will beabove 60 years of age. If pension continues to cover only 35 percent of senior citizens as itdoes today, 200 million, or 61.7 percent of India's elderly population, will be without anyincome security by 2050. Given this fact, it is imperative that the Government active measuresto ensure universal pension for the elderly. Therefore, the amendment.
To ensure online safety of senior citizens amendment to section 22 of the act places
responsibility on the State Governments to spread awareness and improve standards ofdigital literacy among the elderly in order to protect them from high cases of cybercrime,identity theft, financial fraud and money laundering. Through amendment to section 32, theState Government has been empowered to create rules for a comprehensive action plan forproviding protection against offences like, cybercrime, identity theft, financial fraud andmoney laundering.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; HEENA VIJAYKUMAR GA VIT
23 November , 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 2 of the Bill provides for payment of fix pension amount not exceeding rupees
thirty-five thousand to every senior citizen with an annual income of less than rupees twelvelakhs from the Senior Citizen Welfare Fund. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involveexpenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is likely to involve a recurring expenditureof about rupees five hundred crore per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 155
BILL NO. 91 OF 2020
A Bill to ensure speedy removal of social and economic disparity through targeted
expendiiure on special schemes for the welfare and development of the personsbelonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes and for mattersconnected therewith or incidental thereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-first Year of the Republie of India as
follows:—
I. (1) This Act may be called the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes Sub Plans
(Budgetary Allocation and Special Schemes) Act, 2020.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a)"prescribed" means prescribed by the rules made under this Act;
(b) "Scheduled Castes Sub Plan" means the process of funds allocation,
identification and preparation of exclusive schemes, the expenditure on such schemesand the analysis of its final outcome, for the Scheduled Castes;Short title andcommencement.
Definitions.
(c) "special schemes" means schemes which focus on individual beneficiary
schemes, family oriented cum income generating schemes for development of personsbelonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Castesand Scheduled Tribes families and schemes for improving the physical and socialinfrastructure of localities and community infrastructure like special schools for girls1o and boys, coaching centers, working womens' hostel, special libraries, health andemployment; and
(d) "Tribal Sub Plan" means the process of funds allocation, identification and
preparation of exclusive schemes, the expenditure on such schemes and the analysisof its final outcome, for the Scheduled Tribes.
3. (1) The Central Govemment shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law
in this behalf, make separate budgetary allocation for the welfare and development of personsbelonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, in proportion to theirpopulation.
(2) The budgetary allocations so earmarked under sub-section ( I) shall be spent only
on special schemes in such manner, as may be prescribed.
(3) The budgetary allocations under the Scheduled Castes Sub Plan and Tribal Sub
Plan shall not be diverted for any other purposes or allowed to lapse.
(4) For the purposes of this Act, the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment,
Government oflndia shall be the nodal Ministty for the Scheduled Castes Sub Plan and theMinistry of the Tribal Affairs shall be the nodal Ministry for Tribal Sub Plan.
(5) The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and the Ministry of Tribal Affairs
shall present separate Annual Budgets and Performance Budgets for the Scheduled CastesSub Plan and Tribal Sub respectively.
4. Whoever contravenes the provisions of sub-sections ( 2) or ( 3) of section 3 shall be
guilty of wilful and deliberate act of dereliction of duty and shall be punished undersection 4 of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities)Act, 1989 after fixing the individual responsibility.
5. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent
therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force.
6. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order, published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions, notinconsistent with the provisions contained in this Act, as may appear to it to be necessary orexpedient for the removal of the difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made after expiry of two years from the date of
commencement of this Act. ·
7. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Budgetaryallocation forScheduledCastes and theScheduledTribes.
Penalties.
Act to have
overridingeffect.
Power to
removedifficulties.
Power to
make rules.33 of 1989.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 157
STA TEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The legislative efforts undertaken to close the development gap between Dalits and
Adivasis and other date back to 1950, when the Constitution provided opportunities for theScheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes in the areas of education, employment in publicservices and electoral seats through the policy of reservation. From economic point of view,the most important policies approved so far are the Tribal Sub Plan (STP) and the SpecialComponent Plan (SCP), now called Scheduled Castes Sub Plan (SCSP), executive budgetpoiicies, according to which funds and resources are to be reserved across Central Ministriesand Departments in the State Governments in pwportion to the Scheduled Castes/ScheduledTribes population at the national, as per the current census date.
However, close scrutiny of the current situation reveals that these two policies have
not been implemented effoctively. The money eannarked under these policies is diverted forgeneral scheme and does not go for funding of the schemes, exclusively for the benefit of theScheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. It is not surprising that Dalits and Adivasis stiliremain far away from mainstream development in the country. The literacy gap is still quitehigh and die dropout rate is still high. The rate of infant mortality and child mortality underfive is higher among the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes than among othersocial group; the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes are still less equipped with thebasic requirements for human survival like water and power supply facilities, latrines, sewarage,houses, etc. and poverty is stiil very rampant among them.
In fact, positive and substantial changes require making appropriate allocation of
funds compulsory, their distribution timely and focused and effective management of thefunds for the welfare of the Scheduied Castes/Scheduled Tribes. Hence, there is a need tointroduce a new piece of legislation with the objective of achieving the holistic and speedyeconomic development of these communities. In order to ensure speedy economicdevelopment of the persons belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, itis proposed to give statutory back up to the SCSP and STSP and a strict monitoring on theirimplementation, without diversion of funds earmarked for welfare of the Scheduled Castesand the Scheduled Tribes.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; LOCKET CHATTERJEE
6 November , 2019.
————
PRESIDENT'S RECOMMENDATION UNDER AR TICLES l l 7(l) AND l 17( 3) OF
THE CONSTITUTION
[Copy of Letter No. 16014/01/2019-SCD-II/DAPSC dated 4 March, 2020 from
Shri Thaawarchand Gehlot, Minister of Social Justice and Empowennent to the SecretaryGeneral, Lok Sabha}.
The President, having been informed of the subject matter of the Scheduled Castes
and Scheduled Tribes Sub Plans (Budgetary Allocation and Special Scheme) Bill, 2020 byShrimati Locket Chatterjee, M.P., recommends the introduction and consideration of the Billin Lok Sabha under articles l17( 1) and 117( 3), respectively, of the Constitution.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for a separate budgetary allocation by the Central
Government for the Welfare and development of the persons belonging to the ScheduledCastes and the Scheduled Tribes. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, will involve expenditurefrom the Consolidated Fund of India. At this stage, it is not possible to estimate the expenditurelikely to be incurred.
No non-recurring expenditure is likely to be involved.
————
MEMORANDM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 7 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
————
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 159
BILL NO. 351 OF 2019
A Bill to provide for incentives to State Governments and Municipal Corporations to take
effective steps towards reduction of vehicular pollution in urban areas.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventieth Year of the Republic of India as follows,—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Vehicular Pollution Reduction Act, 2019.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "Authority" means the V ehicular Pollution Regulation and Assessment
Authority constituted under section 6;
(b) "Carpool-only lane" means a lane of a road that is exclusively reserved for
the use of powered vehicles carrying a minimum of four passengers including thedriver, or, in the case of motorcycles, a minimum of two passengers including thedriver;Short title andcommencement.
Definitions.
(c) "eligible vehicle" refers to a powered vehicle intended to be used on roads
and which meets any of the following descriptions,—
(i) an electric vehicle, that is, a vehicle that is powered entirely by electric
power stored in a battery which is recharged through an electrical outlet;
(ii) a hybrid vehicle, that is, a vehicle that is a partly powered through
battery power and partly through an internal combustion engine;
(iii) a plug-in hybrid vehicle, that is, a vehicle that can be powered in the
same way as a hybrid vehicle, and through electric power stored in a batterywhich is recharged through an electrical outlet;
(iv) a fuel cell vehicle, that is, a vehicle powered by an engine where the
only byproduct that is produced is water;
(v) a natural gas vehicle, that is, a vehicle that is powered by compressed
natural gas or liquefied natural gas;
(vi) a biofuel vehicle, that is, a vehicle that is powered by biofuels:
Provided that the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette,
lay down requirements, including technical specifications, minimum or maximum enginecapacity, engine efficiency or composition of fuel emissions, for any of the abovedescription, fulfillment of which shall be necessary for a vehicle to fall within themeaning of eligible vehicle; and
(d) "traffic signal synchronization" means the traffic engineering technique
where traffic signals are designed, monitored and operated in order to coordinate thetimes taken for signals to change for a series of roads and junctions, so as to minimisestops and delays for vehicles.
3. Every Municipal Corporation shall be entitled to receive from the Central Government
a grant of one hundred crore rupees or of such higher amount, as the Central Governmentmay, by notification in the Official Gazette specify, if it satisfies any five of the following eightconditions,—
(a) implement a system for collecting a fixed daily fee as congestion fee from
vehicles that enter congested areas within the municipality;
(b) introduce carpool-only lanes on major roads in the municipal area;
(c) provide rebates to residents of the municipal area for purchase of eligible
vehicles;
(d) provide free electric recharging facilities for cars to residents of the municipal
area;
(e) implement a system which bars entry into the municipality area of vehicles
older than ten years;
(f) implemente a system of traffic signal synchronization within the municipal
area;
(g) provides the following benefits to eligible vehicles—
(i) permit eligible vehicles to use carpool-only lanes irrespective of the
number of occupants of the vehicle; and
(ii) exempt eligible vehicles from parking fee at public parking facilities in
the municipal area; and
(h) provides the following benefits to owners of eligible vehicles,—
(i) full or partial waiver of Taxes/fees, charges or other types of dues taken
by the municipal corporation from the user of vehicles;Conditions fora MunicipalCorporationto receivegrant.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 161
(ii) full or partial waiver of toll fee at toll fee collection points under the
administrative control of the municipal corporation; and
(iii) credits for expenses on the fuel for eligible vehicles that can be set- off
against fees, charges or other types of dues taken by municipal corporation.
4. The State Government shall be entitled to receive from the Central Government a
grant of three hundred crore rupees or of such higher amount, as the Central Governmentmay, by notification in the Official Gazette specify, if that State Government satisfies any twoof the following conditions,—
(a) impose an additional Tax on all vehicles which do not fall within the category
of eligible vehicles.
(b) exempt eligible vehicles from the requirement of registration in the State after
relocation in that State if such eligible vehicles have previously been registered in anyother State;
(c) adopt policies which require persons working in private or Government offices,
organizations, agencies or businesses in the State to work from home for atleast oneworking day every week.
5. The State Government shall be entitled to receive from the Central Government a
grant of five hundred crore rupees or of such higher amount, as the Central Government may,by notification in the Official Gazette specifies, if—
(a) the State has five or less Municipal Corporations and all Municipal
Corporations within the State are eligible to receive grant under section 3; or
(b) the State has more than five but not more than twenty Municipal Corporations
and not less than three-fourths of all the Municipal Corporation within the State areeligible to receive grant under section 3; or
(c) the State has more than twenty Municipal Corporations and not less than
one-half of all Municipal Corporations within the State are eligible to receive grantunder section 3.
6. (1) The Central Government shall, within one month of the coming into force of this
Act, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute an Authority to be known as theVehicular Pollution Regulation and Assessment Authority.
(2) The Authority shall consist of a Chairperson and representatives from the Union
Ministries of Finance, Road Transport and Highways and the Environment, Forestand Climate Change, to be appointed by Central Government in such manner as may beprescribed.
(3) The allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of services of Chairperson
and other members of the Authority shall be such as may prescribed.
7. (1) The Authority shall determine whether a Municipal Corporation or a State
Government satisfies the conditions laid down under sections 3, 4 and 5.
(2) The decision of the Authority under sub-section ( 1) shall be final.
(3) While making a determination under sub-section ( 1), the Authority shall take into
consideration the steps taken by a Municipal Corporation or a State Government towardsachieving the intended objectives behind each of the conditions mentioned in sections 3, 4and 5.
8. (1) The Authority may, from time to time, issue specifications, for each of the conditions
mentioned in sections 3, 4, and 5.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provision, the Authority shall
have the power to—Conditions fora StateGovernmentto receivegrant.
Grant for
StateGovernmentachievingstate-widecompliancewithconditions.
The Vehicular
PollutionRegulation andAssessmentAuthority.
Authority to
determinesatisfaction ofconditions.
Power of the
Authority toissuespecifications.
(a) prescribe parameters for identifying congested areas in a municipal corporation;
(b) prescribe parameters for fixing congestion fee to be levied by a municipal
corporation;
(c) demarcate roads for carpool-only lanes;
(d) prescribed the minimum rate of rebate to be given to the owners for purchasing
eligible vehicles;
(e) prescribe performance parameters for traffic signal synchronization;
(f) prescribe the minimum rate of waiver in fees, charges or other types of dues to the
municipal corporation to be given to the owners of eligible vehicles; and
(g) prescribe the minimum additional cost to be realised by way of the imposition
of any additional penalty on all vehicles other than eligible vehicles.
(3) A specification issued under sub-section ( 2) shall not be modified or revoked till
the completion of a period of one year from the date of issue of specification:
Provided that the Authority shall have no restrictions on issuing specifications on
other aspects during such time.
9. (1) Every State Government and Municipal Corporation shall have the right to
submit their proposal of steps to be taken to the Authority for an advance determination ofwhether such steps, if implemented, would satisfy the conditions laid down in sections 3, 4or 5.
(2) The Authority shall provide such an advance determination within three months of
receiving the proposal from the State Government or the Municipal Corporation.
(3) For the purpose of becoming eligible for the grants specified in sections 3,4 or 5,
obtaining of an advance determination shall not affect the requirement of obtaining adetermination under section 7.
10. No suit or other legal proceedings shall lie against any person in respect of anything
which is in good faith done, or intended to be done, under or in pursuance of the provisionsof this Act.
11. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the provisions of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Advancedeterminationof proposal.
Protection of
action takenin good faith.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 163
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Vehicular pollution is one of the biggest crisis that is unfolding in our country today.
Rapid urbanisation and the lack of adequate city planning for a long time have togethercontributed to a situation where large numbers of pollution-spewing cars clog our roads,putting the health of our citizens under siege. Further complicating the situation is the factthat many laws and regulations that apply to the use of vehicles are made at the State andlocal Government levels, thus providing for a diverse array of disparate interests. The situationcalls for drastic but co-ordinated action.
This Bill seeks to streamline the interests of municipal corporations, State Governments
and the Central Government when it comes to taking steps towards reducing vehicularpollution. It provides a mechanism where the Municipal Corporation and State Governmentcan become eligible for financial grants if they undertake efforts towards curbing vehicularpollution within their jurisdiction. While incidental benefits such as a reduction in roadcongestion may also result on enactment of this Bill. The need is to take concerted effort toact against the menace of pollution caused by vehicles.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; LOCKET CHATTERJEE
6 November , 2019.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for providing grants to municipal corporations by the
Central Government on fulfillment of certain conditions regarding reduction of vehicularpollution. Clause 4 provides for grants to the State Governments by the Central Governmenton fulfillment of certain conditions regarding reduction of vehicular pollution. Clause 5provides for grants to the State Governments by the Central Government for achieving State-wide compliance with conditions. Clause 6 provides for constitution of the Vehicular PollutionReduction Authority. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditure from theConsolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that an annual recurring expenditure of aboutrupees one thousand crore would be involved from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees twenty crores is also likely to be involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 11 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purpose of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 165
BILL NO. 259 OF 2019
A Bill to provide for payment of unemployment allowance till gainful employment is
provided to eligible citizens and ensuring the right to gainful employment and formatters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventieth Year of the Republic of India as follows,—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Unemployment Allowance Act, 2019.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(b) "Fund" means the National Youth Unemployment Assistance Fund
constituted under section 4;
(c) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under the Act;Short title,
extent andcommencement.
Definitions.
(d) "self-employment" means to work independently for one's clients or customers
by setting up of own production or selling unit or establishment and not for any
employer; and
(e) "unemployed citizen" means a citizen of India who has attained the age of
eighteen years having no source of livelihood.
3. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force
every unemployed citizen shall have the right to gainful employment.
(2) It shall be the duty of the appropriate Government to provide gainful employment
opportunity to every unemployed citizen within its territorial jurisdiction.
(3) The gainful employment referred to in sub-section ( 1) shall be provided according
to the age, educational qualifications and physical status of the unemployed citizen.
(4) For carrying out the purposes of this Act, it shall be the duty of the appropriate
Government to generate adequate employment opportunities in the public sector, privatesector, small scale industries, cottage and village industries, khadi and other weaving
industries, food processing sector, self-employment opportunities, agriculture and other
sectors.
(5) Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, it
shall be the duty of the appropriate Government to fill up all the vacant posts in the inistries,
Departments, Public Sector Enterprises and other Government agencies and organisations
in a time bound manner.
4. Till such time gainful employment is provided to unemployed citizens or provision
is made for self employment under any Government scheme or by providing loan through a
Bank or Financial Institution, every such citizen shall be paid by the appropriate Governmentan unemployment allowance, not being less than rupees twenty thousand per month in such
manner as may be prescribed:
Provided that the unemployment allowance shall not be paid under this Act to an
unemployed citizen who,—
(a) has an income from any source not being less than the amount of
unemployment allowance fixed under this Act, or
(b) is covered under any existing scheme of unemployment allowance prevalent
in a State or Union territory, as the case may be:
Provided further that in case an unemployed citizen has an earning from any other
source which is less than the amount of unemployment allowance fixed under this Act, his
unemployment allowance shall be reduced by the amount of his earning.
5. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute
a Fund for unemployment allowance with initial corpus of rupees sixty thousand crore and
thereafter shall contribute to the fund, from time to time, along with the State Governments in
such ratio as may be prescribed.
(2) There shall also be credited to the Fund such other sums as may be received by
way of donation, contribution, assistance or otherwise from individuals, body corporate,
financial institution, firms and partnership.
(3) The Fund shall be managed by the Central Government in such manner as may be
prescribed.
6. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide adequate funds for carrying out the purposes of this Act.Right to
gainfulemployment.
Unemployed
citizen.
Constitution
of corpus fundforunemploymentallowance.
Central
Governmentto provideadequate fund.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 167
7. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may make such order or give such direction, not inconsistent with the provisionsof this Act, as may appear to be necessary or expedient for removing the difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made after the expiry of the period of two years
from the date of commencement of this Act.
8. The provisions of this Act and rules made there-under shall have effect
notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith contained in any other law for the timebeing in force.
9. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Power toremovedifficulties.
Acto to have
overridingeffects.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
India is projected to grow at eight per cent. per annum [Gross Domestic Product
(GDP)] in the next two years and is the fastest growing major economy in the world. Joblessgrowth is an economic phenomenon in which an economy experiences growth whilemaintaining or decreasing its level of employment. The International Labour Organisationpredicted that joblessness will increase from 17.7 million in 2016 to 18 million by 2018, eventhough the country's unemployment rate is expected to go down from 3.5 per cent. to 3.4 percent. The trend of significant gap between the pace of GDP growth and that of employmentgrowth has given rise to the phenomenon of "jobless growth" in India.
As per the survey by Labour Bureau, country's unemployment rate has shot up to a
five year high of five per cent. in 2015-16. This figure is significantly higher, at 8.7 per cent, forwomen as compared to 4.3 per cent. for men. Equally tragic is the mounting unemploymentamong educated youth. The growing unemployment among educated youth (age group 15to 29 years) in recent years is an outcome of such slow growth rate of jobs. At the all-Indialevel, the unemployment rate among youth with secondary education unemployment rateincreased from 2.6 per cent. to 3.2 per cent. and for those with higher secondary educationunemployment rate increased from 3.3 per cent. to 4.4 per cent. In case of youth with agraduate degree unemployment rate increased from 5.8 per cent. to 8.4 per cent. and with apostgraduate degree it rose from 5.7 per cent. to 8.5 per cent.
About seventy-seven per cent. of Indian households do not have a regular wage/
salaried person. India has no dearth of quality human resources at its disposal. As a longterm measure, there is a need to boost entrepreneurial instincts within the demographic baseby substantially investing in human capital via education.
Another vital area needing policy intervention is the increasing gender-gap in the
labour force participation. The shortage of jobs is compounded by depressed wages, with82 per cent. of men and 92 per cent. of women earning less than rupees ten thousand permonth. The advantages of economic growth are futile if it is not able to create sufficient jobsin the economy. India has an advantage due to its demographic dividend. There is an urgentneed to effectively implement policy measures to exploit the demographic dividend andensure inclusive and sustainable growth which is not jobless.
The Bill, therefore, proposes to grant unemployment allowance through creation of a
fund for unemployment allowance having a corpus of sixty thousand crore. The grant ofunemployment allowance will help in curbing the increasing unemployment. The Bill alsoseeks to make right to work compulsory by imposing an obligation on the Government toprovide gainful employment.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SU. THIRUNAVUKKARASAR
6 November , 2019.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 169
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for right to gainful employment to every unemployed
citizen. Clause 4 provides for unemployment allowance to be paid to every unemployedcitizen. Clause 5 provides for the constitution of the corpus Fund for payment of unemploymentallowance. Clause 6 makes it mandatory for the Central Government to provide requisitefunds for carrying out the purposes of the Bill. The Bill, therefore, if enacted will involveexpenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. At this stage it is not possible to estimatethe expenditure. However, it is estimated that a sum of rupees sixty thousand crore in additionto rupees sixty thousand crore as initial corpus, will involve a recurring expenditure perannum from the Consolidated Fund of India.
No non-recurring expenditure is likely to be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 9 of the Bill gives power to the Central Government to make rules for carrying
out the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 171
BILL NO. 261 OF 2019
A BILL to establish an Agricultural Workers Welfare Fund for the welfare and
development of agricultural workers and for matters connected therewith or incidental
thereto.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventieth Year of the Republic of India as follows,—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Agricultural Workers Welfare Fund Act, 2019.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such a date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "agriculture" with all its grammatical variations and cognate expressions,
includes floriculture, horticulture, sericulture, the raising of crops, grass or gardenproduce, dairy farming, poultry farming, stock breeding, cutting of wood or grass,gathering of fruit, raising of man-made forest or rearing of seedlings or plants;Short title,extent andcommencement.
Definitions.
(b) "Fund" means the Agricultural Workers Welfare Fund constituted under
section 3;
(c) "prescribed" means as prescribed by the rules made under this Act; and
(d) "workers" mean workers engaged in any activity connected with agriculture.
3. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette constitute a
Fund to be known as theAgricultural Workers Welfare Fund for carrying out the purposes ofthis Act.
(2) The Central Government and State Government shall contribute to the Fund in
such ratios as may be prescribed.
(3) The Fund shall be administered by a Committee consisting of:—
(a) a Chairperson to be appointed by the Central Government having experience
of at least ten years in the field of farmers welfare, agriculture or rural development;
(b) a Deputy Chairperson to be appointed by the Central Government having
such qualification as may be prescribed;
(c) seven members of Parliament of whom four shall be from the House of the
People and three from the Council of States to be nominated by the respective Presiding
officers of the Houses and having a background in agriculture related activities;
(d) four members to be appointed by the Central Government to represent the
Union Ministries of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Labour and Employment, Finance
and Rural Development, respectively;
(e) four members to be appointed by the Central Government from amongst the
agricultural workers covered under this Act; and
(f) four members to be nominated by the Governments of the States to be rotated
amongst the States in alphabetical order.
(4) The Fund shall be utilized for the following purposes, namely,—
(i) payment of unemployment or sustenance allowance to agricultural workers
during off season period;
(ii) free health facilities for the agricultural workers and their families in the
hospitals to be set up for the purpose;
(iii) free educational facilities to the children of agricultural workers;
(iv) payment of compensation of workers who sustain injuries during work;
(v) payment of compensation to families of workers who die in harness;
(vi) payment of premium group life insurance cover of workers;
(vii) payment of disability allowance in case of accident at the workplace and are
not able to work further;
(viii) payment of old age pension to those workers who have attained sixty
years of age and are not gainfully employed;
(ix) provision of suitable facilities like canteen, health, recreation, water etc. at 40
work places;
(x) payment of bonus to workers; and
(xi) payment of maternity benefit and establishment of creche facilities for the
children of female agricultural workers covered under this Act.Constitution
of AgriculturalWorkersWelfare Fund.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 173
(5) The Salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of service
of Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson and other member of the Committee shall be such asmay be prescribed.
4. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide adequate funds to the Committee constituted under sub-section ( 3) of
section 3, for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
5. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent
therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force.
6. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the provisions of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.CentralGovernmentto provideadequateFunds.
Act not in
derogation ofother law.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The agricultural sector of the economy in India is the largest sector in terms of
employment of the workforce. It consists of crop cultivation and other agricultural activitiessuch as forestry, livestock and fishing. The workers in this sector may be broadly dividedinto wage workers, and farmers. Almost the entire agricultural sector (except the PlantationSector) is unorganized i.e. it has neither any formal system of social security nor regulation
of conditions of work.
According to estimates of the 2011 Census, there are close to 230 million people who
are employed as agricultural workers in India. More and more firm workers are moving awayfrom agriculture and this has been negatively affecting the country's productivity especiallyin crops which are labour intensive like Paddy, Wheat, Cotton, Sugarcane and Groundnut.Currently, the profession of agricultural labour is of 'all pain and no gain'. Across the country,monthly earnings have been found to be as low as one thousand rupees. This poor economicstate is further worsened when coupled with the pitiable other hazardous conditions of theseworkers. Excessive working hours lead to poor health and low life expectancy across theprofession. Accessibility towards basic healthcare and education as well as essential socialsecurity schemes is virtually inexistent. The seasonal nature of this profession further addsto the woes of these citizens, who constitute the poorest thirty per cent. of the country whoare left to fend for their lives during off-season without any money.
The agricultural workers in the Unorganised Sector face problems that arise out of
deficiency or capability deprivation in terms of inadequate employment, low earnings, lowhealth, etc., as well as of adversity in the absence of fall back mechanisms (safety net). Theseworkers have limited or no formal social security cover which increases their vulnerabilityduring times of illness, old age, unemployment and untimely death. The absence of socialsecurity mechanisms is a critical factor in downturns in the conditions of these households,many of whom are already very poor. It destroys the workers ability to contribute meaningfully,and to increasing production and productivity. It leads to disaffection increasing socialcosts, widespread crimes, and persistent ill health.
The changing nature of agricultural production—including the increased use of
chemicals and machinery—is aggravating risks. This is particularly true in a number ofdeveloping countries where education, training and occupational safety and health servicesare largely inadequate. While there is a very long way to go in terms of establishing asatisfactory life for these workers, it is sad to say that even the bare minimum has not beendone towards realising this very important goal.
The present Bill strives to constitute a Agricultural Workers Welfare Fund to establish
through basic policy measures the rights that these workers deserve. It intend to coveragricultural workers, who are all agricultural wage workers not protected under the PlantationsLabour Act, 1951 and marginal and small farmers. It also intends to provide a measure ofsocial security to agricultural wage workers and marginal and small farmers in the unorganisedsector.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SU. THIRUNAVUKKARASAR
6 November , 2019.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 175
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for the setting up of a Agricultural Workers Welfare Fund
and for the benefit of agricultural workers. It also provides for a Committee consisting of aChairperson, Deputy Chairperson and other member for administration of the Fund. Clause4 provides for the Central Government to provide adequate funds for carrying out the purposesof this Act. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditure from the ConsolidatedFund of India. It is estimated that a recurring expenditure of about rupees five hundred crorewill be involved per annum from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees five hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 5 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative powers is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 177
Short title and
commencement.BILL NO. 15 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
Amendment of
Section 2.
Insertion of
new ChapterXXVII.2.In the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as the Code), in
section 2—
(a) after clause (c), the following clause (ca) shall be inserted, namely:—
'(ca) "compensation" shall include, but not limited to, monetary and non-
monetary counselling, health services, re-integration in society through skilltraining, relief of the harm or injury, including body, mind or reputation, sufferedby malicious prosecution;'; and
(b) after clause (j), the following clause (ja) shall be inserted, namely:—
'(ja) "malicious prosecution" means instituting prosecution without any
existing reasonable or probable cause, with malice or wrongful prosecutioninstituted without good faith and includes any of the following but not limitedto, namely:—
(i) making or fabricating a false or incorrect record or document for
submission;
(ii) making a false declaration or statement before an officer authorised
by law to receive as evidence when legally bound to state the truth that isto say by an oath or by a provision of law;
(iii) otherwise giving false evidence when legally bound to state the
truth that is to say by an oath or by a provision of law;
(iv) fabricating false evidence for submission;(v) suppression or destruction of an evidence to prevent its
production;
(vi) bringing a false charge, or instituting or cause to be instituted
false proceedings against a person;
(vii) committing a person to confinement or trial acting contrary to
law;
(viii) restraining or confining a person, without application of mind,
while instituting a complaint after receiving information under section154;
(ix) acting in violation of any law in any other manner not specifically
covered under (i) to (viii) above.'.
3. After Chapter XXVII of the Code, the following Chapter and sections thereunder
shall be inserted, namely:—
CHAPTER XXVIIA
Compensation to Person Maliciously Prosecuted
365A. (1) An application seeking compensation for a wrongful prosecution may be
made:—
(a) by the accused person who has been maliciously prosecuted and has suffered
injury; or
(b) where the accused person died either before or after the termination of wrongful
prosecution, by all or any of the heirs or the legal representatives of the deceased:
Provided that where all the heirs or the legal representatives of the deceased
have not joined in any such application for compensation, the application shall bedeemed to have been made on behalf of and for the benefit of all the heirs and legalrepresentatives of the deceased.2 of 1974.
Application
forcompensation.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 179
Award of
interest oncompensation.(2)Every application under sub-section (1) shall be filed preferred in the court where
trial has been concluded or where the applicant resides.
(3)In case of incarceration for more than three months, in lieu of malicious prosecution
the court may after hearing the applicant, award interim compensation to the applicant, for
the injury suffered, which shall not be less than rupees one lakh.
(4)Every application for compensation under sub-section (1) shall be made within a
period of one year from the date of acquittal or discharge or closure report filed by the officer,as the case may be:
Provided that the applicant may file application, after the expiry of the said period of
one year if the court is satisfied that the applicant was prevented by sufficient cause frommaking the application within the prescribed time.
Explanation .—For the purpose of this section "injury" means monetary and non-
monetary harm, of mind, body or reputation or any other kind connected therewith or incidental
thereto, suffered during the prosecution, maliciously or wrongfully initiated.
365B. Where the court allows the application for compensation, it may direct that an
interest at the rate of nine per cent in addition to the compensation, shall also be paid from
the date of such application:
Provided, in case the investigating officer or a Government agency has instituted a
case, which concluded in favour of the applicant or accused, due to malicious prosecution,the court shall direct the State Government or Central Government, as the case may be, to pay
the compensation, awarded by the court to the applicant herein after hearing the applicant
and also initiate a judicial inquiry on such investigating officer or the investigating agency.
365C. While adjudicating the quantum of compensation under section 365A the court
may, but not limited to, take into account the following factors, namely:—
(i) gravity of offence and punishment therein;
(ii) loss of health;
(iii) loss of income;
(iv) loss of livelihood;
(v) loss of reputation;
(vi) loss of property;
(vii) loss of opportunities;
(viii) psychological and physiological harm or injury;
(ix) disqualification suffered due to malicious prosecution;
(x) loss to lead a dignified life in the family; and
(xi) such other factor as the court may deem fit for the ends of justice or to
prevent miscarriage of justice.
365D. ( 1) Every State Government shall, in co-ordination with the Central Government,
prepare a scheme for providing funds for the purpose of compensation to the personmaliciously prosecuted or his dependents heirs who have suffered loss or injury as a resultof the malicious prosecution and who require rehabilitation.
(2)Whenever a recommendation or direction, as the case may be, is made by the Court
for compensation, the District Legal Service Authority or the State Legal Service Authority,
as the case may be, shall be the nodal authority to dispense or release of the fund so directedto be awarded by the court.Factors to betaken intoaccount bythe courtawardingcompensation.
Compensation
scheme forthe personmaliciouslyprosecuted.
Appeals.(3)The State or the District Legal Services Authority, as the case may be, to alleviate
the suffering of the person maliciously prosecuted, may be directed, but not limited to, forimmediate first-aid facility or medical benefits or mental health counselling or health servicesor vocational or skill development training forre-integration into the society, to be madeavailable free of cost on such direction of the court awarding compensation in terms of eithermonetary or non-monetary, or any other interim relief as the appropriate court may deems fit.
365E. ( 1) Any person aggrieved of the interim compensation awarded by the court of
the first instance under sub-section (3) of section 365A, may prefer an appeal within theperiod of ninety days from the date of the award to the High Court.
(2) No appeal shall lie against the interim award of the court of first instance.
365F. ( 1) The Central Government or State Government, as the case may be, by
notification, make rules for the purpose of carrying out the purposes of this Chapter.
(2)Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing powers, such rules may provide
for all or any of the following matters, namely:—
(a) the form of making application for claims for compensation and the particulars
it may contain, to be paid in respect of such applications under sub-section ( 2) of
365A;
(b) the procedure to be followed by a Court in holding an inquiry and the powers
vested in a Civil Court which may be exercised by a Court;
(c) the form and the manner of the payment of amount for preferring an appeal
against an award of the Court under sub-section (1) of section 365D; and
(d) any other matter which is considered necessary.
(3) Every rule made by a State Government under this section shall be laid, as soon as
may be after it is made, before the State Legislature.Power tomake rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 181
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Restraining or confining the liberty of the human being must be in exceptional
circumstances rather than a normal routine through powers vested in law. Article 21 of theConstitution says, 'no person shall be deprived of his life and personal liberty except inaccordance with procedure established by law' and Article 22 provides for protection againstarbitrary arrests and illegal detention. The administration of justice would be defied if the lawof the land is moulded in a way that does not prohibit an individual from maliciously orwrongfully prosecuting the person in question. Malicious prosecution adds to the alreadyburdened criminal justice system. Depriving a person of their liberty because of maliciousprosecution is a direct violation of their fundamental right. Further, confinement leads to theloss of productive years, which a free person could have used for leading a dignified life, theloss of education , the loss of health, the loss of income, loss of livelihood, loss to lead afamily with dignity, and loss to reputation etc. The international covenants, to which Indiais a signatory, protect a person from wrongful prosecution , but the implementation of thesame has not been done. Article 14(6) of the International Covenant on Civil and PoliticalRights, 1966 (ICCPR) delineates the obligation of States in cases of miscarriage of justiceresulting from wrongful prosecutions. It states that "when a person has by a final decisionbeen convicted of a criminal offence and when subsequently his conviction has beenreversed or he has been pardoned on the ground that a new and newly-discovered factshows conclusively that there has been a miscarriage of justice, the person who has sufferedpunishment as a result of such conviction shall be compensated according to law unless it isproved that the non-disclosure of the unknown fact in time is wholly or partly attributable tohim".
Article 9(5) of the ICCPR further underscores this right by declaring that "anyone who
has been the victim of unlawful arrest or detention shall have an enforceable right tocompensation".
The United Nations Human Rights Committee explained the obligations contained in
Article 14 of ICCPR: "It is necessary that States parties enact legislation ensuring thatcompensation as required by this provision, can in fact be paid and that payment is madewithin a reasonable period of time". Not all countries party to this have substantiated it withtheir domestic amendments or laws.
The National Crime Records Bureau's (NCRB) annual statistical report called the 'Prison
Statistics India (PSI)' contains information with respect to prisons, prisoners, and prisoninfrastructure. According to PSI 201513, there were 4,19,623 prisoners across the country;out of which, 67.2% i.e. 2,82,076 were undertrials substantially higher than the convict
population i.e. 1,34,168 (32.0%). With respect to the issue of miscarriage of justice under
consideration here, the period of incarceration of the undertrials also needs to be taken intoconsideration. The data shows that 25.1% (70,616) of the total undertrials spent more than ayear in prison; 17.8% (50,176) spend up to 1 year in prison as undertrials, 21.9% (61,886) ofthe undertrials were in prison for 3 to 6 months, and 35.2% (99,398) undertrials spent up to 3months in prison. Also to be noted is the data of release, which shows that during the year2015, 82,585 prisoners were released by acquittal, and 23,442 prisoners were released inappeal. As per International report released, India, has one of the highest undertrial prisonersin the world.
The apex court considering state of affairs expressed anguish over person languishing
in jails such as in Thana Singh v. Central Bureau of Narcotics 2(2013) 2 SCC 590. See also:
Hussainara Khatoon & Ors. v. Home Secretary, State of Bihar, Patna, AIR 1979 SC 1369;Supreme Court Legal Aid Committee Representing Undertrial Prisoners v. Union of Indiaand Ors. (1994) 6 SCC 731, observing: "The laxity with which we throw citizens into prison
reflects our lack of appreciation for the tribulations of incarceration; the callousness withwhich we leave them there reflects our lack of deference for humanity.
It also reflects our imprudence when our prisons are bursting at their seams. For the
prisoner himself, imprisonment for the purposes of trial is as ignoble as imprisonment on
conviction for an offence since the damning finger and opprobrious eyes of society draw no
difference between the two..". After the Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India, AIR 1978 SC
597, Hon'ble Supreme Court of India gave a much needed interpretation of Article 21 of the
Constitution of India, the courts started to consider awarding compensation in cases ofundue detention and bodily harm. Khatri & Ors. v. State of Bihar & Ors., AIR 1981 SC 928
(the Bhagalpur Blinding case) was one of the earliest case wherein the question was consideredas to whether a person deprived of his life and liberty in violation of Article 21 be awardedrelief by the court or not and the court further ordered the State to meet the expenses ofhousing the blinded victims in a blind home in Delhi.
The court in Rudal Sah v. State of Bihar AIR 1983 SC 1086, where the Supreme Court,
passed an order of compensation for the violation of Articles 21 and 22 of the Constitution.In this case the petitioner was unlawfully detained in prison for 14 years after the order ofacquittal. The court observed thus: "One of the telling ways in which the violation of thatright can reasonably be prevented and due compliance with the mandate of Article 21 secured,is to mulct its violators in the payment of monetary compensation. Administrative sclerosisleading to flagrant infringements of fundamental rights cannot be corrected by any othermethod open to the judiciary to adopt".
Afterwards, the Boma Chara Oraon case, where the Supreme Court declared that
anyone deprived illegally of his life or personal liberty can approach the Supreme Court andseek compensation for violation of his fundamental right under Article 21.The need tocompensate the victims of wrongful arrests, incarceration etc. by awarding "suitable monetarycompensation", the Supreme Court in the case of Bhim Singh, MLA v. State of J & K
&Ors.(1985) 4 SCC 677 opined that the mischief, malice or invasion of an illegal arrest and
imprisonment cannot just be "washed away or wished away" by setting free the person soarrested or imprisoned.
The Court awarded a sum of Rs. 50,000/- as compensation for illegal detention but, it is
noteworthy that it did not delve into the reasoning or mechanism of how this "suitablemonetary compensation" was determined or should be determined in similar cases.Furthermore, getting into the question of " who will pay the compensation" the SupremeCourt in the case of SAHELI, A women's resource center v. Commissioner of Police, Delhi AIR
1990 SC 513, held the vicarious liability of the State i.e. the State to responsible for the
tortious acts of its employees; and, ordered the Delhi Administration to pay the compensationfor police atrocities which lead to the death of a 9 year old child; further noting that the DelhiAdministration has the option to recover the amount paid from the officers found responsible.Further, plethora of judgements of the court such as in Nilabatibehera and D.K. Basu talked
about police atrocities and awarding compensation. Therefore, plethora of judgements ofSupreme Court talked about compensation to person wrongfully prosecuted or undulyincarcerated, which is barred by law in common parlance. Even the Delhi High Court in thecase of Babloo Chauhan @ Dabloo vs. State Government of NCT of Delhi 247 (2018) DLT 31
expressed its concerns about wrongful implication of innocent persons who are acquittedbut after long years of incarceration, and the lack of a legislative framework to provide reliefto those who are wrongfully prosecuted. The Court, vide its order dated 30 November 2017,
specifically called for the Law Commission of India to undertake a comprehensive examinationof issue of relief and rehabilitation to victims of wrongful prosecution, and incarceration andheld "There is at present in our country no statutory or legal scheme for compensating thosewho are wrongfully incarcerated. The instances of those being acquitted by the High Courtor the Supreme Court after many years of imprisonment are not infrequent. They are left totheir devices without any hope of reintegration into society or rehabilitation since the bestyears of their life have been spent behind bars, invisible behind the high prison walls.
The possibility of invoking civil remedies can by no stretch of imagination be
considered efficacious, affordable or timely… …The decisions in Khatri vs. State of Bihar
(1981) 1 SCC 627; Veena Sethi vs. State of Bihar AIR 1983 SC 339; RudulSah vs. State ofBihar AIR 1983 SC 1086; Bhim Singh vs. State of Jammu and Kashmir (1985) 4 SCC 677and Sant Bir vs. State of Bihar AIR 1982 SC 1470, are instances where the Supreme Court
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 183
has held that compensation can be awarded by constitutional courts for violation of
fundamental right under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. These have included instancesof compensation being awarded to those wrongly incarcerated as well. But these are episodicand are not easily available to all similarly situated persons. There is an urgent need, therefore,for a legal (preferably legislative) framework for providing relief and rehabilitation to victimsof wrongful prosecution and incarceration… Specific to the question of compensating thosewrongfully incarcerated, the questions as regards the situations and conditions upon whichsuch relief would be available, in what form and at what stage are also matters requiringdeliberation..." after which the 277th Law Commission report in furtherance of the order ofthe Hon'ble Delhi High Court recommended for the formation of a legislative framework inlieu of compensation to person maliciously prosecuted.
In the prevalent time wherein registration of FIR has become a norm than a need, when
a crime has taken place, so as to subvert the due process of law and falsely, maliciously orwrongfully incarcerate the person lead to abuse of law or manipulation of law according towhims and fancies of the sovereign. Thereby, there is indeed a need of legislative frameworkso to compensate the sufferings of the wrongfully or maliciously incarcerated and his/herfamily.
Therefore, this bill is produced herein below.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; MOHAMMAD JAWED
20 July, 2022.
PRESIDENT'S RECOMMENDA TION UNDER ARTICLES 117(1) AND 117(3) OF
THE CONSTITUTION
[Copy of letter No. 23.08.2022-Judl.Cell-I dated 12 January, 2023 from Shri Ajay Kumar
Mishra, Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs to the Secretary General,Lok Sabha].
The President, having been informed of the subject matter of the Code of Criminal
Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2022* ( Amendment of section 2, etc .) by Dr. Mohammad Jawed,
Member of Parliament, recommends under articles 117(1) and 117(3) of the Constitution forintroduction and consideration of the Bill in Lok Sabha, respectively.
[*Bill, being perinted in 2023, the year in the title of Bill has been changed from 2022 to 2023.]
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill vide proposed section 365A provides for award of interim
compensation to persons convicted of wrongful prosecution. Further the proposed section365B provides for award of interest on compensation. Also the same clause vide proposed
section 365D provides for giving medical facilities, mental health counselling vocational andskill training to maliciously prosecuted persons in order to ensure their reintegration in thesociety. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fundof India. It is estimated that a sum of rupees one hundred crore may involve as recurringexpenditure per annum from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees forty crore may also be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 3 of the Bill vide proposed section 365F empowers the Central Government and
the State Government to make rules for carrying out the purposes of the Bill. As the rules willrelate to matters of detail only, the delegation of legislative power is, therefore, of a normalcharacter.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 185
BILL NO. 261 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Indian Penal Code (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title andcommencement.
2.After section 440 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, the following section shall be
inserted, namely:—
"440A. Whoever commits 'mischief of stone pelting on any person or property
(public or private) shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which shall not beless than one year but which may extend to ten years and with fine which shall not beless than rupees fifty thousand but which may extend upto rupees one lakh:
Provided that in case of public property owned by or in the possession of ,—(a) the Central Government; or
(b) any State Government; or
(c) any local authority; or
(d) any corporation established by, or under, a Central, Provincial or State Act; or
(e) a company as defined in section 2(20) of the Companies Act, 2013
(18 of 2013),
the person committing mischief by stone pelting shall be punished with rigorous
imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than two years but which may extend uptoten years and with fine:
Provided further that a person committing mischief of stone pelting on security
personnel, police force, healthcare workers, rallies and religious functions shall be punishedwith rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than two years but which mayextend to ten years and with fine:
Provided also that if the person fails to pay the fine imposed for the damage done the
same shall be recovered as an arrear of land revenue.
Explanation. —For the purpose of this section,—
(a) "public property" means any property, whether immovable or movable
(including any machinery) which is owned by, or in the possession of, or under thecontrol of the State or Central Government;
(b) "private property" refers to the ownership of property by private parties
essentially anyone or anything other than the Government. Private property mayconsist of real estate, buildings, movable property, objects; and
(c) "stone pelting" — refers to criminal assault in the form of stone throwing by
individuals or mob who pelt, bombard or throw stones at security personnel, policeforces, healthcare workers, rallies and religious functions/procession or any property.".Insertion ofsection 440A.
Mischief by
stone pelting.45 of 1860.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 187
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Although India does not have any law directly dealing with stone-pelting, there are
other provisions of the Indian Penal Code that tackle this crime. These are Section 120B, 121,141, 142, 143, 321 to 336, 350 and 427. Section 120B talks about punishment for criminalconspiracy, which may extend to six months and a fine. Section 121 talks about waging waragainst the Government of India, which can be punishable by life. Section 141 and 142 talkabout unlawful assembly and Section 143 about its punishment, which may extend up to sixmonths or a fine or both. Section 321 to Section 326 deal with voluntarily causing hurt andgrievous hurt, which may attract a punishment of up to seven years along with a finedepending on the gravity of the injury. Section 350 talks about criminal force, which ispunishable with imprisonment which may extend to three months or a fine or both. Section427 talks about mischief causing damage to the amount of Rs. 50 or upwards shall bepunishable for a term which may extend to two years. However, Section 326 was inserted withan amendment and two provisions relating to acid attacks were inserted, but stone-pelting isstill to be taken care of. While the Indian Penal Code mentions action against rioting andviolent activities, it does not include stone pelting or compensation for damages for stonepelting.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; RAHUL SHEWALE
21 November , 2022.
BILL NO. 285 OF 2022
A Bill to abolish the practice of child marriages in the country.Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Child Marriage Abolition Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:—
(a) "child" means a person either male or female who has not completed twenty-
one years of age;
(b) "child marriage" means a marriage to which either of the contracting parties
is a child;
(c) "contracting party", in relation to a marriage, means either of the parties
whose marriage is or is about to be thereby solemnised;
(d) "Child Marriage Annulment Officer" includes the Child Marriage Annulment
Officer appointed under sub-section (1) of section 6; and
(e) "district court" means, in any area for which a Family Court established
under section 3 of the Family Courts Act, 1984 exists, such Family Court, and in anyarea for which there is no Family Court but a city civil court exists, that court and inany other area, the principal civil court of original jurisdiction and includes any othercivil court which may be specified by the State Government, by notification in theOfficial Gazette, as having jurisdiction in respect of the matters dealt with in this Act.
3. Notwithstanding anything contained in any law at the time being in force, every
child marriage solemnized on or after the date of coming into force of the Child MarriageAbolition Act, 2022 shall be "void ab initio".Short title,
extent andcommencement.
Definitions.
Child marriages
to be void.66 of 1984.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 189
4. (1) Where a child marriage is solemnised, any person having charge of the child,
whether as parent or guardian or any other person or in any other capacity, lawful or unlawful,including any member of an organisation or association of persons who does any act topromote the marriage or permits it to be solemnised, or negligently fails to prevent it frombeing solemnised, including attending or participating in a child marriage, shall be punishablewith rigorous imprisonment which may extend to ten years and shall also be liable to finewhich may extend up to five lakh rupees or both.
(2) For the purposes of this section, it shall be presumed, unless and until the contrary
is proved, that where a child marriage was solemnised, the person having charge of suchchild has negligently failed to prevent the marriage from being solemnised.
5. Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, an
offence punishable under this Act shall be cognizable and non-bailable.
6. (1) The State Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint for
the whole State, or such part thereof as may be specified in that notification, an officer orofficers to be known as the Child Marriage Annulment Officer having jurisdiction over thearea or areas specified in the notification.
(2)The State Government may also request a respectable member of the locality with a
record of social service or an officer of the Gram Panchayat or Municipality or an officer ofthe Government or any public sector undertaking or an office bearer of any non-governmentalorganisation to assist the Child Marriage Annulment Officer and such member, officer oroffice bearer, as the case may be, shall be bound to act accordingly.
(3) It shall be the duty of the Child Marriage Annulment Officer,—
(a) to prevent solemnisation of child marriages by taking such action as he may
deem fit;
(b) to collect evidence for the effective prosecution of persons contravening the
provisions of this Act;
(c) to advise either individual cases or counsel the residents of the locality
generally not to indulge in promoting, helping, aiding or allowing the solemnisation ofchild marriages;
(d) to create awareness of the evil which results from child marriages;
(e) to sensitize the community on the issue of child marriages;
(f) to furnish such periodical returns and statistics as the State Government may
direct; and
(g) to discharge such other functions and duties as may be assigned to him by
the State Government.
(4)The State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, subject to such
conditions and limitations, divest the Child Marriage Annulment Officer with such powers ofa police officer as may be specified in the notification and the Child Marriage AnnulmentOfficer shall exercise such powers subject to such conditions and limitations, as may bespecified in the notification.
7.(1) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this Act, if, on an
application of the Child Marriage Annulment Officer or on receipt of information through acomplaint or otherwise from any person, a Judicial Magistrate of the first class or aMetropolitan Magistrate is satisfied that a child marriage in contravention of this Act hasbeen arranged or is about to be solemnised, such Magistrate shall issue an injunctionagainst any person including a member of an organisation or an association of personsvoiding such marriage.2 of 1974.Punishment
for promotingor permittingsolemnisationof childmarriages.
Offences to be
cognizable andnon-bailable.
Child Marriage
AmulmentOfficers.
Power of
court to issueannulmentprohibitingchildmarriages.
(2)A complaint may be made by any person having personal knowledge or having
reason to believe, and a non-governmental organisation having reasonable information,relating to the likelihood of taking place of solemnisation of a child marriage or child marriages.
(3)The Court of the Judicial Magistrate of the first class or the Metropolitan Magis-
trate may also take Suo motu cognizance on the basis of any reliable report or information.
(4)For the purposes of preventing solemnisation of mass child marriages on certain
days such as Akshaya Trutiya , the District Magistrate shall be deemed to be the Child
Marriage Annul Officer with all powers as are conferred on a Child Marriage Annul Officer byor under this Act.
(5)The District Magistrate shall also have additional powers and he may take all
appropriate measures and use the minimum force required to stop or prevent solemnisationof mass child marriages.
(6)No injunction shall be issued against any person or member of any organisation or
association of persons unless the Court has previously given notice to such person, membersof the organisation or association of persons, as the case may be, and has offered him orthem an opportunity to show cause against the issue of the injunction:
Provided that in the case of any urgency, the Court shall have the power to issue an
interim injunction without giving any notice under this section.
(7) An injunction issued may be confirmed or vacated after giving notice and hearing
the party against whom the injunction was issued.
(8) The Court may either on its own motion or on the application of any person
aggrieved, rescind or alter an injunction issued.
(9) Where an application is received the Court shall afford the applicant an early
opportunity of appearing before it either in person or by an advocate and if the Court, afterhearing the applicant rejects the application, wholly or in part, it shall record in writing itsreasons for so doing.
(10) Whoever knowing that an injunction has been issued against him disobeys such
injunction shall be punishable with imprisonment of either description for a term which mayextend to two years or with fine which may extend to one lakh rupees or with both.
8. The Child Marriage Annulment Officers shall be deemed to be public servants
within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
9. No suit, prosecution or other legal proceedings shall lie against the Child Marriage
Annulment Officer in respect of anything in good faith done or intended to be done inpursuance of this Act or any rule or order made thereunder.
10. (1) The Central Government or the State Governments may, by notification in the
Official Gazette, make rules for carrying out the provisions of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act by the Central Government shall be laid, as soon as
may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a totalperiod of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successivesessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or thesuccessive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in the making any modification in the ruleor both the Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter haveeffect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that anysuch modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previouslydone under that rule.
11. (1) The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 is hereby repealed.
(2)Notwithstanding such repeal, all cases and other proceedings pending or continued
under the said Act at the commencement of this Act shall be continued and disposed of inaccordance with the provisions of the repealed Act, as if this Act has not been passed.Child MarriageAmulmentOfficers to bepublic servants.
Protection of
action takenin good faith.
Power of
CentralGovernmentand StateGovernmentsto make rules.
Repeal. 6 of 2002.45 of 1860.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 191
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The problem of child marriage in India is a complex one because of religious traditions,
social practices, economic factors and blind beliefs.
The legal age of marriage for women being 18 years, child marriages continue in India
and a decrease in such marriages has been not because of the existing law, but an increase ingirls' education and employment opportunities.
The Prohibition of Child Marriage Amendment Act, 2021, (PCMAA) has no provisions
to make child marriage void.
The PCMAA outlines conditions under which a marriage is void. When a minor child
is enticed out of the keeping of the lawful guardian to marry, is forced or compelled or bydeceitful means is induced to go from any place or is sold for marriage.
However, marriage itself with a minor is not void under the PCMAA. It makes child
marriage voidable at the option of any contracting party, who was a 'child' at the time of themarriage.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; RAHUL SHEWALE
November 21, 2022
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 10 of the Bill empowers the Central Government and the State Governments to
make rules for carrying out the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detailonly, the delegation of legislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 193
BILL NO. 53 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for the protection from exploitation and welfare measures for the salt
workers in the country by setting up a welfare fund, for payment of old age pension,healthcare, educational facilities for their children and for payment ofminimum wages and for matters connected therewith and incidental thereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Salt Workers Welfare Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the official Gazette, appoint.
2. (a) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of that
State and in other cases the Central Government;
(b) "employer" means any person who employs, whether directly or through
any other person, or contractor, whether on behalf of himself or on behalf of any otherperson, one or more labourer or workers for work connected with salt making from seaor salt lake, as the case may be, including handling of salt;Short title andcommencement.
Definitions.
(c) "welfare fund" means the Salt Workers Welfare Fund constituted under
section 4;
(d) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act; and
(e) "salt worker" means any person engaged in making salt from sea or lake water
on land by digging shallow wells and pumping out brine or in a chemical factory or anyrelated occupation as a wage earner, whether in cash or kind, for his livelihood andincludes a person engaged through a contractor or engaged as a self employed person.
3. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, formulate a
National Policy of Salt and Salt Workers.
(2)The National Policy formulated under sub-section (1) shall include,—
(a) a common salt policy for the entire country;
(b) declaration of salt as an agricultural product; and
(c) welfare measures and social security for the salt workers.
4. The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute a
Fund to be known as the Salt Workers Welfare Fund for carrying out the purposes of thisAct.
5. The Fund shall be utilised for,—
(a) providing healthcare facilities for the salt workers;
(b) conducting of medical check-up camps at least once in a year for the salt
workers;
(c) payment of compensation to the next kin in case of death of salt workers;
(d) housing facility at subsidised rate;
(e) payment of old age pension;
(f) providing water supply for drinking and other purposes;
(g) providing educational facility to the children of salt workers; and
(h) undertaking such other welfare measures which the appropriate Government
deems fit.
6. It shall be the responsibility of the appropriate Government to,—
(a) undertake welfare measures for the salt workers;(b) ensure payment of minimum wages to the salt workers; and
(c) ensure job security to the salt workers.
7. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation by Parliament, provide funds
to Governments of concerned States for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
8. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any other
law for the time being in force dealing with the subject matter of this Act.
9. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government, may make such order to give such direction, not inconsistent with the provisionsof this Act, as appears to it to be necessary or expedient for the removal of the difficulty andany such order shall be final.Formulationof NationalPolicy for Saltand SaltWorkers.
Constitution
of SaltWorkersWelfare Fund.
Utilisation of
Fund.
Responsibility
of theappropriateGovernment.
Central
Governmentto providefunds.
Overriding
effect of theAct.
Power to
removedifficulties.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 195
10. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Power tomake rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Salt is a Central subject and land is a State subject. Abody need to be constituted to set
up common rules and regulations for the salt farmers. Salt workers are seasonal workers withmarginal source of income. There is lack of social and health securities for salt workers. Theyare exposed to hazardous work-environmental factors and work in extreme climatic conditions.Workers also suffer from different occupational health condition as well as due to lack ofeducation and awareness they pay no attention to the occupational health hazardousconditions. There is lack of motivation towards use of personal protective equipment. All theworkers have oral abusive habits and poor personal hygiene. The salt workers settlementslack basic amenities like potable drinking water, toilets and waste management systems.Government should pay attention towards the salt workers health and socio-economic status.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; RAHUL SHEWALE
16 January , 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 197
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill provides for constitution of Salt Workers Welfare Fund. Clause 7
provides for funds to the State Governments for carrying out the purposes of the Act. TheBill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. Itis estimated that a recurring expenditure of about rupees one crore will be involved perannum.
No non-recurring expenditure is likely to be involved from the Consolidated Fund of
India.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 10 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 199
BILL NO. 2 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Chit Funds Act , 1982.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. This Act may be called the Chit Funds (Amendment) Act, 2023.
2. In section 2 of the Chit Funds Act, 1982 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act),
in clause ( b), after the words "fraternity fund", the words "Money Growing Scheme" shall be
inserted.
3. In section 4 of the principal Act, in sub-section (1), in the proviso,—
(i) for the words "within twelve months", the words "within three months" shall
be substituted; and
(ii) for the words "six months", the words "three months" shall be substituted.Short title.
Amendment
of section 2.
Amendment
of section 4.49 of 1982.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Chit Funds Act, 1982 was enacted to provide for the regulation of chit funds which
are indigenous business in India and have conventionally satisfied the financial needs of thelow-income households. The chit is a mechanism which combines credit and savings in ascheme, in which a group of individuals come together for a pre-determined duration andsubscribe a certain sum of money by way of periodical installments and each such subscriber,in his term as determined by lot or by auction or by tender or any other specified manner, getsthe collected sum. In this way, people who are in need of funds and those who want to saveare able to meet their requirements simultaneously.
Chit Funds frauds have become day to day affair. There is an immediate need to check
the increasing number of chit funds frauds in order to save the hard earned money investedin such chit funds by the common man.
At present chit funds can be floated without prior approval of the State Government
concerned. A chit fund is required to get registered within a period of twelve months from thedate of its sanction or within such further period or periods not exceeding six months in theaggregate as the State Government may allow as specified in the section 4 of the Chit FundsAct, 1982. In order to facilitate orderly growth of the chit fund sector, to remove bottlenecksbeing faced by the chit fund industry and to enable greater financial access to people, theChit Funds (Amendment) Bill, 2023, inter alia , proposes the following, namely:—
(a) insertion of the words "Money Growing Scheme", in clause (b) of section 2 which
defines "chit";
(b)to cut short the registration period to three months from the date of sanction, so
that the persons responsible for the conduct of a chit fund do not prolong the registration ofchit to commit fraud with the public.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SUKANTA MAJUMDAR
December 20, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 201
BILL NO. 41 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for compulsory yoga practice from primary to senior secondary level in
all the schools and other education institutions throughout the country in orderto prepare talent of sports from school level and thereby ensuring good and sound
health of students and for making it obligatory for the Central and State
Governments to provide requisite infrastructure for the purpose and for mattersconnected therewith and incidental thereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Compulsory Yoga Practice in Schools and other
Education Institutions Act, 2023.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,extent andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
the State, and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(b) "education institution" means an university or college imparting education
to student, by whatever name such institution is called;
(c) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(d) "school" means any Government school or a Government aided school or a
private school, which imparts education from primary to senior secondary schoollevel;
(e) "sports infrastructure" means requisite resources required for playing
game such as playground with necessary facilities, articles of sports, sports instructorsand requisite environment as are required for sports in the school; and
(f) "yoga" means teaching of yoga postures or asanas and such other yoga
exercises as would promote the control of the body by bringing in flexibility, strengthand endurance and of the mind by enhancing alertness and meditation.
3. (1) The Central Government shall, as soon as may be, but not later than one year
after the commencement of this Act, formulate a National Policy for providing yoga practiceand ensuring requisite infrastructure and other facilities required for yoga practice in allschools of the country.
(2) The national policy referred to in sub-section (1) shall provide for,—
(a) imparting free yoga practice to all the students as per their ability and physical
condition in the schools and other education institutions;
(b) encouraging yoga practice and creating awareness of the importance of
yoga among the school students;
(c) ensuring the availability of yoga teacher in all the schools and other education
institutions;
(d) providing adequate funds for infrastructure development for yoga practice
in all the schools and other education institutions;
(e) incorporating yoga as compulsory subjects in all the schools and other
education institutions;
(f) preparing standard and qualitative syllabus for yoga practice as per the age
and physical capacity of the students under the guidance of experts and universalisationthereof;
(g) providing scholarship and stipend to those students whose performance in
yoga has been outstanding;
(h) providing weightage to marks obtained in yoga for admission in colleges,
universities, and institutions of national importance;
(i) according preference to the outstanding sports persons in direct recruitment
under the Central and State Government services; and
(j) such other provisions, as the Central Government may deem fit and necessary
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
4. (1) It shall be the duty of the appropriate Government to implement the National
Policy formulated under section 3.
(2) The appropriate Government shall review the progress and quality of yoga practice
being imparted by the schools and other education institutions from time to time, in suchmanner as may be prescribed.Definitions.
National
policy forYoga Practiceandinfrastructure.
Implementation
of Nationalpolicy.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 203
5. Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the provisions of this Act shall
apply to minority institutions only if the management of such institutions convey to theappropriate Government their willingness to include the yoga practice in their schoolcurriculum.
6. Any school which violates the provisions of this Act shall be liable for punitive
action by the appropriate Government, including withdrawal of recognition of the school insuch manner and with such conditions, as may be prescribed.
7. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide requisite funds, from time to time, for carrying out the purposes of thisAct.
8. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any other
law for the time being in force dealing with the subject matter of this Act.
9. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of the Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty dayswhich may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, beforethe expiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessionsaforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Housesagree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in suchmodified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modificationor annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done underthe rule.Act to applyto minorityeducationalinstitutions incertainsituation.
Penalty.
Central
Governmentto providefunds.
Act to
supplementother laws.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Yoga is being practiced in our country since the time immemorial for good health and
longevity. It keeps the body and mind healthy and sound and its various asanas cure even
serious diseases. Now, yoga is not confined to India only but has become international andInternational Yoga Day is held every year on 21st June throughout the world.
It is, therefore, felt that yoga should be introduced right from childhood to make it a
part and parcel of everyone's life so that we can foster confidence and self-esteem in theminds of our upcoming generations in schools and other Education Institutions.
Similarly, various sports activities make us healthy, fit and fine. They are essential for
the overall development of people and in particular, the children and youth. Some sports areeven very rewarding and outstanding sportspersons of these sports earn enormous wealthin their career. Many international sports events such as Olympics, Commonwealth Games,Asian Games etc. are held from time-to-time and winning in these events brings laurels forthe country. Thus, the process of learning sports shall start from the school itself to preparetalents for national and international events.
Our country currently has the largest youth population and majority of them are sports
lovers. In fact, there is no dearth of talent in various sports in the country. The onlyshortcomings are that they seldom get proper resources, training and well equippedinfrastructure to sharpen their talent to become international sportspersons.
It is felt that compulsory yoga and sports education in schools and other education
institutions will definitely identify talent and make our nation excel in the global sports andcompetitions, apart from building a fit and healthy nation.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to provide for making sports and yoga education compulsory
in all educational institutions right from primary school level to senior secondary level inorder to make it a part of school curriculum.
Hence, this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SUKANTA MAJUMDAR
January 11, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 205
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for the formulation of a national policy for providing yoga
practice and infrastructure development in schools and other education institutions. It alsoprovides for creating awareness of yoga among students, financial assistance forinfrastructure development, scholarship and stipends for outstanding students in yoga inschools and other education institutions. Clause 7 makes it obligatory for the CentralGovernment to provide requisite funds for carrying out the purposes of the Bill. The Bill,therefore, if enacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. At thisstage, it is difficult to give an exact estimate of the actual expenditure to be incurred on it.However, it is estimated that a recurring expenditure of rupees one lakh crore per annum
would involve from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure to the tune of rupees one hundred crore may also be
involved for creating various assets throughout the country from the Consolidated Fund ofIndia.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 9 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 207
BILL NO. 87 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may becalled the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (Amendment)
Act, 2023.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 2 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (hereinafter referred
to as principal Act),—
(i) after sub-clause ( e), the following sub-clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(ea) "clinical psychologist" means a mental health professional with full
time Masters Degree in clinical psychology with M.Phil from a recognizeduniversity highly specialized training in the diagnosis and psychological treatmentof mental, behavioural and emotional illness;".
(ii) after sub-clause ( k), the following sub-clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(ka) "guardian" means guardian, parent or caretaker of a person with a
disability;".Short title,extent andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 2.49 of 2016.
(iii) after sub-clause ( q), the following sub-clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(qa) "occupational therapist" means a person trained in a branch of
modern medicine which includes the application of purposeful, goal-orientedactivity through latest technology for evaluation, diagnosis, and or treatment ofpersons whose function is impaired by physical illness, injury, emotional disorder,
congenital or development disability, or due to aging process, in order to achieve
optimum functioning to prevent disability and to maintain health;".
(iv) after sub-clause ( v), the following sub-clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(va) "physiotherapist" means a person trained in a branch of modern
medical science which includes examination, assessment, interpretation, physicaldiagnosis, planning and execution of treatment and advice to any person forthe purpose of preventing, correcting, alleviating and limiting dysfunction,acute and chronic bodily malfunction, curing physical disorders or disability,
promoting physical fitness, facilitating healing and pain relief and; treatment of
physical and psychosomatic disorder through modulating psychological andphysical response using exercises, physical agents, activities and devicesincluding mechanical, electrical and thermal agents;".
(v) after sub-clause ( za), the following sub-clauses shall be inserted, namely:—
"(zaa) "school nurse" means a professional nurse that practices advancing
the well-being, academic success, and life-long achievements of students withminimum qualification of nursing (GNM) or B.Sc Nursing with registration in
Nursing Council;
(zab) "Special education teacher" means teacher of concerned speciality,
with a minimum educational qualification of diploma or B.Ed in ID (MR) forintellectual disabilities with registration on Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI),
Diploma or B.Ed in LD for learning disabilities with registration on (RCI), Diploma
or B.Ed in MD for multiple disabilities with registration on (RCI), Diploma or B.Edin ASD for autism spectrum disorder with registration on (RCI) and Diploma orB.Ed in CP for cerebral palsy with registration on (RCI);".
(vi) after sub-clause (zc), the following sub-clauses shall be inserted, namely:—
"(zca) "speech-language therapist" means a professional of speciality
Audiology in speech and language with a minimum educational qualification ofBASLP;
(zcb) "social worker" means a person whose job is social work with a
minimum qualification of Masters in Social Work;".
3. After section 27 of the parent Act, the following new section shall be inserted,
namely:—
"27A. ( 1) The appropriate Government and the local authorities shall within their
economic capacity and development, undertake or cause to be undertaken services and
programmes in the areas of clinical psychology, special education, speech and audio language
therapy, social work, nursing therapy, physiotherapy in consultation with guardians of thepersons with disabilities.
(2) The appropriate Government and the local authorities shall, for the aforesaid
purpose, establish a Block Resource Centre in every block of every district of the country.
(3) For the purpose of Rehabilitation of persons with disabilities the Block Resource
Centre shall be authorised to avail the services from the following:—
(a) Clinical Psychologist;
(b) Special Education teacher;
(c) Speech-language therapist;
(d) Social worker;
(e) School Nurse;
(f) Occupational therapist;
(g) Physiotherapist.Insertion of new
section 27A.
Establishment
of BlockResourceCentre.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 209
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 was enacted to give effect to the
United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) to whichIndia is a signatory.
It was enacted with a view to make provisions for our children who are differently-
abled so that they can get the rights for dual benefits of preventive/ educational aspect anddiagnostic/medical aspect.
In view of the constant endeavour to facilitate greater ease of living to such differently-
abled persons, it has become necessary to amend certain provisions of the Act. Hence theBill, namely, the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (Amendment) Bill, 2023 is proposed to beenacted.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to amend the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016
with view to provide that—
(i) the appropriate Government and the local authorities shall establish a Block
Resource Centre in every block of every district of the country;
(ii) the appropriate Government and the local authorities shall within their
economic capacity and development, undertake or cause to be undertaken servicesand programmes in the areas of clinical psychology, special education, speech andaudio language therapy, social work, nursing therapy, physiotherapy in consultationwith guardians of the persons with disabilities; and
(iii) the Block Resource Centre shall be authorised to avail the services from
Clinical Psychologist, Special Education teacher, Speech-language therapist, Socialworker, School Nurse, Occupational therapist and Physiotherapist.
The Bill seeks to achieve the above objectives.
N
EW DELHI; THOMAS CHAZHIKADAN
March 16, 2023.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides that the appropriate Government and the local authorities
shall establish a Block Resource Centre in every block of every district of the country.
The Bill, therefore, if enacted will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of
India. A recurring expenditure of rupees one hundred crore would be involved per annumfrom the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees fifty crore would also be involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 211
BILL NO. 23 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In article 312 of the Constitution, in clause (1), for the words "an all India judicial
service" the words "all India Judicial service and all India medical service" shall be substituted.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of article 312.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
In 2016, the WHO Global Strategy on "Human Resources for Health : workforce 2030"
determined that all countries need about 4.45 healthcare personnel (minimum of 1 doctorand 3 nurses) per 1,000 population, to reach the UN's Sustainable Development Goal 3(Ensure Healthy Lives and Well-being for all at all Ages). Presently there are 13.08 allopathydoctors, 7.8 lakh AYUSH doctors, 34.33 lakh nurses and 13 lakh allied healthcare professionalsfor 141.133 crore population.
Despite having good number of doctors and nurses, health indicators of India are far
below the world averages. In this context, creation of an All India Medical Services along thelines of Indian Administrative Services and Indian Police Services, is essential for effectiveadministration and policy making in healthcare. Administrative staff with medical backgroundcan effectively handle health issues and epidemic out breaks, in a scientific way. Governmentof India's endeavour to increase medical educational institutions is going on at a rapidphase, and at the same time we need to ensure that healthcare administrators are moreeffective for equitable distribution of healthcare services.
India had an 'Indian Medical Service' in British-ruled India, a military medical service,
which was abolished in 1947. Ever since, multiple committees, commissions and reports suchas Mudaliar Committee (1959), Kartar Singh Committee (1973), the Administrative StaffCollege Report (1995) and National Commission on Macroeconomics and Health Report(2005) have recommended the re-introduction of Indian Medical Service. The 15th FinanceCommission has also recommended for the establishment of an All India Medical and HealthService. The development of such a service for public health administration was discussedby the parliamentary committee on health, in March 2021. The All India Service Act of 1951mentions 'The Indian Medical and Health Service' as an All India Service. However, it wasnever implemented.
Currently, there is no dedicated centralised healthcare body, which can develop
infrastructure, monitor healthcare services and take policy decisions. This often leads toimproper policy response during health emergencies, as was felt during the COVID-19pandemic. Given the inter-State disparity in the availability of health resources, the existenceof many overlapping healthcare schemes and the need for uniformity in implementation ofschemes across, it is essential to constitute an All India Medical Services. With a severeshortage of health administrators in the country, the Indian Medical Service will be able toclose the long-standing gap between public health information and decision-making.
Presently, the services of bureaucrats without medical background nor the services of
Government doctors without administrative skills, are able to understand the nuances andcomplexities of healthcare system administration. Creating good administrative officers withmedical background, can help the nation to resolve the existing healthcare issues and also beready to tackle any future pandemics.
To achieve these objective, this Bill seeks to incorporate a new All India Services,
namely "Indian Medical Services" along the lines of Indian Administrative Services andIndian Police Services.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SANJEEV KUMAR SINGARI
December 19, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 213
BILL NO. 12 OF 2023
A Bill to amend the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called as the Persons with Disabilities (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 2 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (hereinafter referred
to as the principal Act), for clause ( za), the following clause shall be substituted, namely:—
"(za) "rehabilitation" refers to a process aimed at enabling and empowering
persons with disabilities to attain and maintain an optimal level of physical, sensory,intellectual, psychological, environmental and social function levels, according toWorld Health Organisation standards and in alignment with the right to an adequatestandard of living as enshrined in the Constitution of India.".Short title,andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 2.
3. In section 7 of the principal Act,—
(a) in sub-section ( 1), after clause ( a), the following clause shall be inserted,
namely:—
"(aa) establish District Disability Rehabilitation Centres for rehabilitation
persons with disabilities who have been subjected to abuse, violence andexploitation;";
(b) in sub-section ( 4), for clause ( b), the following clause shall be substituted,
namely:—
"(b) the particulars of the nearest District Disability Rehabilitation Centre
established under clause ( aa) of sub-section ( 1) working for the rehabilitation of
persons with disabilities.".
4. In sub-section ( 2) of section 27 of the principal Act, for the words "non-Governmental
Organisations" the words "District Disabilities Rehabilitation Centre and non-GovernmentalOrganisations" shall be substituted.Amendmentof section 7.
Amendment
of section 27.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 215
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
To safeguard the rights and well-being of people with disabilities, the Rights of Persons
with Disabilities Act, 2016, was passed. The Act was a significant piece of legislation inIndia's history in safeguarding the rights of those who were specially abled.
According to the 2011 census, 2.68 crore, i.e., over 2.2 per cent. of the Indian population
live with certain mental or physical disabilities. However, the objective of guaranteeing aholistic growth through social and educational advancement, welfare, protection andempowerment for specially abled persons has yet not been achieved comprehensively acrossthe country.
The principal act gives responsibility to the appropriate government and local authorities
for implementing services and programmes of rehabilitation, particularly in the areas ofhealth, education and employment for all persons with disabilities. However, the act does notmandate responsibility to the appropriate Governments for establishing District DisabilityRehabilitation Centers. Thus, the amendment proposes to establish these centres based onthe recommendations of the parliamentary standing committee on the "Assessment ofScheme for Implementation of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (SIPDA)".Thus, through this amendment we propose mandating establishment of District DisabilityRehabilitation Centres (DDRC) in every district for physical and mental disabilities.
Along the same lines it is only valid to make the definition of Rehabilitation, in the Act,
more holistic and in accordance with World Health Organisation (WHO) standards, which isdefined as "a set of interventions designed to optimize functioning and reduce disability inindividuals with health condition sin in teraction with their environment", based oninternational standards.
Hence, this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SANJEEV KUMAR SINGARI
December 19, 2022
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for establishment of District Disability Rehabilitation
Centre by the appropriate Government. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, will involve expenditurefrom the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that an annual recurring expenditure ofrupees Ten Crore is likely to be incurred from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees Twenty Crores is also likely to be involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 217
BILL NO. 58 OF 2023
A Bill to ensure protection and welfare mechanisms for the handloom weavers and workers
and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Handloom Weavers and Workers (Welfare) Authority
Act, 2023.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,extent andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "Authority" means the National Handloom Weavers and Workers Welfare
Authority constituted under section 3;
(b) "Committee" means Local Committee for Handloom Weavers constituted by
the Authority at local levels under section 5;
(c) " Fund" means National Handloom Weavers and Workers Welfare Fund
constituted by the Authority under section 6;
(d) "handloom" means any loom used for the production of cloth that is operated
fully or partly manually as defined in clause (g) of section 2 of the Factories Act, 1948;
(e) "prescribed" means prescribed by the rules made under this Act;
(f) "weaver" means a person engaged in the production of cloth on a handloom
and includes a person who owns, works or operates on handloom for the productionof cloth; and
(g) "worker" means a worker engaged in a handloom by a weaver and who earns
wages on a regular or any other basis by working in a handloom.
3. (1) The Central Government shall by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute
an Authority to be known as the National Handloom Weavers and Workers Welfare Authorityfor carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) The headquarters of this Authority shall be at Hyderabad which is the common
capital of States of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
(3) The Authority shall consist of—
(a) a Chairperson, committed to the causes of weavers or has adequate
knowledge and professional experience in the handloom sector;
(b) a Deputy Chairperson with such qualification, as may be prescribed;
(c) five members to represent the Union Ministry of Finance, Labour and
Employment, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Social Justice and Empowermentand Textiles;
(d) three members from the Parliament, of whom two shall be from Lok Sabha and
one shall be from Rajya Sabha, to be nominated by the Presiding Officer of therespective Houses;
(e) five members to be nominated by the Central Government who represent the
handloom weavers, provided that at least one Member shall be each from amongstpersons belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and women,respectively.
4. (1) The Chairperson and every Member shall hold office for such period, not
exceeding five years, as may be specified by the Central Government in this regard;
(2) The Chairperson or Member may, by writing and addressed to the Central
Government, resign from the office of Chairperson or, as the case may be, of the Member atany time;
(3) The Central Government shall remove a person from the office of Chairperson or a
Member if that person—
(a) becomes an undischarged insolvent;
(b) gets convicted or sentenced to imprisonment for an offense which in the
opinion of the Authority involves moral turpitude;
(c) becomes of unsound mind and stands so declared by a competent court;Definitions.
63 of 1948.
Constitution
of theNationalHandloomWeavers andWorkersWelfareAuthority.
Term of
Office andconditions ofMembers.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 219
(d) in the opinion of the Authority has so abused the position of Chairperson or
Member as to render that person's continuance in office detrimental to the publicinterest.
(4) The salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of the
service of the Chairperson and members of the Authority shall be such as may be prescribed.
5. (1) The Authority shall, in consideration and coordination with the State
Governments, as it may deem necessary for carrying out the purposes of this Act, appointcommittee at the local level as may be prescribed, to be known as the Local Committee forHandloom Weavers.
(2) The Authority shall in coordination with Local Committees and State Governments
take, steps for the overall welfare of weavers and handloom workers including, raising theirstandard of living, removal of poverty and indebtedness, ensuring their social security,making easy availability of raw materials at an affordable price and encouraging market forthe handloom sector.
(3) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provisions, the Authority
shall,—
(a) formulate and implement welfare policy for the handloom weavers and workers;
(b) formulate and implement grievance redressal mechanisms for the handloom
weavers and workers;
(c) maintain a district-wise register of handlooms, handloom weavers and workers
with such particulars and in such manner as may be prescribed;
(d) regulate the service conditions of workers including fixing of minimum wages
in such manner as may be prescribed;
(e) ensure modernization of old handlooms;
(f) encourage and provide all necessary assistance to handloom weavers
cooperatives;
(g) organize exhibitions, meals, and such other activities to promote handloom
sector in different parts of the country;
(h) develop and regulate four dedicated markets in each State for hand-loom
articles, in consultation with the State Government of the respective States;
(i) make suitable arrangements for the purchase of handloom cloth by Government
agencies on a cash and carry basis;
(j) encourage export of handloom cloth and handloom garments; and
(k) perform such other functions as may be assigned to it by the Central
Government from time to time.
6. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute
a Fund to be known as the Handloom Weavers and Workers Welfare Fund.
(2) The Central Government and the State Governments shall contribute to the Fund in
such a ratio as may be prescribed.
(3) There shall also be credited to the Fund such other sums as may be received by
way of donations, contributions, assistance, or otherwise from individuals and organizations.
7. The Funds shall be utilized for the following purposes,—
(a) providing minimum unemployment allowance to handloom workers from time
to time;Functions ofthe Authority.
Constitution
of theHandloomWeavers andWorkersWelfare Fund.
Utilisation of
Fund.
(b) providing respectable pension for handloom workers above the age of
55 years;
(c) providing interest-free loans to handloom weavers and workers;
(d) making ex-gratia payments at prescribed rates to each of the bereaved
families of handloom weavers who die in harness;
(e) providing loans at a nominal rate of interest for purchasing cotton yarn and
other necessary raw materials to the handloom weavers;
(f) providing an annual assistance of twenty-four thousand rupees to the families
of weavers who own handloom to modernize their equipment;
(g) providing special assistance to women weavers to set up small-scale handloom
workshops;
(h) providing healthcare facilities to the handloom weavers and workers and
their dependent family members;
(i) providing educational facilities and vocational training to the wards of weavers
and workers; and
(j) such other welfare measures as may be prescribed.
8. (1) The Authority shall prepare, in such form and manner, as may be prescribed, an
annual report giving a true and full account of its activities during the previous year andsubmit it to the Central Government.
(2) The Central Government shall cause the report submitted to it under sub-section
(1) to be laid before each House of Parliament.
9. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions, notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as appear to it to be necessary or expedient forremoving the difficulty:
Provided that no such orders shall be made after the expiry of the period of three years
from the date of commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall, as soon as may be, after it is made, be laid
before each House of Parliament.
10. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any other
law for the time being in force in respect of any of the matters provided under this Act.
11. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.AnnualReport.
Power to
removedifficulties.
Act not in
derogation ofany other lawin force.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 221
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Handloom Sector is one of the largest unorganized economic activities after
agriculture and constitutes an integral part of rural and semi-rural livelihood. Handloomweaving constitutes one of the richest and most vibrant aspects of our country's culturalheritage. Indian handloom artists are globally known for their unique hand-spinning, weaving,and printing style. In the financial year 2021-22, Indian exported handloom accounted forworth Rs. 1,693 crores. It not just contributes to the country's economy but has also been thebackbone of the rural population involved in the handloom sector. According to the HandloomCensus 2019-20, the industry employs about 3,522,512 handloom workers across the country.
Despite the aforementioned, the sector today faces many challenges. One of the most
concerning challenges among them is the lack of social security for handloom weavers. Longworking hours and complex work accompanied by low wages have pushed new generationsof handloom weavers to look for different avenues of employment. Such decisions aremotivated by the exploitative nature of work and non-profitable labour of procuring yarn andweaving for which handloom weavers sometimes take loans and get stuck in the cycle ofdebt. The overall number of weavers decreased by 19 per cent. from 43.31 lakh in 2009-10 to35.25 lakh in 2019-20. Moreover, the Handlooms (Reservation of Articles for Production)Act, 1985 focuses on the preservation of handloom articles with blurring attention beinggiven to securing the interest of the weavers, especially the women workers who constitute72.29 per cent. of the total handloom workers whose future are insecure.
Furthermore, less visibility of handloom products in the market has also added to the
problems of workers. Most handlooms enjoy prominence only in their locality and peopleelsewhere are unaware of the existence of many other varieties. The reason behind this ispoor marketing and the industry's inability to adopt current marketing techniques. Promotingexport of such products needs dedicated funds from the Government to market products.Despite this Government allocations for handloom in national and State budgets are beingreduced and reversed.
The Bill, therefore, will strive to enact for the interest of handloom weavers by
establishing an authority that will look after the welfare of the workers. The proposed authoritywould do so by undertaking the functions prescribed above and by establishing local welfarecommittees and dedicated welfare funds for the handloom weavers. The authority will alsoset up a mechanism to address the grievances and long-pending demands of the weavers.Such an initiative would encourage and empower the handloom sector to flourish in thedomestic and global markets.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SANJEEV KUMAR SINGARI
January 19, 2023.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill seeks to constitute the National Handloom Weavers and Workers
Welfare Authority. Clause 5 provides for certain steps to be taken by the authority for thewelfare of the handloom weavers and workers. Clause 5 also provides for the constitution ofthe local committee for handloom weavers. Clause 6 seeks to constitute the National Handloomweavers fund.
This Bill, if enacted, will involve expenditure from the consolidated fund of India. It is
estimated that a recurring expenditure of rupees ten crore per annum would involve from theConsolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure to the tune of rupees fifty crore may also be involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 11 of the Bill empowers the appropriate Government to make rules for carrying
out the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 223
BILL NO. 98 OF 2023
A Bill to prohibit violence against healthcare service providers, patients, and their
attendants and to prevent damage or loss to property in healthcare service facilitiesand for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
CHAPTER-I
P
RELIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be called the Healthcare Service Providers and Facilities (Prevention
of Violence and Damage to Property) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall extend to the whole of India.Short title,
extent,applicationandcommencement.
(3) It applies to clinical establishments defined and registered under the Clinical
Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Act, 2010 or under any State Act for the time
being in force.
(4) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in other cases, the Central Government.
(b) "arms" means arms as defined in clause (c) of section 2 of the Arms Act, 1959;
(c) "damage" includes loss or harm to property, whether in whole or in part, with
or without taking possession of the property that renders it inadequate for its designated
purpose or wholly or partially incapable of performing its function;
(d) "healthcare services" means the administrative, curative, rehabilitative,
preventive, promotive, and supportive services for the control of diseases, injuries, or
disabilities as well as measures ensuring the health of persons and include activities
that ensure or provide support or access for persons in need of these healthcare
services or activities such as searching for, collecting, treating or transporting persons
in need of healthcare or the administration of healthcare service facilities;
(e) "healthcare service facilities" include healthcare centres, hospitals, healthcare
teaching facilities, diagnostic centres, blood banks, medical clinics, nursing homes,
maternity homes, dental clinics, all registered alternative medicine healthcare facilities,
physiotherapy clinics, medical camps, first-aid posts, or any other premises or
conveyance that is wholly or partly used for providing healthcare services in the
public and private sectors;
(f) "healthcare service providers" in relation to a healthcare service facility means
the administrative, clinical, support, and auxiliary staff including students in healthcare,
and includes the following—
(i) registered medical and dental or alternative medicine practitioners
including those having provisional registration;
(ii) registered nurses;
(iii) medical students;
(iv) nursing students;
(v) paramedics;
(vi) all registered alternative medicine's practitioners
(vii) paramedical students;
(viii) pharmacists;
(ix) Lady Health Workers;
(x) polio workers;
(xi) volunteers;
(xii) management staff; and
(xiii) non-clinical staff;Definitions.23 of 2010.
54 of 1959.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 225
(g) "mental anguish" means extreme pain, distress of mind, severe misery or
mental suffering;
(h) "mental illness" means a mental illness as defined in clause (s) of section 2
the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017;
(i) "obstruction" means any act that hinders the provision of healthcare services;
(j) "patient" means any recipient of healthcare services;
(k) "prescribed" means prescribed rules made under this Act;
(l) "property" means any property, movable or immovable in possession of or
under the control of any healthcare service facility or healthcare service provider inrelation to his professional duty;
(m) "relevant authority" means a competent authority in relation to healthcare
services facilitates or healthcare services providers as provided in any other laws,rules, and regulations of the State Government, as the case may be; and
(n) "violence" means and includes harassment, provocation, or use of force
against a person, group or community, or healthcare service facility which results inmental anguish, physical injury, or death to the healthcare service providers orbeneficiary of healthcare services, or results in interruption of healthcare servicesprovision or damage to such property and shall not include—
(i) collateral or defensive violence, if any, caused by the law; and
(ii) enforcing agencies or security personnel of the healthcare service
facility on duty.
CHAPTER-II
O
FFENCES AND PENALTIES
3. No person shall use violence against a healthcare service provider, patient or his
attendants, or any other person within a healthcare service facility.
4. (1) Whoever contravenes the provisions of section 3, shall be punished under the
relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
(2) Where an act, in contravention of section 3, causes bodily injury or death or which
in the ordinary course of nature is likely to cause injury or death, such person shall be liableto punishment under the relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code, 1860:
Provided that in case of injury to a healthcare service provider or to the patient or his
attendant, as the case may be, in addition to the punishment specified above, the accusedshall also be liable to pay compensation to such healthcare service provider, patient, or hisattendant, as the case may be, in such manner as may be prescribed.
5. (1) If an act, in violation of section 3, causes mental anguish without causing any
bodily injury or harm to a healthcare service provider, patient, or his attendants, as the casemay be, the person to whom mental anguish has been caused may apply for mediation andsettlement with the person or persons causing such mental anguish in such manner andprocedure as may be prescribed.
(2) The Central Government may, by notification, authorize the Authorities constituted
under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987, for the purposes of institution mediationunder this Act.
(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987,
the Authority authorized by the Central Government under sub-section ( 2) shall complete
the process of mediation within a period of three months from the date of application madeby the plaintiff under sub-section ( 1):Prohibition of
violence.10 of 2017.
45 of 1860.
45 of 1860.Punishment.
Institutional
Mediation andSettlement.
39 of 1987.
39 of 1987.
Provided that the period of mediation may be extended for a further period of two
months with the consent of the parties:
Provided further that, the period during which the parties remained occupied with the
institution mediation, such period shall not be computed for the purpose of limitation under
the Limitation Act, 1963.
(4) If the parties arrive at a settlement, the same shall be reduced into writing and shall
be signed by the parties to the dispute and the mediator.
(5) The settlement arrived at under this section shall have the same status and effect as
if it is an arbitral award on agreed terms under sub-section (4) of section 30 of the Arbitration
and Conciliation Act, 1996:
Provided that if the parties fail to arrive at a settlement for any reason, section 4 of the
Act shall be applied.
6. No person shall cause damage or loss to property owned by or under the care of
healthcare service providers or healthcare facilities in connection with or incidental to their
activities in healthcare service facilities.
7. Whoever contravenes the provisions of section 6, shall be punished with—
(a) imprisonment for a term which may extend upto three years or with a fine
equivalent to double the market value of the property damaged or lost at the time of the
commission of the offence or with both, if an act causes irreparable wrongful damage
or loss to the property having value equivalent to or exceeding one lakh rupees; or
(b) imprisonment for a term which may extend upto one year or with a fine equal
to double the cost of repairing the damaged property including the cost of deprivation
of healthcare services to the public or with both, if an act causes reparable wrongfuldamage or loss to property the value of which is equivalent to or exceeding one lakh
rupees; or
(c) imprisonment for a term which may extend upto one month or with the fine or
with both, if an act which causes wrongful damage or loss to property having value
less than one lakh rupees:
Provided that where loss to property constitutes other offences to property, it
shall be dealt with under the relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
8. No person shall cause disruption or obstruction of healthcare services in a healthcare
facility.
9. Whoever contravenes the provisions of section 8 shall be punished with—
(a) imprisonment for a term which may extend upto three years or with fine which
may extend to three lakh rupees but shall not be less than fifty thousand rupees or with
both, if an act causes obstruction of healthcare services; or
(b) imprisonment for a term which may extend upto one year or with fine which
may extend to one lakh rupees but shall not be less than fifty thousand rupees or with
both, if an act which in the ordinary course of nature is likely to cause interruption in
the provision of healthcare services.
10. No person shall keep, carry or display arms of any kind, including licensed weapons,
within the premises of a healthcare service facility:36 of 1963.
26 of 1996.
45 of 1860.Prohibition of
damage toProperty.
Penalty for
contraventionof section 6.
Prohibition of
obstruction ordisruption ofhealthcareservice.
Penalty for
contraventionof section 8.
Prohibition of
carryingweapons intoa healthcarefacility.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 227
Provided that the provisions of this section shall not apply to the carrying of arms
officially allowed for security purposes to the law enforcing agencies or security personnel
of a healthcare service facility on duty.
11. Whoever contravenes the provisions of section 10 shall be punished with
imprisonment for a term which may extend upto six months but shall not be less than onemonth or with a fine which may extend to three lakh rupees but shall not be less than fifty
thousand rupees or with both.
12. Any registered medical and dental or alternative medicine practitioners, including
those having provisional registration in a healthcare facility, are of the opinion that any
person is imminent to act in contravention of the provisions of this act may document, report
the behaviour, and refuse to treat the patient:
Provided that if the person suffers from a fatal or life-threatening disease or is in dire
need of immediate medical assistance, the provision of this section shall not be applicable on
such person.
13. If the registered medical and dental or alternative medicine practitioners, including
those having provisional registration, refuses to treat someone for any reason which is not
medically justified, which includes but are not limited to race, gender, caste, religion, sexualorientation, disability, and income, and fail to provide a reasonable cause for refusal to
treatment, the license of such registered medical and dental or alternative medicine practitioners
shall be suspended for a minimum period of two years.
14. Where it is proved at any stage that no violation of the provisions of this Act was
committed and the charge levied against the accused was false and malicious, the person
levelling such false charge shall be prosecuted under the relevant provisions of the IndianPenal Code, 1860.
CHAPTER-III
R
ESPONSIBLITIES
15. (1) In addition to any other responsibility of a healthcare service facility or a
healthcare service provider under any law for the time being in force, it shall be the
responsibility of each healthcare service facility to,—
(a) ensure that the healthcare service providers explain the procedures of
treatment before and during the treatment to the complete understanding of the patients
or their designated attendants in a presentable and comprehensible manner;
(b) furnish in writing, the complete information about medical treatment provided
by such healthcare service facility, to the patients or his designated attendants who
seek treatment in the said facility in a presentable and comprehensible manner;
(c) safeguard patient confidentiality and to maintain the highest standards of
ethical conduct and not discriminate amongst patients except on the basis of medical
need, and to provide emergency care as a humanitarian duty;
(d) provide a copy of the whole or part of the patient's information sheet or
medical record on demand to the patient concerned or his designated attendant.
(e) ensure that the healthcare service providers adhere to the responsibilities
specified in clause ( a), (b), (c) and ( d) or in any other law for the time being in force and
also to address complaints of any violation in respect of the same, followed by
appropriate action against the concerned healthcare service provider or the concernedperson in the healthcare service facility, as the case may be, by the relevant authority.
Explanation :— For the purposes of this section "appropriate action" means
disciplinary action, suspension, cancellation or revocation of license for medical practice,45 of 1860.Penalty for
contraventionof section 10.
Refusal to
treatment.
Refusal to
treat onmaliciousgrounds.
Punishment
for Falsecharge.
Responsibilities
of healthcareservicefacilities andhealthcareserviceproviders.
profession, sealing of the healthcare facility or any other suitable action prescribed in
laws, rules, regulations and standard operating procedures of the State Government,
as the case may be.
CHAPTER-IV
MISCELLANEOUS
16. (1) Whenever the Sub-Divisional Magistrate or any other Executive Magistrate or
any police officer not below the rank of Sub-Inspector of Police receives information from
any person or upon his own knowledge that an offence has been committed in contraventionof this act within his jurisdiction, he shall immediately himself visit the place of occurrence to
assess the extent of violence, obstruction, loss and damage to the property and submit a
report forthwith to the appropriate Government.
(2) The Sub-Divisional Magistrate or any other Executive Magistrate and any police
officer not below the rank of Sub-Inspector of Police after inspecting the place or area shall,
on the spot,—
(i) draw a list of victim healthcare provider(s) or healthcare facilities or patient(s)
or attendant(s);
(ii) prepare a detailed report on the extent of violence, obstruction, loss, and
damage to the property of victim(s), which may be categorized in the following form:—
(a) Category A—Abusive language; minor scuffle
(b) Category B—Verbal threat to life, property or family; obstruction of
emergency vehicle leading to interference with healthcare services
(c) Category C—Acts that cause damage to property; damage to medical
equipment
(d) Category D—Threat or actual use of criminal force; armed interference
in performance of duties; armed assault; theft of medical equipment or medical
transport
(e) Category E—Threat or actual use of explosive device.
(iii) take effective and necessary steps to provide protection to the witnesses
and other healthcare providers at the healthcare facility.
17. (1) The appropriate Government shall set up Health Committee under the charge of
the concerned Health Secretary and depute an Additional Director General of Police for
carrying out the functioning assigned to it under this Act.
(2) The Health Committees set up under sub-section ( 1) shall,—
(a) conduct survey of the identified healthcare facilities where violence,
obstruction, loss, or damage to the property has taken place;
(b) make inquiries about the investigation and spot inspections conducted by
various officers;
(c) inform the nodal officer about the law and order situation in the identified
healthcare facilities;
(d) make enquiries about the wilful negligence by a public servant;
(e) create awareness about mental health and illness and reducing the stigma
associated with mental illness among healthcare providers;
(f) encourage healthcare providers to seek support and care for their mental
health, to help such providers identify risk factors associated with suicide and mentalSpot Inspection
by officers.
Setting up
HealthCommittee.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 229
health conditions, and to help such providers learn to respond to such risks, with the
goal of preventing suicide and mental health conditions under the Mental Healthcare
Act, 2017;
(g) set up peer support groups among healthcare providers and provide mental
healthcare and follow-up services, as appropriate;
(h) conduct a review on improving healthcare providers' mental health and the
outcomes of programs authorized under this Act;
(i) conduct awareness campaigns advocating the provisions of this act and
further help in the deterrence of the same;
(j) review the position of cases registered under the Act; and
(k) submit a monthly report on or before the 20th day of each subsequent month
to the State Government/nodal officer about the action taken and proposed to be takenin respect of the above.
18. (1) The appropriate Government shall nominate a nodal officer to coordinate the
functioning of the Executive Magistrates and authorized police officers or other officersauthorized by them, investigating officers, and other officers responsible for implementingthe provisions of the Act.
(2) The nodal officer shall by the end of every quarter review,—
(i) the reports received by the appropriate Government under section 16;
(ii) the position of cases registered under the Act; and
(iii) various kinds of measures adopted for providing immediate relief in cash or
kind or both to the healthcare provider(s) or healthcare facilities.
19. The provisions of this Act, except as otherwise expressly provided, shall be in
addition to and not in derogation of the provisions of any other law for the time being inforce.
20. No court other than Magistrate of the First Class shall try an offence, punishable
under this Act on the report of a Police Officer not below the rank of a sub-inspector.
21. The provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, shall mutatis mutandis
apply to the procedural matters including trials and bails under this Act.
22. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for the purposes of carrying out the provisions of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be, so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Nominationof NodalOfficer.
Application of
other laws notbarred.
Cognizance of
offence.
Application of
the Code ofCriminalProcedure,1973.
Power to
make rules.2 of 1974.10 of 2017.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Healthcare Service Providers and Facilities (Prevention of Violence and Damage
to Property) Bill, 2023 is an essential piece of legislation aimed at safeguarding the well-beingof healthcare professionals, patients, and healthcare facilities. The primary purpose of thisbill is to address the rising incidents of violence and damage to property that healthcareservice providers and facilities are facing and to provide them with adequate protection andsupport. The Supreme Court, in Indian Medical Association v. Union of India, tookcognizance of this issue and directed the Central Government to issue guidelines to protectdoctors and healthcare workers from violence. The Court has also directed the StateGovernments to implement these guidelines and to take strict action against those whoviolate them.
According to the Indian Medical Association, over 75 per cent of healthcare providers
in India have faced violence at some point in their careers. Furthermore, a survey conductedby the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare revealed that 45 per cent of healthcare facilitiesin the country have experienced some form of violence, ranging from verbal abuse tophysical assaults. These statistics reflect the gravity of the situation and underscore theimportance of this Bill. This Bill seeks to address these challenges by establishingcomprehensive prevention, intervention, and accountability measures. The existing lawsprovide recourse to criminal litigation alone— a process most healthcare providers arereluctant to initiate. This Bill mandates arbitration as the first recourse in cases of minoroffenses under the act, which would offer a much simpler and faster means of resolution andnot burden the court at the same time. By implementing strict measures to prevent violenceand damage to property within healthcare facilities, the Bill aims to create an atmosphereconducive to quality healthcare delivery. This includes the establishment of State HealthCommittees to deter potential acts of violence and collecting comprehensive data as well.
Furthermore, the Bill recognizes the importance of supporting healthcare professionals
who have been victims of violence or damage to property. It proposes measures to ensureadequate psychological support and counseling for affected individuals. By addressingthe aftermath of such incidents, the Bill acknowledges the importance of supporting thewell being and recovery of healthcare professionals, thus promoting retention and jobsatisfaction within the sector.
By creating a framework that prevents violence, supports victims, and holds offenders
accountable, this Bill not only enhances the quality of healthcare services but also protectsthe fundamental rights and safety of those working in the healthcare sector. It is a necessarystep toward building a society where healthcare providers can perform their duties withoutfear, and patients can receive the care they need in a secure environment.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI ; MOHAMMAD JAWED
July 03, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 231
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 17 of the Bill provides for setting up Health Committee by the appropriate
Government for carrying out purposes of this Act. It further provides for conduct survey ofthe identified healthcare facilities where violence, obstruction, loss, or damage to theproperty has taken place and for creating awareness about mental health and illness andreducing the stigma associated with mental illness among healthcare providers by theCommittee. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditure from the ConsolidatedFund of India. It is likely to involve a recurring expenditure of about rupees seven hundredcrore per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees three hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 22 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 233
BILL NO. 33 OF 2023
A Bill to establish an Urban Areas (Development and Regulation) Committee to
ensure regulation and development of urban areas in the country and for all mattersconnected therewith or incidental thereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Urban Areas (Development and Regulation)
Act, 2023.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,extent andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the State
Government of that State and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(b) "Committee" means the Urban Areas (Development and Regulation)
Committee established under section 3;
(c) "Municipality" means an institution of Self-Government constituted under
article 243Q of the Constitution;
(d) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act; and
(e) "urban areas" means the territorial areas of a Municipality as is notified by
the Government under article 243Q of the Constitution.
3. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, establish
a Committee to be known as the Urban Areas (Development and Regulation) Committee forcarrying out the purpose of this Act.
(2) The Committee shall consist of—
(a) the Prime Minister of India who shall be the ex—officio Chairperson of the
Committee;
(b) the Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs— ex-officio member;
(c) one member of Parliament each from the House of the People and the Council
of States to be nominated by presiding officers of the Houses concerned— ex-officio
Member;
(d) a representative of NITI Aayog to be appointed by the Central Government
in such manner as may be prescribed— ex-officio Member;
(e) a representative from Indian Administrative Services to be appointed by the
Central Government in such manner as may be prescribed who shall be the Member-Secretary to the Committee; and
(f) one senior architect engineer to be appointed by the Central Government in
such manner as may be prescribed—Member.
(3) The salary, allowances and terms of conditions of services of officers and staff of
the Authority shall be such, as may be prescribed.
(4) The Committee shall meet at least twice in a month:
Provided that the Committee shall meet at such time as the Chairperson deems fit.(5) The Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs shall provide secretarial
assistance to the Committee.
4. The Committee shall recommend the State Governments to,—
(a) ensure availability of means for the development and regulation of urban
areas under this jurisdiction;
(b) impart modern training in techniques of urban development to the institutions
and persons involved in the regulation and development of urban areas;
(c) the method for financing the development of urban areas and to ensure that
seventy five per cent. of the expenditure shall be borne by the Central Government andrest of the twenty-five per cent. by the State Government;
(d) put an obligation of the District Magistrate concerned to ensure
appropriate development and regulation of urban areas under his jurisdiction;Definitions.
Establishment
of UrbanAreas(DevelopmentandRegulation)Committee.
Functions
of theCommittee.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 235
(e) establish durable, strong and inclusive infrastructure required for
development and regulation of urban areas in the country;
(f) establish natural land cover including parks and playgrounds in the urban
areas in the country;
(g) ensure availability of safe housing, clean water, water management, healthcare
facilities and appropriate educational facilities in the urban areas of the country;
(h) ensure complete ban on encroachment upon lakes, wet lands and rivers;
(i) establish balance between supply and demand of public transport
facilities in the urban areas;
(j) ensure availability of electric buses, establish bus corridor and bus rapid
transit system for promoting green mobility in the urban areas;
(k) promote e-participation of urban local bodies in development and
regulation of urban area under their jurisdiction;
(l) establish satellite cities along with metropolitan cities to make a balance
between population and resources; and
(m) undertake such other measures as are required for regulation and development
for urban areas.
5. (1) The Committee shall prepare once every year, as may be prescribed, an annual
report giving the summary of its activities, including schemes it has undertaken andrecommended to the Government during the previous year and it shall contain statements ofannual accounts of the Authority.
(2) A copy of the report shall be forwarded to the Central Government, and the Central
Government shall lay the report before each House of Parliament as soon as it is received.
6. The Central Government, shall from time to time provide, after due appropriation
made by Parliament by law in this behalf, requisite funds for carrying out the purposes of thisAct.
7. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government, in consultation with the State Governments, may make such order or give suchdirection, not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as appears to it to be necessary orexpedient for the removal of any difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made after expiry of three years from the date of
commencement of this Act.
8. (1) The Central Government may, in consultation with the State Governments, by
notification in the Official Gazette, make rules for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this section, shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before the Parliament while it is in session for a total period of fourteen days which may becomprised in one session or in two successive sessions and if before the expiry of thesession in which it is so laid or the session immediately following, the Parliament makes anymodification in the rule or decides that the rules should not be made, the rule shall thereafterhave effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so however thatany such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anythingpreviously done under that rule.Annual report.
Central
Governmentto providefunds.
Power to
removedifficulty.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
India's biggest tragedy after independence is the migration of about fifty crore people
from their ancestral homes, villages. Studying the changes in this socio-economic structurereveals that almost one-third of the country's population (about 31.16 per cent.) is now livingin cities. Census data of 2011 shows that the number of people leaving the villages andmigrating to the cities is increasing continuously and now thirty-seven crore and seventylakh people live in the cities. Comparing the figures of 2001 and 2011 census, it is found that
during this period the population of cities increased by nine crore and ten lakh, whereas the
population of villages increased by only nine crore and five lakh.
The population of villages in the country is still about 68.84 crores, that is, two-thirds
of the total population of the country, but the contribution of agriculture in the country'sGDP has been continuously decreasing to only fifteen per cent. There is a decline in thestandard of living in villages, lack of education, health, basic facilities, lack of employment,
so people from there are coming to the cities in search of a better life. As a result, all other big
cities including the metropolitan cities of the country have turned into slums. Out of a totalof 7.89 crore families living in cities across the country, 1.37 crore families live in slums.
Urbanization should be seen as an opportunity and urban centres as engines of growth.
Urban and rural development in the country should complement each other. If we analysefrom the point of view of development in the field of urbanization in different States of India,
it would be found that the amount and speed of urbanization in different States are not the
same. For urbanization and development to go on the same track, there should be people-centric urban development, which can weave the fabric of such cities, which shall be builtaccording to the required global standards. A city that is two steps ahead of people'saspirations...a city built on global best practices...a city that integrates technology,transportation, energy efficiency, proximity to work, etc. A city in which all urban development
plans are taken forward with people's participation.
As per a United Nations Report, globally, a total of 31 such cities are home to an
estimated 5 crore people. This is 6.8 per cent. of the world's total population. By the year2030, the number of mega cities shall increase to 41 and their population shall be 7.3 crore,which would be 8.7 per cent. of the population of the entire world. The administrativeboundaries of the cities have not been relied upon in this report. instead of this, priority has
been given to use the concept of growing urban area. The report reveals that only people
from urban areas live in these mega cities. About 21 per cent. of the world's people live inthese, whose population is between 50 thousand and one crore. By the year 2030, 60 percent. of the world's population shall live in small and big cities, which is currently 54 per cent.Most developing cities in Asia and Africa are seeing population growth, and by 2030, 33 ofthe 41 mega cities shall be in third world countries.
According to this report by the United Nations Department of Economics and Social
Affairs, by the year 2030, India shall have seven mega cities, each with a population of96 lakh. Among these seven, Delhi shall be second in terms of population.
The World Cities Report, 2016 states that at present, the country has five (Delhi,
Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore and Chennai) mega cities, each with a population of more thanone crore. Hyderabad and Ahmedabad shall also join them by the year 2030.
The need is to create development centres across the country instead of adopting
foreign models for urbanization. Inequality and imbalance shall increase further by adoptingforeign models. Uneven and imbalanced urbanization is not correct considering the diversityof India. We cannot replicate in India what China has done, development in China has beenmore in the coastal areas, while other areas are still lagging behind.
In view of the above, the present Bill is very important so that the people of the urban
areas of India may be able to live in conditions suitable for humans.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; MANOJ KOTAK
January 20, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 237
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for the constitution of an Urban Areas (Development and
Regulation) Committee. It also provides for appointment of senior architect engineer to theCommittee. Clause 6 provides for the Central Government to provide funds. The Bill, therefore,if enacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated thatan annual recurring expenditure of about rupees two hundred crore per annum will be involvedfrom the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees fifty crore is also likely to be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 8 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to frame rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 239
BILL NO. 47 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for the establishment of Fake News on Social Media Regulatory
Authority to prohibit fake news on social media and for matters connected therewith.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:-
1. (1) This Act may be called the Prohibition of Fake News on Social Media Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may by
notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) ''authority'' means the Fake News on Social Media Regulatory Authority
established under section 4;Short title andcommencement.
Definitions.
(b) "fake news" includes the following or combinations thereof:—
(i) misquotation or the false and/or inaccurate report of one's statement;
(ii) editing audio or video which results in the distortion of facts and/or
the context; or
(iii) purely fabricated content.
(c) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
(d) "social media platform" means any user-specific web-based technology
intended to create virtual connection through the internet such as social networkingsites, blog sites, video-sharing sites and the like; and
(e) "social media user" includes any person or group of persons, natural or
juridical, organized or unorganized, that utilizes social media platforms to send messages
and/or information across through any social media account, verified or under apseudonym, fictitious or false account/page name for whatever purposes it may serve.
3. The Central Government shall ensure a complete prohibition on fake news on social
media platform.
4. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the official Gazette, constitute
an Authority to be known as the Fake News on Social Media Regulatory Authority for
carrying out the purpose of this Act.
(2) The Authority shall consist of,—
(a) the Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting- ex-officio Chairperson;
(b) one member each from the House of the People and the Council of States to
be nominated by the presiding officers of the Houses concerned;
(c) two representatives from social media platform to be appointed by the Central
Government in such manner as may be prescribed - as member; and
(d) one Indian Administrative Service Officer who shall be the Secretary to the
Authority.
(3) The Authority shall meet at least twice in a month:
Provided that the Authority may meet at such time as the Chairperson may deem fit.(4) The Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting shall provide secretarial
assistance to the Authority.
(5) The Salary and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of services
of members appointed under clause ( c) of sub-section ( 2) shall be such as may be prescribed.
5. The Authority shall,—
(a) ensure complete ban on promotion and spread of fake news on the social
media platform;
(b) ensure prohibition on the posting of contents which are abusive and obscene
including anti-feminism and insult to the dignity of the female on the social media
platform;
(c) prohibit publication of content amounting to disrespect of Sanatan symbols
and beliefs on the social media platform;
(d) prohibit publication of content promoting superstition on the social media
platform;Prohibition onFake News onSocial Media.
Constitution
of Fake Newson SocialMediaRegulatoryAuthority.
Functions of
Authority.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 241
(e) ensure that only those contents are posted on the social media platform
which are based on authentic research on the subjects related to science, history,religion, philosophy, literature; and
(f) ensure that appropriate punitive action in accordance with the provision of
Indian Penal Code, 1860 is taken on the person posting fake news on the social mediaplatform.
6. Any social media users, if found guilty by the Authority for posting fake news on
the social media platform shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend upto sevenyears and fine which may extend upto rupees ten lakhs or with both.
7. (1) Where a person committing a contravention of any of the provisions of this Act
or of any rule, direction or order made thereunder is a company, every person who, at the timethe contravention was committed, was in charge of, and was responsible to, the company forthe conduct of business of the company as well as the company, shall be guilty of thecontravention and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly:
Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section shall render any such person
liable to punishment if he proves that the contravention took place without his knowledge orthat he exercised all due diligence to prevent such contravention.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), where a contravention of
any of the provisions of this Act or of any rule, direction or order made thereunder has beencommitted by a company and it is proved that the contravention has taken place with theconsent or connivance, of or is attributable to any neglect on the part of, any director,manager, secretary or other officer of the company, such director, manager, secretary orother officer shall also be deemed to be guilty of the contravention and shall be liable tobe proceeded against and punished accordingly.
Explanation. —for the purpose of this section:—
(i) "company" means any body corporate and include a firm or other association
of individuals; and
(ii) "director" in relation to a firm, means a partner in the firm.
8. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions, notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as appear to it to be necessary or expedient forremoving the difficulty:
Provided that no such orders shall be made after expiry of the period of three years
from the date of commencement of this Act.
9. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act by the Central Government shall be laid, as soon as
may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a totalperiod of thirty days, which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successivesessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or thesuccessive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule orboth the Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effectonly in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any suchmodification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previouslydone under that rule.Penalties.
Offences by
companies.
Power to
removedifficulties.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Social media is made up of two main words, the word Social means the information
shared by people and the word Media means the means of sharing information like
WhatsApp, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter , Linkedin , Snapchat etc.
India is a vast market for social media companies. India has sixty crore WhatsApp
users. At the same time, 240 million Indians are using Facebook while 45 million Indians areusing Twitter accounts. In India, WhatsApp has become the major platform for the exchangeof true as well as false news. But compared to Twitter, WhatsApp is a private messagingservice. The researchers say that private messaging networks such as WhatsApp alsoinfluence the flow of news. In India, news spreads mostly by word of mouth.
There is no doubt that internet media has emerged as a powerful medium of learning
and reading along with freedom of expression. However, it is also very important to understandwhether the news shown on social media or any other platform is true or false.
Earlier, when a person was dependent on newspapers for news, he used to be exposed
to news filtered through many mediums, but today is the era of "real time news" where anyfake news is shared by millions of people. It is tweeted and retweeted, sometimes evensomeone's idea is shared and someone's personal propaganda is accepted as truth.
Internet media has blurred the distinction between public and personal. What you talk
and think about with your family in dinner, immediately becomes public through a post.Freedom of Expression also has its own importance. But to what extent is it justified to tamperwith the facts in the name of this freedom? One of the major threats to internet media isdivisive elements releasing fake news on their websites and then sharing it through social
media. Significantly, terrorist organizations like ISIS have made social media the main medium
of their recruitment and internet media is helping them in this work.
As of now, there is no clear law that prohibits fake news, although there are some
measures other than this, which can solve the problem to some extent. Complaint in respectof fake news can be lodged to Indian Broadcast Foundation and Broadcasting ContentComplaints Council. On the other hand, if fake news means hate mongering, FIR may belodged under sections 153 and 295 of Indian Penal Code. If an attempt is made to tarnish thedignity of an individual or organization through fake news, then Civil or criminal cases can befiled for defamation. There is no doubt that all these measures cannot solve the problem offake news.
On social media, heart-wrenching fake videos continue to circulate and rumours are
spread. The problem of fake news is becoming more complex because the number of people
using the internet in India is continuously increasing. At present, twenty seven per cent of
India's population use the Internet. India has the second largest number of Internet users inthe world after China.
A report by the Media Lab of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has revealed
that Social media has become the prime destination of fake news. The research included1,20,000 news stories that were shared and retweeted on Twitter by 3 million people between2006 and 2017. This figure is 70 per cent more as compared to real news. According to thestudy regarding fake news. 80 per cent of fake news is spread through 0.1 per cent of Twitteraccounts. One per cent of Twitter users spread 100 per cent fake news. Due to fake news,it is very difficult to identify the true information. For false news and information, the term'fake news' is very limited. The Government or Non-Government people are also using fakenews a lot. It is being used as a weapon with a specific goal in mind. In order to achieve their
goal, many fake accounts are trying to change the public opinion through fake news etc.
Fake news is being spread in the form of satire or parody, misleading content, impostor
content, fabricated content, contextless news and manipulated content.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 243
Today social media is the biggest force in the world, but caution is also necessary in its
use. A small piece of fake news can create a ruckus in the whole country. It should also beinformed that on receiving any kind of material, firstly its veracity is required to be checked,only then it should be accepted as a correct one. Without knowing truth, no message shouldbe forwarded so as to avoid the menace of fake news. There is a system of verification ofnews items on all platforms. Although, in order to check the facts, one has to visit somesocial media etc., but fact check is necessary to stop the spread of fake news. Technologyhas a big role to play in this regard. People should be made aware of mechanisms to verifymessages before they are forwarded.
The Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Code of
Conduct) Amendment Rules, 2022 have been issued. However, in this law there is no provisionto ban fake news. Hence, it is very important for India to legalize the Prohibition of Fake Newson Social Media Bill, 2022 in the country. It should be implemented at the earliest to ensurethat the topics on the social media platforms are in line with the Indian social decency andculture.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; MANOJ KOTAK
20 January , 2023.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill provides for the establishment of Fake News on Social Media
Regulatory Authority for carrying out the purposes of this Act. It further provides for salaryand allowances payable to the members of the Authority. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, willinvolve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that an annualrecurring expenditure of about rupees ten crore per annum will be involved from theConsolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees fifty crore is also likely to be involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 9 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to frame rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. The rules will relate to matters of detail only. The delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 245
BILL NO. 37 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for establishment of Regional Waste Disposal Management Cluster
for waste management in the country and for matters connected therewith.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Waste (Disposal and Management) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(b) "Committee" means the Inspection and Promotion Committee constituted
under section 5;Short title andcommencement.
Definitions.
(c) "municipal authority" means Municipal Corporation, Municipal Committee,
Municipality, Nagar Palika, Nagar Nigam, Nagar Panchayat, Municipal Council includingNotified Area Committee (NAC) or any other local body constituted under the relevantstatutes and entrusted with the responsibility of management and handling of municipalsolid wastes;
(d) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(e) "Regional Cluster" means the Regional Waste Disposal Management cluster
established under section 3;
(f) "segregation" means separation of municipal solid wastes into organic,
inorganic, bio-degradable, non-biodegradable, recyclable and non-recyclable wasteand hazardous wastes;
(g) "waste-energy plants" means plants where solid waste is treated using
different techniques to produce any form of energy; and
(h) "waste generating unit" means any entity, household or large manufacturing
facility where waste is generated and which require waste disposal.
3. (1) The appropriate Government shall establish Regional Cluster, to be known
as the Regional Waste Disposal Management Cluster for every ten cities under theirrespective jurisdiction to ensure collection and waste management in such manner as may beprescribed.
(2) The Regional Cluster established under sub-section (1) shall be utilized for,—
(a) segregation of waste;
(b) transportation of re-cyclable waste to waste-energy plants; and
(c) disposal of non-recyclable and non-biodegradable wastes.
(3) The eighty per cent. of the expenditure in relation to establishment of Regional
Clusters in the States shall be borne by the Central Government and rest of the twentyper cent. by the State Government concerned and expenditure in relation to Union territoryshall be borne by the Central Government.
4. It shall be duty of the Municipal authority to—
(a) collect and segregate waste from the waste generating units;
(b) transport the re-cycled waste to the waste-energy plants and non-recyclable
waste and non-biodegradable waste to the Regional Cluster.
5. (1) The Central Government shall constitute a Committee to be known as the
Inspection and Promotion Committee for the purposes of operation and management ofRegional Clusters.
(2) The Inspection and Promotion Committee shall consist of,—
(a) the Prime Minister of India who shall be the ex-officio Chairperson of the
Committee;
(b) the Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs ex-officio member;
(c) one representation of NITI Ayog to be appointed by the Central Government
as member;
(d) four member of Parliament out of which two shall be from the House of the
People and two shall be from the Council of the States to be nominated by the presidingofficer of the Houses concerned as members;
(e) an expert from the field of Waste Management as member; andEstablishment
of RegionalWasteDisposalManagementCluster.
Duty of the
municipalauthority.
Constitution
of InspectionandPromotionCommittee.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 247
(f) an official from the Indian Administrative Service or equivalent to be appointed
by the Central Government who shall be the member-secretary of the Committee.
(3) The Committee shall meet at least twice in a month:
Provided that the Committee may meet as and when decided by the Chairperson.(4) The Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs shall provide secretarial
assistance to the Committee.
6. The Committee shall,—
(a) ensure the establishment of Regional Cluster;
(b) ensure that the persons at the Regional Cluster are trained and aware about
the modern technique of the waste disposal;
(c) ensure that expenditure involved in the establishment of Regional cluster is
made available;
(d) ensure that all urban areas of the country have access to the Regional Cluster;
(e) provide employment opportunities to unorganized worker and small
entrepreneurs at the Regional Cluster;
(f) inspect that the municipal authority transports the segregated wastes to the
Regional Cluster; and
(g) promote use of re-cycleable waste.
7. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide requisite funds to the State Governments for carrying out the purposesof this Act.
8. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any other
law, for the time being in force.
9. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Functions oftheCommittee.
Central
Governmentto providerequisite funds.
Act not in
derogation ofany other law.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Every year India generates 62 million tonnes of waste. Of these, about 43 million
tonnes (70%) is collected and about 12 million tonnes is treated and 31 million tonnes isdumped at landfill sites. With changing consumption patterns and rapid economic growth, itis estimated that urban waste generation will increase to 165 million tonnes by the year 2030.Most of the dumps or waste disposal sites in India have exceeded their capacity and theupper limit of 20 metres. It is spread over a total of 47,456.66 acres of land in the country. Thetotal weight of this waste pile is 18.67 crore tonnes.
Under the Swachh Bharat Mission the municipal corporations are asked to prepare
and send action plans for biological disposal of the legacy landfill. This waste is later disposedof as fuel and organic soil. These are used in road construction and other works. When thewaste dump is removed, the Municipal Corporation plans an alternative use of that land.According to the data, there is about 47 thousand acres of such land in the country.
It is a matter of concern that there is no plan yet for the disposal of this waste. It is
spread over a total of 47,456.66 acres of land in the country. There is already scarcity of landin the cities of the country. People are forced to live hellish life in less space. Due to its spreadin every city, there is always a danger of spreading of the epidemic from waste. There is alsono uniformity in waste disposal as all cities deal with waste in their own way in which thereis a lot of economic expenditure along with the labour force.
Therefore, creation of Regional Waste Disposal Management Cluster is highly necessary.
With the creation of Regional Waste Disposal Management Clusters, the burden of wastewill not accumulate on any one city. Waste can be disposed of in less portions of land, dueto which the people of the city will be able to get land for housing which is currently coveredwith waste. There will be no fear of spread of epidemic and bad smell.
Rising incomes, rapid but unplanned urbanization and changing lifestyles have resulted
in an increase in the amount of waste in India and changes in its composition (with increaseduse of paper, plastic and other inorganic material). Improper waste management in India hasmany effects on the environment and health. There is a need to formulate a long-term strategyto address the future challenges of solid waste management in Indian cities with a focus onaddressing the environmental and public health hazards resulting from the current state ofsolid waste management.
Governments are working at every level regarding the construction of smart cities in
the country and cleanliness under the Swachh Bharat Mission. However, as the populationis increasing, so is the amount of waste. The waste coming out of homes and factories isposing a big problem in the cities. Meanwhile, shocking figures are revealed regarding thewaste. According to them, there are a total of 1854 large waste piles or landfill sites in thecountry. Months old waste has accumulated at these places. This is called the legacy landfill.Of these, more than 50 per cent of the legacy landfill sites are located in five States only. Itmeans that maximum amount of waste has been piled up in these five States. There is no planeither for its disposal. Out of total 1854 legacy landfill sites, 591 legacy landfill sites arepresent in 5 States. Karnataka has 136 legacy landfill sites. There are 128 legacy landfill sitesin Rajasthan. Andhra Pradesh has 115 legacy landfill sites. There are 111 legacy landfill sitesin Madhya Pradesh and 101 in Telangana. The second phase of the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban has been launched by the Central Government. It aims to make the cities waste free.Also, under the mission, a target has been set to dispose of the legacy landfills in the citiesby the end of five years. A target has been set for its completion by 2026.
A dashboard has also been launched in this regard since 28 November 2022. It is
updated continuously. This happens when an action plan is prepared by the cities and sentto the ministry through the State Governments. According to the data available till 4.30 P.M.on December 6, there are a total of 1854 legacy landfills in the country. It is spread over a totalof 47,456.66 acres of land in the country. The total weight of this waste pile is 18.67 croretonnes.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 249
Solid waste management practices in most urban areas in India suffer from great
inefficiencies; along with this they suffer from other administrative constraints like problemof decision making and cost planning. Municipal bodies functioning under the StateGovernment are often short of staff, while most of their financial budget is spent on wastedumping exercises. In addition, many municipal bodies hire private contractors for wastecollection and disposal with the aim of making a profit.
There is a lack of awareness among a large section of the population about the
segregation of household waste. Failure to properly segregate trade waste leads to its mixingin landfills. Waste materials such as food scraps, paper, plastic and liquid waste mix anddecompose, leaching contaminated water into the soil and releasing harmful gases into theatmosphere.
In most of the cities in India, waste is dumped near the villages on its outskirts which
affects the environment of the villages and creates many health hazards. Due to this rural-urban conflicts are arising. There is a need to develop a system of Extended ProducerResponsibility in India to ensure that product manufacturers are made financially liable fordifferent parts of the life cycle of their products. It involves the return, recycling and finaldisposal of products at the end of their useful life cycle and thus promotes a circular economy.
In view of the above, the Bill seeks to establish Regional Waste Management Cluster
so that proper disposal of waste can be done by creating a waste disposal managementcluster at the regional level.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; MANOJ KOTAK
January 23, 2023.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for Establishment of Regional Waste Disposal Management
Cluster. Clause 5 provides for the constitution of Inspection and Promotion Committee forthe purposes of operation and management of Regional Clusters. Clause 7 provides forCentral Government to provide requisite funds for carrying out the purposes of this Act. TheBill, therefore, if enacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It isestimated that a recurring expenditure of about rupees fifty crore per annum would be involvedfrom the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees twenty crore is also likely to be involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 9 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 251
BILL NO. 14 OF 2023
A Bill to amend the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior
Citizens (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force with immediate effect.
2. In section 19 of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens
Act, 2007 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act), in sub-section ( 2), for the words
"types of services", the words "types of services including sports and yoga" shall be substituted.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 19.56 of 2007.
3. In section 20 of the principal Act, after clause (i), the following clause shall be
inserted, namely:—
"(ia) free medical and healthcare facilities to the senior citizens in all Government
and private hospitals including full reimbursement of amount spent on medicines andtreatment.".
4. In section 21 of the principal Act, in clause (i), after the words "radio and the print,",
the words "and by organizing seminars, symposium and lectures" shall be inserted.
5. After section 21, the following section shall be inserted, namely:—
"21A. ( 1) The State Government shall provide social security to all senior citizens and
ensure their protection from exploitation and ill-treatment to ensure a peaceful life andhealthcare for them.
(2) For the purpose of providing social security under sub-section (1), the State
Government shall, inter alia, provide the following facilities:—
(i) monthly pension to each senior citizen, who is unable to maintain himself and
who does not have any children or relative, in such manner and at such rate as may beprescribed;
(ii) subsidy to each senior citizen up to ninety percent for amount spent on
travel by road, air and railways;
(iii) providing free legal aid to all the senior citizens including setting up of "fast
track courts" for prompt disposal of cases wherein senior citizens are involved; and
(iv) determining criteria for accreditation and registration of voluntary
organizations and trusts involved in the welfare of senior citizen.".Amendmentof section 20.
Insertion of
new section21A.
Social Security
for SeniorCitizens.Amendment
of section 21.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 253
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
In the modern era, senior citizens have become victims of globalization and are often
neglected by their family members. Senior citizens have to face several kinds of problems,because after attaining the age of sixty years or above, they are obviously retired and in suchcondition neither they get any work nor are they in a position to work.
Often, it is also seen that the children of elderly people do not help them financially. In
such situation they have to face financial problems and they also face many problems inbuying medicines and other essential items, household items and for two meals a day.
It is a fact that steps for facilities and other welfare measures are being taken by the
Central Government and other social institutions for senior citizens. But, still a lot needs tobe done for their happy and dignified stay in the society.
In 1991, the United Nations General Assembly had also requested the Governments to
formulate relevant policies in this regard.
Although, the Government has enacted the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and
Senior Citizens Act, 2007 to provide for more effective provisions for the maintenance andwelfare of parents and senior citizens guaranteed and recognised under the Constitution.However, there is a dire need to provide social security to the senior citizens including
financial security, healthcare and shelter and protection from abuse and exploitation.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; GOPAL CHINAYYA SHETTY
December 12, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 2 of the Bill provides for State Government to provide yoga and sports
facilities in the old age homes meant for the senior citizens. Clause 3 provides for the StateGovernment to provide free medical and healthcare facilities to the senior citizens. Clause 4provides for the State Government to organize seminars, symposiums and lectures to createawareness about the provisions of this Act. Clause 5 provides for the State Government toprovide social security to the senior citizens including monthly pension, subsidy in traveland free legal aid. The expenditure in relation to the States shall be borne by the StateGovernments from their respective Consolidated Funds. However, the expenditure in relationto Union territories shall be borne by the Central Government. The Bill, therefore, if enactedwould involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a recurringexpenditure of about rupees seven hundred crore per annum would be involved from theConsolidated Fund of India is likely to be involved.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees seven crore is also likely to be involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 255
BILL NO. 21 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In article 214 of the Constitution, for the words, 'High Court for each State', the
words, 'High Court for each State to be known by the name of the State' shall be substituted.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of article 214.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Maharashtra Government had issued an order in the year 1960, which clearly
stated that the 'Bombay High Court' would henceforth be known as the 'MaharashtraHigh Court'. But this order was not implemented. Bombay was renamed Mumbai in theyear 1995, but the name of Bombay High Court remained the same. Since, the city calledBombay no longer exists, but the High Court is on the name of 'Bombay' only, which is notappropriate.
The pronunciation of the word 'Maharashtra' connotes special significance in the life
of a Maharashtrian. Therefore, its use should find expression in the name of the High Courtalso. It is much needed to change the name of "Bombay High Court" to "MaharashtraHigh Court" for implementation of a clause of the Maharashtra Adaptation of Laws(State and Concurrent Subjects) Order, 1960 for the protection of the distinctive culture,heritage and traditions of the people of the State of Maharashtra.
In this context, it is also to be noted that in a PIL to rename "Bombay High Court" as
"Maharashtra High Court", the Hon'ble Supreme Court in its order dated 03.11.2022 hasmentioned that this matter involves parliamentary procedures. Hence, it cannot be interferedwith by the courts and, however, if such a change is to be made, it should be done througha parliamentary or legislative body.
Therefore, alongwith the request that in article 214 of the Constitution for the words
"There shall be a High Court for each State", the words "There shall be a High Court by thename of the State for each State" shall be substituted. It is also forwarded that the concernedauthorities of other States may also be directed to change the names of their High Courts inaccordance with the names of the States in which they are situated.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; GOPAL CHINAYYA SHETTY
December 12, 2022
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 257
BILL NO. 79 OF 2021
A Bill further to amend the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-second Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the National Commission for Minorities (Amendment)
Act, 2021.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2.In section 2 of the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992 for clause (c), the
following clause shall be substituted, namely:—
"(c) 'minority', means,—
(i) a religious community notified as such by the Central Government; and
(ii) religious communities notified as such by the State Government based
on the demographic data calculated on the basis of the latest decadal censusdata of the State concerned:
Provided that no religious community shall be notified as a minority community in a
State if the population of that community is more than twenty per cent. of the total populationof that State;".Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 2.19 of 1992.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The National Commission for Minorities was established under the National
Commission for Minorities Act, 1992 with the vision of addressing the feeling of inequalityand discrimination that pervaded among some sections of the minorities. However, theterm 'minority' has neither been clearly defined in the Constitution nor in the original legislation.This has led to conflicting interpretations by the judiciary.
A minority, normatively, may be differentiated from the dominant group on the basis of
the power asymmetry. Religious minorities are sometimes not able to preserve their culture,ethnicity and educational system on account of not being at par with the immediate majoritycommunity. It is thus imperative that religious minorities be defined on a State-wise basisrather than on a pan India basis. Linguistic minorities are already being defined in thismanner.
Defining religious minorities on a pan India basis has not only created a wave of
inequality across different States but has also encouraged those who do not belong toreligious minorities and to convert for social, political and economic benefits.
Further, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to
National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities of 18 December, 1992 had called forprotecting minorities within their respective territories. This would be possible only ifminorities are defined State-wise.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to amend the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992
with a view to provide that a religious community shall be a 'minority' community for thepurposes of this Act only if,—
(a) notified as such by the Central Government; or
(b) notified as such by the State Governments based on the demographic data
calculated on the basis of the latest decadal census data of the State concerned onlyif population of such religious community is less than twenty per cent. of the totalpopulation of that State.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SANJAY JAISWAL
February 23, 2020
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 259
BILL NO. 222 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for regulation of tour operators and travel agents by providing for
compulsory registration of these operators and agents by competent authority; andby prescribing requisite norms and infrastructure for various tour and tourist relatedactivities and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Tour Operators and Travel Agents (Regulation)
Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3)It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requites,—
(a) 'appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State, and in all other Cases, the Central Government;
(b) "Competent authority" means any office or Officer notified by the
appropriate Government under section 4;
(c) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(d) "tour operator or travel agent" means any person including any establishment
who undertakes and conducts packaged tours tothe various parts of the country andoutside India or provides transport, passport and visa facilities, reservation of seatsfor airlines, rail, bus, steamer and ships, arrange accommodation, entertainment andother tourism related services and consultancy to tourists; and
(e) "tourist" means any person who undertakes any journey or visits any
place in or outside India and includes a pilgrim.
3.(1) With effect from such date as the Central Government may, by notification in
the Official Gazette appoint, no person or establishment shall work as tour operator or travelagent without prior registration with the competent authority.
(2) Any person or establishment found working as tour operator or travel agent
without registration shall be guilty of an offence punishable under this Act.
4.(1) The appropriate Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint
a competent authority for the purposes of registration of tour operator or travel agentswithin its jurisdiction.
(2) Any person or establishment willing to work as tour operator or travel agent shall
apply to the competent Authority for the purpose of registration in such form and manneras may be prescribed.
(3) Any person or establishment working as tour operator or travel agent before the
commencement of this Act shall apply for registration to the competent authority within aperiod of forty-five days from the date of commencement of this Act in such form andmanner as may be prescribed.
(4) On receipt of an application for registration as tour operator or travel agent the
competent authority shall scrutinize the application and may call for such other informationor documents from the applicant as may be prescribed.
(5) The competent authority shall, before registering any tour operator or travel agent,
inspect the infrastructure and facilities available with the tour operator or travel agent tohave the first hand information and ensure the compliance of the norms and standardsfixed by the appropriate Government in this behalf.
(6) The competent authority shall, after being satisfied with the various requirements
under this Act, grant a registration certificate to the applicant in such manner and form asmay be prescribed which shall be valid for three years.
(7) The competent authority shall renew the registration of any tour operator or travel
agent only after re-inspecting the infrastructure facilities with the tour operator or travelagent and on fulfilment of requirements and norms fixed in this behalf by the appropriateGovernment under this Act.
(8) The competent authority may refuse to register or renew registration of a tour
operator or travel agent if he fails to comply with the norms and standards fixed by theCompulsoryregistration ofTourOperators andTravelAgents.Definitions.
Procedure for
registration.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 261
appropriate Government in this behalf or the competent authority finds its infrastructure
insufficient for the purpose of working as tour operator or travel agent:
Provided that in case of non-registration or non-renewal of registration of a tour
operator or travel agent, the competent authority shall record reasons in writing andcommunicate the same to the applicant.
(9) The competent authority shall take a decision on the application filed under
sub-section ( 2) within a period of thirty days.
(10) The appropriate Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint
an appellate authority, to provide opportunities to the person aggrieved by the orders ofthe competent authority.
5.The appropriate Government shall,—
(a) fix the maximum fee to be charged by the tour operator and travel agents for
various tour related activities;
(b) fix the rate at which vehicles shall be made available to tourists;
(c) prescribe norms and standards for various activities;
(d) lay down norms for minimum infrastructure for starting and running tour
operations;
(e) prescribe such other norms as may be necessary for the purpose.
6.Whoever contravenes the provisions of this Act and the rules made thereunder
shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years and alsowith fine which may extend to five lakhs rupees.
7. (1) Where a contravention of any of the provisions of this Act or any rule, direction
or order made thereunder has been committed by a company, every person who, at the timethe contravention was committed, was in charge of, and was responsible to, the companyfor the conduct of business of the company as well as the company, shall be guilty of thecontravention and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly:
Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section shall render any such person
liable to punishment if he proves that the contravention was committed without hisknowledge or that he exercised all due diligence to prevent such contravention.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section ( 1), where a contravention of
any of the provisions of this Act or of any rule, order, or direction made thereunder has beencommitted by a company and it is proved that the contravention has taken place with theconsent or connivance of or is attributable to any neglect on the part of any director,manager, secretary or other officer of the company such director, manager, secretary or
other officer shall also be deemed to be guilty of the contravention and shall be liable to beproceeded against and punished accordingly.
Explanation :—For the purpose of this section:—
(i) "company" means any body corporate and includes a firm or association of
individuals; and
(ii) "director", in relation to a firm, means a partner in the firm.
8.If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions, notAppropriateGovernmentto prescribenorms fortour operatorand travelagents.
Penalty.
Offences by
company.
Power to
removedifficulties.
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as appear to it to be necessary or expedient for
removing difficulty:
Provided that no such orders shall be made after the expiry of the period of three
years from the date of commencement of this Act.
9.The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent
therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force on the subject and save asaforesaid the provisions of the Act shall be in addition to and not derogation of any otherlaw for the time being in force.
10. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions aforesaid bothHouses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that the ruleshould not be made, the rules shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be25 of no effect, as the case may be; so however, that any such modification or annulmentshall be without prejudice to the validity or anything previously done under that rule.Overridingeffect of theAct.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 263
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
At present, there is no legislation to regulate the tourism industry, particularly the
travel agencies operating in various regions of the country. This sector is unorganised andany person can start a travel agency anywhere by setting up a small shop just with atelephone facility. There is no ban on such travel agents and as a result, in some of thecases, anti social or mischievous elements sneak into this business and flourish in the nameof providing travel consultancy. There have been cases when the foreign tourists havebeen cheated and robbed of their valuables by the unscrupulous travel agents. TheAssociation of Domestic Tour Operators has held several meetings with the Ministry tomake registration of a travel agency mandatory to curb the untoward incidents and dubiouspractices indulged in by some travel agents with ulterior motives. It becomes all the moreimportant to check this menace of unregulated travel agencies, by suitable legislativemeasures.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; JANARADAN SINGH 'SIGRIWAL'
November 22, 2022.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 10 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of this Bill. The rules will relate to matters of details only. The delegation oflegislative power is, therefore, of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 265
BILL NO. 229 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for the formulation and implementation of a comprehensive nationapl
policy for ensuring overall development of the dalit youth belonging to the ScheduledCastes, the Scheduled Tribes and the Other Backward Classes and oppressedcategories and for their welfare to be undertaken by the Central Government andfor matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Dalit Backward and Oppressed Youth (Development
and Welfare) Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,extent andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) 'appropriate Government' means in the case of a State, the Government of
the State and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(b) 'backward youth' means youth belonging to castes which have been declared,
by notification in the Official Gazette, as backward by the appropriate Governmentfrom time to time;
(c) 'dalit youth' means a youth belonging to the Scheduled Castes or the
Scheduled Tribes, as the case may be;
(d) 'oppressed youth' means a youth who has been a victim of any cruelty or
discriminations for the reason that he professes any faith or religion other than religion
or faith professed by majority of persons in that State or belongs to a caste notcovered in SCs or a victim of poverty, as the case may be;
(e) 'prescribed' means prescribed by rules made under this Act; and
(f) 'youth' means any person who has attained the age of eighteen years but is
not above the age of forty-five years.
3. (1) The Central Government shall, as soon as may be, formulate a comprehensive
national policy for the overall development and welfare of the dalit, backward and oppressedyouth of the nation.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the provisions of sub-section (1), the
national policy may provide for:
(a) Free higher education, including medical, technical and information
technology education;
(b) Free coaching training for admission to management courses with assured
admission in management institutes of repute;
(c) Books, stationery, equipment and educational gadgets free of cost;
(d) Scholarships in deserving cases;(e) Hostel facilities free of cost;
(f) Free public transport facilities;
(g) Monthly pocket expenses allowances at such rate as may be prescribed;(h) Free entertainment facilities;
(i) Free access to all libraries and technical institutions;
(j) Training in sports to every eligible youth covered under this Act and facilities
and appropriate incentives to participate in sports activities, events and tournaments
in and outside the country;
(k) Provision of free of cost healthy and nutritious meals to all the student
youth covered under this Act in the schools, colleges, universities, hostels and
technical institutions;
(l) Free medical and healthcare;(m) Apprenticeship in business, trade, vocation etc. in factories and commercial
establishments;
(n) Providing military training to physically fit youth covered under this Act
and those successfully completing training to be given preference for recruitment in
defence services;Definitions.
Formulation
ofcomprehensivenationalpolicy.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 267
(o) Free of cost coaching and study material for all India Services and other
competitive examinations which are conducted by Union Public Service Commission,State Public Service Commissions and other examinations bodies such as ofRailways, Banks Staff Selection Commission and other bodies of the Government atthe Centre, States and Union Territories; and
(p) Such other facilities, incentives and welfare measures as may be prescribed
from time to time.
4. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in
force, the appropriate Government shall provide gainful employment to the youth coveredunder this Act as per their ability and qualification.
(2) If the appropriate Government fails to provide gainful employment, the youth
shall be paid unemployment allowance on monthly basis at such rate as may be prescribedtill he is given gainful employment.
5. The Central Government shall—
(i) appoint expert committees in the capital of every State and Union Territories
and in every district for carrying out the purposes of this Act;
(ii) promote youth cooperatives such as village industry ventures, dairy
projects, food processing, poultry, fair price shops, LPG distribution at village ordistrict level to provide self employment to youth belonging to dalits, backwardand oppressed classes; and provide requisite financial assistance and guidance tothem for procuring raw materials and promoting marketing;
(iii) ensure availability of requisite credit at nominal rate of interest from the
Banks and other Financial Institutions to the youth covered under this Act for theirself employment projects; and
(iv) extend such other welfare measures to the youth covered under this Act
as it may deem appropriate and necessary for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
6. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by
law, provide requisite funds to the State Governments for carrying out the purposes ofthis Act.
7.(1) The Central government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form orbe of no effect, as the case may be so, however, that any such modification or annulmentshall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Employmentandunemploymentallowance.
Miscellaneous
provisions.
Central
Governmentto providerequisitefunds.
Power to make
rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The youth are the strength of a strong nation and are capable of substantially
influencing polity. In recent times, youth have transformed some monarchies into Republicsby overthrowing monarchial power. As such, youth are always at the centre stage ofsocio-political activities of every country and similar is the position in our nation. Tomaintain this strength, a clear youth policy is required to rid the country of problems relatedto education, poverty, nutrition, employment opportunities, self employment, vocationaltraining, health, sports etc. The country at present has no institutional mechanism to harnessthe potential of our youth and channelize their energy for the betterment of the country. Theplight of the youth belonging to backward communities such as Scheduled Castes,Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes who have been oppressed for centuries iseven worse. Even today the Dalit youth have to face social ostracization; though thanks tothe reservation policy propounded by Babasaheb Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, many of them havemade some progress, but youth of the backward classes still require special attentionbecause there is need to instill a sense of belonging among them by providing them allopportunities for their overall development so that they too can contribute to the progressof the country to their full potential. The facilities and opportunities should be provided asa matter of right and it should not be allowed to remain a privilege of the elite only. Employmentneeds to be guaranteed to them and if employment opportunities are not provided to them,they have to be given unemployment allowance. They have to be linked directly to theproduction processes by eliminating disparities between rural and urban youth. For this, acomprehensive national policy is an absolute necessity.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; JANARDAN SINGH 'SIGRIWAL'
22 November , 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 269
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for a national policy for the Dalit, backward and oppressed
youth under which various facilities are to be provided to such youth. Clause 4 provides foremployment opportunities and payment of unemployment allowance by the Government.Clause 5 provides for promoting youth co-operatives such as village industry ventures,dairy projects, food processing etc. at village and district level and requisite financialassistance; requisite credit at nominal rate of interest from banks and other financialinstitutions and other welfare measures to the youth. Clause 6 makes it mandatory for theCentral Government to provide requisite funds to carry out the provisions of the Bill. TheBill, therefore, if enacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It isestimated that a sum of rupees thirty thousand crore may be involved as recurring expenditureper annum from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure to the tune of Rupees Twenty Thousand crores may also
be involved for creating assets and infrastructure.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 7 of the Bill gives the power to the Central Government to make rules for
carrying out the purposes of Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, thedelegation of legislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 271
BILL NO. 239 OF 2022
A Bill to provide training on social and emotional learning to all educators and students
enrolled in schools affiliated to Central Board of Secondary Education, IndianCertificate of Secondary Education and State Education Boards using curriculaand materials that are scientifically accurate, age appropriate, and culturally relevantand for other matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be called the Promotion of Social and Emotional Learning in
Schools Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.Short title,
extent andcommencement.
(3) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2.In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a)"appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of that
State, and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(b)"Chairperson" means the Chairperson of the Commission for Promotion of Social
and Emotional Learning in Schools, appointed under section 4;
(c) "Commission" means the Commission for Promotion of Social and Emotional
Learning in Schools set up under section 3;
(d)"prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(e) "Student Committee" means Committee set up under section 13; and
(f) "teacher coordinator" means the authority appointed under section 16.
CHAPTER II
COMMISSION FOR SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL LEARNING IN SCHOOLS
3.(1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute
a Commission to be known as the Commission for Promotion of Social and EmotionalLearning in Schools to exercise the powers conferred on, and to perform the functionsassigned to it under this Act.
(2)The Commission shall be a body corporate by the above name, having perpetual
succession and a common seal.
(3)The head office of the Commission shall be at New Delhi.
4. The Commission shall consist of,—
(a) The Secretary, Department of Higher Education in the Union Ministry of
Education, Chairperson, ex-officio ;
(b) two members from amongst the eminent persons of ability and integrity,
who—
(i) have a thorough understanding and expertise of social and emotional
learning; and
(ii) have experience of working as an expert in human psychology;
(c) two members from amongst the eminent persons of ability and integrity,
who,—
(i) have a thorough understanding and expertise in the field of academia;
(ii) have experience of working with and implementing different
pedagogical techniques:
be appointed by the Central Government in consultation with the Ministry
of Education:
Provided that at least one of the four members appointed under clause (b) or (c) shall
be a woman.
5.(1) The Chairperson and every member of the Commission shall hold office for
a term of three years from the date of assumption of office and shall be eligible forre-appointment for not more than three terms:
Provided that under no circumstances, the Chairperson or any member shall hold
office after attaining the age of seventy years.Constitutionof theCommittee.
Composition
of theCommission.
Term of
office of themembers oftheCommission.Definitions.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 273
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section ( 1), the Chairperson or a
member may—
(a) resign, by giving in writing to the Central Government, a notice of not less
than six months; or
(b) be removed from their office in accordance with the provisions given in
section 6.
(3)The salary and allowances payable to, and the other terms and conditions of
service of the Chairperson and other members shall be such as may be prescribed by theCentral Government.
6.(1) The Central Government may, by order, remove the Chairperson, or a member
from office, if the Chairperson or a member—
(a) becomes mentally unstable to continue in their position;
(b) is convicted of an offence under the Indian Penal Code, 1860;
(c) acquires financial or other interests which may prejudice their decisions and
functions;
(d) has in the opinion of the Central Government and the Court, so abused his
position as to render his continuance in office detrimental to the public interest.
(2) The Chairperson or a member shall not be removed under any clause of
sub-section ( 1), unless the Central Government gives in writing the reasons for their dismissal
and the Chairperson or the member is given a reasonable opportunity of defendingthemselves in the matter.
7.(1) The Commission may, at any point, associate with itself any person whose
advice or assistance it may desire in carrying out any of the purposes of this Act but not incontravention of any other law.
(2) A person associated with the Commission under sub-section ( 1) shall have a right
to take part in discussions relevant to that purpose, but shall not be a member for any otherpurpose.
8. (1) The Commission shall meet as and when necessary as the Chairperson may
deem fit.
(2)The Commission shall regulate its own procedure.
(3)The Commission shall have the autonomy to allocate and spend the funds on the
functions assigned to it under this Act.
CHAPTER III
F
UNCTIONS OF THE COMMISSION FOR PROMOTION OF SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL
LEARNING IN SCHOOLS
9.(1) The Commission shall develop and implement the curricular for promotion of
social and emotional learning in all schools.
(2) The Commission shall have the authority to receive annual reports from all the
State and Central education boards and act according to them as per the requirement.
10. Without prejudice to anything contained in sub-section ( 1) of section 9 the
Commission shall also perform the following functions, namely:—
(a) review and monitor the working of every District Education Officer and the
concerned Grievance Redressal Office;
(b) ensure coordination among every District Education office and Grievance
Redressal Office;Removalfrom theMembershipof theCommission.
45 of 1860
Advice sought
by theCommission.
Meeting of
theCommission.
Functions of
theCommission.
Other
Miscellaneousfunctions.
(c) submit an annual report to the Central Government, within such time as prescribed
by the Central Government, giving a full and detailed account of the activities undertakenby it in the previous year, and the Central Government shall cause every such report to belaid before both houses of Parliament.
(d) make suggestions to the Central Government on the financial support required to
implement the social and emotional learning and to fulfil the other functions assigned to itunder this Act; and
(e) prescribe the study material that shall be included in school curriculum related to
social and emotional learning.
CHAPTER IV
I
NCLUSION OF SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL LEARNING IN SCHOOL CURRICULUM
11. The Central and State Education Boards shall,—
(a) modify their course content to integrate the Social and Emotional learning
in their curriculum; and
(b) use biographies of famous 5 Indian personalities and poems that focus on
the various resolution styles adopted by them during the time of crisis:
Provided that the course content shall be relevant as well as socially and culturally
sensitive.
12. (1) The schools shall implement the curricula prescribed by respective Education
Boards to impart social and emotional learning through experience, demonstration, playnarratives, role play, stories and other means that draw the attention of children.
(2) The students shall be given positive credits on their report cards for their
participation in the activities related to social and emotional learning:
Provided that the evaluation shall be based on the efforts shown by the students
during the class activity and not on the academic marks.
CHAPTER V
S
TUDENT COMMITTEE (BUDDY PROJECT ) IN SCHOOLS
13. (1) The appropriate Government shall ensure that all schools shall constitute
a student committee consisting of five representatives each from class-5, class-9 andclass-12 who shall act as a mentor for the students of the junior classes.
(2)The participation of the students as a representative of the student committee
shall be voluntary.
(3)The process to select the representatives to the student committee shall be such
as may be prescribed:
Provided that at least one-half of the representatives shall be girls.
14. (1) A candidate for selection as a representative shall be required to undergo a
written psychological test as may be prescribed.
(2) A selected representative shall undergo an interview by Board consisting of the
teacher coordinator, school psychological counsellor and a third party counsellor.
(3) Each representative shall be given a certificate of appreciation after successful
completion of a year long tenure.EducationBoards tointegratesocial andemotionallearning inCurricula.
Activities for
social andemotionallearning inschoolcurriculum.
Constitution
of StudentCommittee.
Psychological
test/interviewfor themembers ofstudentcommittee.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 275
15. (1) The students of a school shall be divided in following three categories for the
purpose of representation in the Student Committee from each category:
(a) Class-1 to Class-4 : The students of the first group shall have the representative
from class-5;
(b) Class-5 to Class-8: The students of the second group shall have the representative
from class-9; and
(c) Class-9 to Class-12: The students of the third group shall have the representative
from class-12.
(2) The students shall be encouraged to approach the respective student
representatives and the teacher coordinator, mentioned under section 16, for any problem
faced by them.
CHAPTER VI
TEACHER COORDINATOR IN SCHOOLS
16. (1) The appropriate government shall ensure that all schools appoint at least one
teacher coordinator subject to a maximum of four teacher coordinators who shall look after
the activities regarding social and emotional learning in the school.
(2)The schools may independently select a qualified counsellor on their own,
otherwise a teacher shall be selected by the Principal who shall undergo a workshop
conducted by the experts from the Department of Education in order to qualify as a
coordinator.
(3)The content of the workshop, which shall be organized bi-annually by the
Commission, shall focus on the various ways to include social and emotional learning in
schools.
(4) The teacher coordinator shall be given a book, specially designed for by the
Commission that will suggest the activities that can be organised in the school.
(5)The teacher coordinators of the Government schools and of the schools affiliated
to State Education Boards shall participate in an additional workshop which shall be
conducted by the appropriate Government through the experts in the field of social and
emotional learning in the local language.
(6) The teachers of other educational boards shall participate in the workshop
conducted by the Commission:
Provided that teachers may additionally participate in the State Government workshops
at will.
(7)The participation in the workshop shall be mandatory in order to become a teacher
coordinator and failure in attending three consecutive workshops would result in immediatedismissal from the position.
(8)Upon successful completion of the workshops, teachers shall be granted a certificate
of participation.
17. (1) At the beginning of every academic year all students shall participate in a
heuristics lab.
(2)The activities of heuristics lab shall be recorded and submitted to the District
Education Officer within first two months of the academic year.
(3)The content of the activities of heuristics lab shall be designed by the teacher
coordinator with the help of Student Committee as per the guidelines to be prescribed bythe Commission:Representation
in the StudentCommittee.
Provision of
teachercoordinatorsin schools.
Provision
regardingheuristics lab.
Provided that such activities shall focus to address the social, mental and relationship
issues through group work, role play, games etc.
CHAPTER VII
ELECTRONIC DISSEMINATION OF SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL LEARNING
18. The Commission shall design and maintain a dedicated website, especially for
social and emotional learning and provided access to all the teacher coordinators, underwhich—
(a) the teacher coordinator shall upload the pictures and videos of all the activities
taking place in a school in a digital form;
(b) various procedures, articles regarding the importance of the social and emotional
learning, documents, notices, and testimonials from the teachers as well as students, shallbe uploaded and updated from time to time; and
(c) the teacher coordinator shall also use the electronic platform to provide feedback
and suggest changes.
19. The schools that are remotely located and are devoid of any proper communication
channel digitally shall directly report to the District Education Officer, who shall be requiredto update the website.
CHAPTER VIII
M
ISCELLANEOUS
20. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law
in this behalf, provide adequate funds, from time to time, for carrying out the purposes ofthis Act.
21. The provisions of this Act or the rules made there under shall be in addition to and
not in derogation of any other law, rules, orders or instructions.
22. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions, notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act as appear to it to be necessary or expedient forremoving the difficulty.
(2) Every order made under this section shall, as soon as may be after it is made, be
laid before each House of Parliament.
23. (1) Subject to the other provisions of this Act, the appropriate Government may,
by notification in the official Gazette, make rules for carrying out the provisions of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act by the Central Government shall be laid, as soon as
may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a totalperiod of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successivesessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or thesuccessive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule orboth the Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effectonly in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any suchmodification on annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previouslydone under that rule.Access towebsite toteachercoordinator.
Direct
reporting byremotelylocatedschool.
Central
Governmentto providefunds.
Act to
supplementother laws.
Power to
removedifficulties.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 277
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Rising stress amongst the youth is a common occurrence nowadays. But, there might
be a suitable solution for this elusive problem. The true potential of a country can be reallymeasured by the strength and skills of its youth. In India, we have one of the largest youthpopulation on the planet. But the question remains that how well we have been able toharness and develop their inherent potential.
We spend much less than the rest of the world on mental health issues (0.06% of the
health budget is spent on mental healthcare) and have only 0.30 psychiatrists, 0.17 nurses,and 0.05 psychologists per 1,00,000 mentally ill patients in the country. According to a 2017WHO report, 10-20% of children and adolescents world-wide are believed to be affectedwith mental health issues, with suicide and self-harm being the second leading cause ofdeath in this age group after road traffic injuries. The same report surveyed Indian adolescentsof whom 25% reported being depressed, 7% mentioned being bullied, 8% spoke aboutsuffering from anxiety, another 8% complained of experiencing loneliness, and a 10%reportedly had no close friends, all of which are warning signs pointing towards mentalhealth issue. The actual figures are likely to be far higher due to under-reporting on accountof lack of awareness, and due to the stigma attached to mental health.
When we look at the current trajectory of mental health concerns in children and
youth in India, we immediately correlate it to issues arising from an over-competitiveenvironment and/or bullying. A 2012 Lancet study also had a similar finding, wherein theypointed out that Indian adolescents were often pressured to have aspirations of a muchhigher level than the society around them was capable of keeping pace with, leading todisappointments at a greater scale. While it is important to understand the causes of suchmental ill health, it is far more pertinent to tackle the root of these issues, and attempt toprevent it. Mental and emotional health are integrally related, with the later having a stronginfluence on the former. These begin developing at an early age, and help us in our personal,academic, social lives by equipping us with some basic life skills. Given schools' uniqueability to access large numbers of children, they are most commonly identified as the bestplaces to provide this support so as to promote the universal mental health of children. Akey component of such a support system, which has been gaining rapid recognitionworldwide, has been Socio- Emotional Learning (SEL). SEL has been found to be an effectivetool in developing better control over one's emotions, and in enhancing the decision-making process of an individual. Research shows that SEL is associated with a positiveimpact on important mental health variables that increase children's attachment to school,enhance their motivation to learn, and reduce risky behaviours.
SEL, when properly imparted to children or adolescents, is also understood to have a
direct impact on their earnings over their lifetime. Apart from the above, for a country likeIndia with its strong cultural diversity, there is an additional need for future generations tointernalize SEL because they also help them in realizing the basic values expounded by ourConstitution.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; JANARDAN SINGH 'SIGRIWAL'
November 22, 2022
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for the constitution of the Commission for Social Emotional
Learning in Schools. Clause 5 inter alia provides for salary and allowances payable to theChairperson and other Members of the Committee. Clause 20 makes it obligatory for theCentral Government to provide requisite funds to carry out the provisions of the Bill. TheBill, therefore, if enacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It isnot possible at present to quantify the funds that may be involved.
——————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 23 of the Bill empowers the appropriate Government to frame rules by
notification in the Official Gazette, to carry out the provision of the Bill. The rules to beframed by the Government pertain to matters of administrative detail only, which cannot belaid down in the Bill itself. The delegation is, therefore, normal in character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 279
BILL NO. 163 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for proper handling and disposal of waste being generated by wind
turbine and solar energy devices by prescribing norms and fixing responsibilitiesand duties on manufacturers, re-cyclers and consumers with regard to disposalof the waste generated by wind and solar energy devices and for mattersconnected therewith or incidental thereto.
W
HEREAS decisions were taken at the United Nations Conference on the Human
Environment held at Stockholm in June, 1972, in which India participated, to take appropriatesteps for the protection and improvement of human environment;
W
HEREAS decisions were taken as part of Paris Agreement, 2015 regarding Nationally
Determined Contributions (NDC);
AND whereas it is considered necessary to implement the decisions aforesaid to
protect the environment from the ill-effects of non-biodegradable garbage;
AND whereas article 48A of the Constitution enjoins upon the State to endeavour to
protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Wind Turbine and Solar Energy Waste (Handling,
Disposal and Recycling) Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(b) "Board" means the Central Board for the Prevention, Control and Abatement
of Wind Turbine Waste and Solar Energy Waste constituted under section 4;
(c) "wind turbine waste" means the waste generated from the foundation, tower,
components of the gearbox and generator and turbine blades;
(d) "solar energy waste" means waste generated from solar panels,
photovoltaic (PV) solar modules and other product which are discarded, surplus,
obsolete, broken from solar energy devices;
(e) "disposal" means disposal of wind turbine waste and solar energy waste
according to prescribed norms to prevent contamination of ground water, surface
water, ambient air quality and harmful effect on human health;
(f) "hazardous waste" means any wind turbine waste and solar energy waste
which by reason of any of its physical, chemical, reactive, toxic, flammable, explosiveor corrosive characteristics causes danger or is likely tocause danger to health or
environment, whether alone or when in contact with other wastes or substances.
(g) "operator" means a person or establishment owning or operating a facility
for collection, transportation and disposal of wind turbine waste and solar energywaste;
(h) "consumer" means a person using products capable of generating wind
turbine waste and solar energy waste;
(i) "re-cycler" means any person or establishment engaged in re-cycling or
re-processing of used solar equipment or wind turbine or assembly of their component;
(j) "storage" means the temporary containment of wind turbine waste and solar
energy waste in a manner so as to prevent its littering and hazardous effects onhuman being;
(k) "transportation" means carrying of wind turbine waste and solar energy
waste from one place to other place hygienically through specially designed transport
vehicle so as to prevent littering and harmful effects on human being;
(l) "distributor" means any person who distributes or re-sell wind turbine or
photo-voltaic modules under his own name or trademark in the country;
(m) "importer" means any person who sell photovoltaic modules from a third
country in India;Short title,
extent andcommencement.
Definitions.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 281
(n) "distance seller" means any person who sell solar-wind energy equipment
and modules by means of distance communication directly to private households orto users other than private households in India; and
(o) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
3. The disposal of wind turbine waste and solar energy waste by any person or
company knowingly or otherwise in any drain, landfill, at public places such as streets,roads, market place, open vacant plots and such other places is hereby prohibited.
4. The Central Government shall, within six months of the commencement of this Act,
prepare and publish in the Official Gazette a National Policy for Scientific Management ofWind Turbine Waste and Solar Energy Waste Management for management of wind turbinewaste and solar energy waste throughout the country.
5. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute
a Board to be known as the Central Board for the Prevention, Control and Abatementof Wind Turbine Waste and Solar Energy Waste for effective implementation of the
provisions of the Act.
(2) The Board shall consist of Chairperson and such other members to be appointed
by Central Government in such manner as may be prescribed.
(3) The salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of services
of Chairperson and members of the Board shall be such as may be prescribed.
6. (1) The Board shall be responsible for prevention, control and abatement of wind
turbine waste and solar energy waste in the country.
(2)Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provision, the Board shall
perform all or any of the following functions, namely:—
(a) advise the Central Government on any matter concerning improvement of
recycling of wind turbines, cells, panels and the prevention, control or abatement ofsolar energy waste;
(b) monitor the implementation of the compliance criteria and procedure for
handling and disposal of wind turbine waste and solar energy waste;
(c) grant authorization and registration to a person or an agency engaged in
collection or dismantling or recycling of wind turbine waste and solar energy wasteprovided that the applicant possesses appropriate facilities to handle the waste safety;
(d) prescribe guidelines for household solar and wind energy users;
(e) plan and cause to be executed a nation-wide programme for the prevention,
control and abatement of solar energy waste;
(f) plan and organize training of persons engaged or to be engaged in programmes
for prevention, control and abatement of solar waste on such terms and conditions,as may be prescribed;
(g) enhance information exchange, education and awareness raising programmes
in all sectors of society through mass media regarding prevention, control andabatement of solar waste;
(h) collect, compile and publish technical and statistical data relating to wind
turbine waste and solar energy waste and the measures devised for its effectiveprevention, control and abatement;Prohibitionon disposal ofwind turbinewaste andsolar energywaste inpublic place.
National
Policy forScientificManagementof Wind andSolar WasteManagement.
Constitution
of CentralBoard.
Functions of
the Board.
(i) prepare manuals, codes or guides relating to prevention, control and
abatement of solar energy waste;
(j) prevent and monitor illegal dumping of solar energy waste;
(k) improve institutional and technical capabilities of regional and
sub-regional centres with training and technology transfer;
(l) collect and disseminate information in respect of matters relating wind-solar
pollution; and
(m) perform such other functions as may be prescribed.
7.The appropriate Government shall,—
(a) ensure that all the wind turbine waste and solar energy waste generated
within its territorial jurisdiction is handled and disposed of in accordance withcompliance criteria and procedure as may be prescribed;
(b) facilitate infrastructure facilities for collection, storage, transportation and
disposal of solar and wind energy waste and wind turbine waste;
(c) after due authorization, permit the operator to collect, transport and dispose
of the solar waste and wind turbine waste in such manner as may be prescribed;
(d) ensure earmarking or allocation of industrial space or shed for wind turbine
waste and solar energy waste dismantling and recycling in the existing and upcomingindustrial park, estate and industrial clusters;
(e) ensure recognition and registration of workers involved in dismantling and
recycling of wind turbine waste and solar energy waste;
(f) undertake industrial skill development activities for the workers involved in
dismantling and recycling of wind turbine waste and solar energy waste;
(g) undertake annual monitoring and to ensure safety and health of workers
involved in dismantling and recycling of wind turbine waste and solar energy waste;
(h) prepare integrated plan for effective implementation of provisions for
importers and distant sellers;
(i) preparation and submit annual report to Ministry of Environment, Forest
and Climate Change regarding prevention, control and abetment of wind turbinewaste and solar energy waste; and
(j) encourage setting up of integrated Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facility
(TSDFs) for 'hazardous waste' management on Public Private Partnership (PPP) modein clusters of hazardous waste generating industries.
8.It shall be the duty of every manufacturer,—
(a) to obtain Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Authorization and manage
their responsibilities;
(b) to ensure that every solar and wind energy device offered for sale in the
market contains—
(i) the procedure for its handling and disposal; and
(ii) the information about the parts which may be recycled and which not
be re-cycled;
(c) to set-up adequate number of collection centers for the hazardous waste;
(d) to informing treatment facilities of the product's composition, including the
potential use of hazardous materials;ResponsibilitiesofAppropriateGovernment.
Duty of
Manufacture.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 283
(e) to inform end customers regarding disposal of their old PV modules;
(f) to create public awareness through advertisements, publications and other
electronic media about the hazardous substances in their products which may causeill effects on human body;
(g) to reduce the movement of hazardous and other wind turbine waste and
solar energy waste;
(h) to take complete responsibility financial and otherwise for the recovery and
recycling of the wind turbine waste and solar energy waste;
(i) to design the products to facilitate dismantling and recovery; and
(j) to report annually of the wind turbines and PV modules to the prescribed
agency of appropriate Government.
9.It shall be the duty of every consumer to ensure that the wind turbine waste and
solar energy waste is not disposed of in any manner except in the manner prescribed for thepurpose.
10. It shall be the duty of every re-cycler to,—
(a) get his product registered with the appropriate Government in such manner
as may be prescribed;
(b) re-cycle only those parts of an solar and wind energy equipment that has
been marked as re-cyclable by the manufacturer;
(c) achieve mandatory collection and re-cycling targets as may be prescribed;
(d) ensure that he is utilizing environmentally sound technologies and
possesses, adequate technical capabilities, requisite facilities and equipment to recycle,reprocess or reuse hazardous wastes, as approved by the Central Pollution ControlBoard;
(e) ensure that the recycling processes are in accordance with the standards
laid down in the guidelines published by the Central Pollution Control Board fromtime to time;
(f) ensure that residue generated thereof is disposed of in a hazardous waste
treatment storage and disposal facility; and
(g) obtain authorization and maintain records of wind turbine waste and solar
energy waste handled by him and file annual return to Central Pollution ControlBoard.
11. The transportation of wind turbine waste and solar energy waste shall be carried
out as per the manifest system whereby the transporter shall be required to prevent leakageof the wind turbine waste and solar energy waste to informal sector during transportationand hazardous waste shall be transported as per protocols.
12. It shall be the responsibilities of the importer and distant dealer to,—
(a) collect the wind turbine waste and solar energy waste from the consumer
and deposit it to the collection centre or dismantler or re-cycler as designated bymanufacture in such manner as may be prescribed, as the case may be; and
(b) ensure all protocols are followed as prescribed for the manufacture.
13. (1) Where a person or the company contravenes any of the provisions of this Act
or of any rules made under the act shall be punished with imprisonment for a term and withfine in such manner as may be prescribed.
Explanation.—For the purpose of this section "company" means any corporate and
includes a firm or other association of individuals.Duty ofconsumer.
Duty of
Re-cycler.
Transportation
of WindTurbine Wasteand SolarEnergy Waste.
Duty of
Importer andDistantDealer.
Penalty.
(2) Urban Local Bodies shall collect the fine under sub-section ( 1) and the funds
may be used to strengthen wind turbine and solar energy waste disposal system withintheir jurisdiction.
14. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent
therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force.
15. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make
rules for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is
made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirtydays which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if,before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessionsaforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Housesagree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in suchmodified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modificationor annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done underthat rule.Act to haveoverridingeffect.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 285
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Wind and solar energy seem more promising than ever. Fossil fuel is one of the major
causes of the climate crisis. Renewable energy can limit climate disruption and boost energy
security. India plans to generate 500 gigawatts of non-fossil energy by 2030, including
140 GW of wind and 280 GW of solar power. Questions remain about whether the wastecreated at the end of the life cycle from solar panels and wind turbines will be as dangerous
as the fossil fuels which they aim to replace.
Though most part of wind turbines are made up of recyclable materials such as steel,
iron, copper, and aluminium, rotor blades are made of composite materials based on carbonfibres, plastics, and resins. Due to their large size and sturdy build, transportation becomes
expensive. Therefore, wind turbine blades pose a significant economic and environmental
challenge as they reach their end-of-life stage. With some techniques, these can be reusedand, eventually, turbines need to be de-commissioned.
Manufacturing solar panels often require the use of several noxious chemicals. Add
to that, solar panels have an operating lifespan of around 20 to 30 years. A solar panel is
essentially made up of several sheets of silicon crystals called cells. Each cell making up a
solar panel is sandwiched by an aluminium and glass layer. Together, they form the energy-producing components that convert sunlight into electricity. Normally silicon is recyclable,
but to improve the solar cell's electrical efficiency, metals such as cadmium and lead are
added. Studies have shown these metals can leach out of the cells and get into groundwater,as well as affect plants. These metals also have detrimental effects on human health as lead
is known to impair brain development in children, and cadmium is a carcinogen. Several
components of solar energy devices are hazardous and should be disposed of in a mannerthat does not harm the environment.
Due to these challenges, non-conventional energy resources will lose their inherent
environmental benefit if legislative and infrastructure frameworks are not effective for waste
handling, disposal, and recycling. If waste recycling is left to the vagaries of the informalsector, we would face irreversible environmental damage and health problems. Many workers
engaged in informal waste management operations are the most vulnerable and unaware of
the hazards associated with them. The legal framework for the disposal of solar and windenergy waste will enable the adoption of clean energy in an ethical way and manufacturers,
distributors, and consumers will be held responsible for the generated waste. It will also
enable us to develop new business models for renewable energy as this waste containsmany valuable and rare materials. A holistic approach to unconventional energy includes
not only a green and clean perspective but also resource and material management.
The large cost gap between recycling and discarding solar panels and wind turbine
blades in landfills points to an unpleasant truth that manufacturers or consumers will not
dispose of the solar cells or panels properly without regulations. With regulations, therewill be an encouragement to invest in research to reduce pollutants and recycling costs.
Promoting the 3 R Concept (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle) for Hazardous Waste, the
bill envisages creating a policy and infrastructure framework for proper channelization of
solar and wind energy waste for processing. The fundamental approach is precautionary orpolluter-pays principles, with the cardinal principles of accountability, transparency, and
sustainability to ensure its proper implementation. While oil and gas prices have reached
record-high levels, renewables are getting cheaper all the time. If energy prices will be lowerand more predictable, there will be positive effects on food and economic security.
As society continues to adopt unconventional power, the problem of disposal may
worsen in the coming decades and we will lose the benefits of using clean energy. It is
estimated that solar and wind waste will become the most prevalent form of waste in landfills
in India soon. It is, therefore, high time that matter may be regulated before the situationbecomes alarming.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; POONAMBEN HEMATBHAI MAADAM
July 5, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 5 of the Bill provides that the Central Government shall constitute a Board to
be known as the Central Board for the Prevention, Control and Abatement of wind turbinewaste and solar energy waste for effective implementation of the provisions of the Act.Clause 7 of the Bill provides that the appropriate Government shall facilitate infrastructurefacilities for collection, storage, transportation and disposal of waste. The expenditurerelating to States shall be borne out of the Consolidated Funds of the respective States. TheCentral Government may also have to provide some financial assistance to the States forthis purpose. Also, the expenditure in respect of Union territories shall be borne out of theConsolidated Fund of India. The Bill, therefore, if enacted would involve expenditure fromthe Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a sum of rupees four hundred andsixty crore will be involved as recurring expenditure per annum from the Consolidated Fundof India.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees five crore is also likely to be involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 15 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the provisions of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 287
BILL NO. 198 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the National Green Tribunal (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title andcommencement.
2. In section 15 of the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 (hereinafter referred to as the
principal Act),—
(a) in sub-section (1), the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:
"Provided that in cases of relief and compensation to be paid to a group of
persons, the Tribunal shall quantify the amount of compensation to be paid to eachvictim of pollution and other environmental damages in such manner as may beprescribed."; and
(b) after sub-section ( 1), the following sub-section shall be inserted, namely:
"(1A) The Tribunal shall, for the purpose of providing relief and
compensation and restitution of property and environment under clauses (a),(b) and (c) of sub-section (1), establish a permanent panel of technical accessorson such terms and conditions of service as may be prescribed.".
3. In section 22 of the principal Act, after the existing proviso, the following proviso
shall be inserted, namely:—
"Provided further that no appeal shall be made to the Supreme Court by
a person against whom the award of compensation or relief is issued unless hedeposits fifty per cent. of the amount of compensation awarded by the Tribunalto the Environmental Relief Fund constituted under the Public Liability InsuranceAct, 1991.".
4.In section 35 of the principal Act, in sub-section (2), in clause (l), for the words
"manner and the purposes", the words "manner, purposes and publication of information"shall be substituted.Amendmentof section 15.19 of 2010.
Amendment
of section 22.
6 of 1991.
Amendment
of section 35.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 289
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) was set up in the year 2010 to provide a speedy
and specialised form of adjudication of environment related cases and to providecompensation to victims of environmental damage. An expeditious mechanism is very muchnecessitated to finalise the process of assessing the compensation and disbursing it to thevictims at the earliest.
As per the present system, the compensation must first be remitted to the environment
relief fund which was set up under the Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991. When the NGTawards the compensation to victims of environmental damage, it must be transferred fromthe fund to the district collector having local jurisdiction for a disbursement. In practice,when there are large number of victims, the NGT awards a lump sum, leaving it to thecollector to determine individual claims. This goes against the objective of the NationalGreen Tribunal Act, 2010.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to amend the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 with a view
to provide process for assessment of environmental damage and quantifying environmentalcompensation and recast the process of appeal and formation of panel of technicians toassist the National Green Tribunal in surveying damage and quantifying compensation.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; E.T. MOHAMMED BASHEER
August 10, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 2 of the Bill provides that the Tribunal shall establish a permanent panel
of technical accessors for the purpose of quantifying relief and compensation and restitutionof property and environment. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditure fromthe Consolidated Fund of India. It is likely to involve an annual recurring expenditure ofabout rupees one hundred crore from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure to the tune of one hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 4 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules regarding the
publication of information for which the amount of compensation or relief credited to theEnvironment Relief Fund shall be utilized. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only,the delegation of legislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 291
BILL NO. 292 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title andcommencement.
2.In the Seventh Schedule to Constitution,—
(i) in List II — State list, in entry 17, the words ''and embankments'' shall be
omitted; and
(ii) in List III — Concurrent List, after entry 47, the following entry shall be
inserted, namely:—
"48. Flood, riverine erosion control, embankments and management.''.Amendment
of theSeventhSchedule.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 293
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Despite flooding being an annual phenomena in the State of Assam, it is unfortunate
that the struggle of tens of lakhs of people has been sidelined in the national discourse ondevelopment. In the previous seven decades (1951-2022), there was not a single year whenthe State didn't endure flooding. Moreover, over the years the floods have gotten morewidespread and fiercer, inflicting increasing losses and damage to the State's economy,agriculture and infrastructure, with human misery also growing all around.
The State witnessed disastrous floods in the years 1951, 1968, 1972, 1987, 1988, 2004,
2008, 2012 and most recently in 2019. Observing what has already transpired in the monthsof May and June, the year 2022 has shaped up to become one of those catastrophic floodyears for the State. Erosion too is a grave concern —the Assam Water Resources Departmentestimated the annual average loss of land due to river erosion at nearly 8000 hectares,causing damages running into hundreds of crores every year.
While the modern approach to flood management is dominated by Structural solutions
like embankments, the necessity of the hour is to implement an integrated flood and erosionmanagement strategy and design a long term action plan expressly for the State of Assam tominimise the twin calamity of flood and erosion. Given the nature and scale of the problem,and that it involves the larger question of river-basin management, the role and support ofthe Union Government is key. The comprehensive tackling of flooding and riverine erosion,cannot be left to the meager resources of a single state like Assam, 40% of Assam's area(close to 32 lakh hectares) is flood-prone, roughly four times higher than the national mark.
The Standing Committee of Parliament on Water Resources in 2021, expressing concern
at the nationwide menace of flood mooted that ''flood control and management'' should bebrought under the concurrent list of the Constitution for the overall national interest ofintegrated development of water resources. This intervention is crucial since most riversflow across multiple States and flood control measure taken by one State State may haveinter-state ramifications.
Thus, considering the above facts, it is proposed in the Bill that ''flood, Riverine
erosion control embankments and management'' be included in the Seventh schedule to theConstitution so that both the Centre and State governments can play their due role in thefield of flood and riverine erosion control and management.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; PRADYUT BORDOLOI
November 21, 2022.
BILL NO. 94 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Hindu Succession Act, 1956.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2.In section 2 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956,—
(i) in sub-section ( 1), after clause ( c), the following clause shall be inserted,
namely:—
"(cd) to the Members of any Scheduled Tribe within the meaning of
clause (25) of article 366 of the Constitution"; and
(ii) sub-section (2) shall be omitted.Short title and
commencement.
Amendment
of section 2.30 of 1956.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 295
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
As per section 2(2) of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, the provisions of this Act do
not apply to the Members of any Scheduled Tribe within the meaning of clause 25 of article366 of the Constitution. This creates unjust situation wherein the members of the ScheduledTribes, irrespective of gender, are not legally entitled to an equal share in their father's/Hindu Undivided Family properties. Such discrimination is antithetical to article 14 of theConstitution which time and again have been clarified by the Hon'ble Supreme Court at theMadras High Court.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to amend the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 with a view to
provide equal rights to members of Schedule Tribes irrespective of gender difference on theproperty of their father's/Hindu Undivided Family properties.
N
EW DELHI; GAUTHAM SIGAMANI PON
July 04, 2023.
BILL NO. 103 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Coal Bearing Areas (Acquisition and Development)
Act, 1957.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Coal Bearing Areas (Acquisition and Development)
Amendment Act, 2023.
(2)It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notificatiol
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short titleandcommencement.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 297
2.After section 4 of the Coal Bearing Areas (Acquisition and Development)
Act, 1957, the following new section shall be inserted, namely:—
"4A. Notwithstanding anything contained in section 4 of the Act, the Central
Government shall, as soon as may be, by issuing a notification, exclude coal miningactivities in,—
(i) Vadaseri and East Sethiathope lignite blocks which fall in the zone protected
under the Tamil Nadu Protected Agriculture Zone Development Act, 2020; and
(ii) Michaelpatti which falls in a major paddy growing area adjoining a very
fertile part of the Cauvery delta.".20 of 1957.
Exclusion of
Vadaseri andEastSethiahopelignite blocksand Michael-patti in theState of TamilNadu fromoperation ofcoal mining.Insertion of
new section4A.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Vadaseri and East of Sethiathope lignite blocks all in the zone protected under
the Tamil Nadu Protected Agriculture Zone Development Act, 2020 and Michaelpatti falls ina major paddy growing area adjoining a very fertile part of the Cauvery delta. TheGovernment's unilateral move to auction three coal blocks in above areas had the potentialto cause considerable disquiet in the delta, the main food producing area in the State of
Tamil Nadu. The Tamil Nadu Protected Agriculture Zone Development Act, 2020, preventsthe exploitation of coal bed methane.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; GAUTHAM SIGAMANI PON
July 4, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 299
BILL NO. 110 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for the protection of privacy and security in the Indian telecommunication
sector, establish a comprehensive framework for the collection, storage, and use ofpersonal data by telecom service providers, in accordance with the principles oftransparency, users rights and consent and for matters connected therewith.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be called the Indian Telecom (Privacy and Security) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,andcommencement.
2.In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:
(a) "Authority" means the Data Protection Authority as designated by the
Central Government under the provisions of this Act;
(b) "automated" means any digital process capable of operating automatically
in response to instructions given or otherwise for the purpose of processing data;
(c) "business data" means data collected and processed by entities for
commercial or business purposes, including customer data, financial transaction data,
marketing data, and any other data related to the operations of a business entity;
(d) "consent" means any freely given, specific, informed, and unambiguous
indication of the user's agreement to the processing of their personal data;
(e) "data" means a representation of information, facts, concepts, opinions or
instructions in a manner suitable for communication, interpretation or processing by
humans or by automated means;
(f) "data fiduciary" means any person who alone or in conjunction with other
persons determines the purpose and means of processing of personal data;
(g) "data principal" means the individual to whom the personal data relates and
where such individual is a child includes the parents or lawful guardian of such a
child;
(h) "data processor" means any person who processes personal data on behalf
of a Data Fiduciary;
(i) "Data Protection Officer" means an individual appointed as such by a
Significant Data Fiduciary under the provisions of this Act;
(j) "gain" means—
(i) a gain in property or a supply of services, whether temporary or
permanent; or
(ii) an opportunity to earn remuneration or greater remuneration or to
gain a financial advantage otherwise than by way of remuneration.
(k) "harm", in relation to a Data Principal, means—
(i) any bodily harm; or
(ii) distortion or theft of identity; or
(iii) harassment; or
(iv) prevention of lawful gain or causation of significant loss;
(l) "loss" means—
(i) a loss in property or interruption in supply of services, whether
temporary or permanent; or
(ii) a loss of an opportunity to earn remuneration or greater remuneration
or to gain a financial advantage otherwise than by way of remuneration.
(m) "National Data" means data collected and processed by public entities or
authorized agencies in the interest of national security, public safety, or for the purpose
of fulfilling legal obligations or public functions;Definitions.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 301
(n) "person" includes—
(i) an individual;
(ii) a Hindu Undivided Family;
(iii) a company;
(iv) a firm;
(v) an association of persons or a body of individuals, whether
incorporated or not;
(vi) the State; and
(vii) every artificial juristic person, not falling within any of the preceding
sub-clauses;
(o) "personal data" means information relating to an identified or identifiable
individual, including but not limited to name, address, contact details, identification
numbers, biometric data, financial information, health information and sensitive
personal information;
(p) "personal data breach" means any unauthorised processing of personal
data or accidental disclosure, acquisition, sharing, use, alteration, destruction for
loss of access to personal data, that compromises the confidentiality, integrity oravailability of personal data.
(q) "prescribed" means prescribed by Rules made under the provisions of this
Act;
(r) "processing" in relation to personal data means an automated operation or
set of operations performed on digital personal data, and may include operations
such as collection, recording, organisation, structuring, storage, adaptation, alteration,retrieval, use, alignment or combination, indexing, sharing, disclosure by transmission,
dissemination or otherwise making available, restriction, erasure or destruction;
(s) "proceeding" means any action taken by the Board under the provisions of
this Act; and
(t) "public data" means information that is publicly available and accessible,
including data published by Government agencies, public institutions, or madeavailable by individuals through public channels, such as social media profiles;
(u) "public interest" means in the interest of any of the following:—
(i) sovereignty and integrity of India;
(ii) security of the State;
(iii) friendly relations with foreign States;
(iv) maintenance of public order;
(v) preventing incitement to the commission of any cognizable offence
relating to the preceding sub-clauses; and
(vi) preventing dissemination of false statements of facts.
(v) "Telecom service provider" means any person or entity engaged in providing
telecommunication services to the public, including voice, data, or any other form of
communication service;
(w) "User" means any person who avails or has availed of the services provided
by a telecom service provider;
CHAPTER II
PRIVACY AND DATA PROTECTION
3. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in
force, it shall be the responsibility of every telecom service provider to adopt and implementprivacy policies and practices that ensure the protection of users' privacy, in line withnationally recognized privacy principles.
(2) The privacy policy under sub-section ( 1) shall be transparent, easily accessible,
and written in clear and concise language.
(3) Every Telecom service providers shall obtain explicit consent from users for the
collection, processing, and storage of their personal data in such manner as may be
prescribed.
4.Every User shall have the right to,—
(a) access his personal data held by telecom service providers and rectify
any inaccuracies or errors;
(b) withdraw consent for the processing of his personal data, subject to the
provisions of this Act;
(c) request the erasure or deletion of his personal data when it is no longer
necessary for the purpose it was collected or processed; and
(d) data portability, allowing him to transfer his personal data from one telecom
service provider to another.
5.(1) Every Telecom service provider shall establish a mechanism to promptly detect
and report any unauthorized access, use or disclosure of personal data, commonly referred
to as data breaches in such manner as may be prescribed.
(2) For the purpose of sub-section (1), the telecom service provider shall, in case of a
data breach, notify the affected users without undue delay with relevant information aboutthe breach and the measures taken or to be taken to mitigate the adverse effects of such
data breach in such manner as may be prescribed.
(3) The data breach notification under sub-section (2) shall be issued promptly and
without undue delay after the detection of the data breach, taking into account the natureand severity of the breach and the potential risks to individuals.
(4) The data breach notification process under sub-section (1) shall include the
following elements, namely:—
(A) Identification and assessment under which every telecom service
provider shall,—
(i) promptly investigate and assess the scope, impact, and causes of the
data breach; and
(ii) determine the types of data affected, the number of individuals
impacted, and the potential risks associated with the breach.
(B) Notification to affected individuals under which every telecom service
provider shall,—
(i) notify affected individuals without undue delay, providing clear and
concise information about the breach, the types of data involved, potential
risks, and recommended steps to mitigate harm; and
(ii) ensure that the notification is accessible, written in plain language,
and delivered through appropriate communication channels.Telecom
ServiceProviders toadopt PrivacyPrinciples.
User rights.
Data breach
notification.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 303
(C) Notification to Relevant Authorities under which every telecom service
provider shall notify the appropriate regulatory authorities, such as the designated
Data Protection Authority, about the breach, providing comprehensive details of the
incident, including the nature of the breach, the affected data, and the measures takento address the breach and mitigate harm.
(D) Collaboration with Law Enforcement under which every telecom service
provider shall,—
(i) cooperate with law enforcement agencies in cases where criminal
activity is suspected or involved in the data breach; and
(ii) provide necessary information and assistance to support
investigations and prosecution.
(E) Remediation Measures under which every telecom service provider shall
take immediate steps to contain and remediate the breach, including closing securityvulnerabilities, restoring affected systems, and implementing measures to prevent
similar incidents in the future.
(F) Communication with Third Parties under which every telecom service
provider shall,—
(i) assess and communicate the breach to relevant third parties, such as
business partners or service providers, whose data may have been compromised
or impacted by the breach; and
(ii) collaborate with the parties concerned to ensure coordinated response
and protection of shared data.
(5) For the purpose of this Act, every telecom service provider shall,—
(a) maintain records of all data breaches, including their causes, impact, and
remedial actions taken which shall be made available for review by the designatedData Protection Authority under section 11; and
(b) periodically review and update their data breach notification mechanisms to
ensure their effectiveness in responding to evolving threats and privacy risks, pastincidents and best practices shall be incorporated into the continuous improvementof breach response procedures.
(6) The designated Data Protection Authority under section 11 shall after receipt of
records of data breach by the telecom service provider provide guidance and support toentities regarding data breach notification obligations, best practices for incident response,and the Coordination of breach-related activities to ensure consistency and effectiveness
in protecting individuals' rights and interests.
(7) Any non-compliance with data breach notification requirements under this Act
may result in penalties, fines, or other appropriate sanctions imposed by the designatedRegulatory Authority, reinforcing the importance of timely and transparent communication
in the event of a breach.
6. The Central Government shall,—
(a) conduct public awareness and education campaigns to inform individuals
about their rights and actions to take in the event of a data breach in such manner as
may be prescribed; and
(b) encourage telecom service providers, industry associations, and relevant
stakeholders to share information, best practices, and insights regarding data breachprevention, detection, and response, thereby fostering a collective effort in
safeguarding data privacy and security. Central
Governmentto conductpublicawarenesscampaign.
CHAPTER III
ENCRYPTION STANDARDS AND DATA SECURITY MEASURES
7. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, establish
robust encryption standards for effective data security measures in the Indiantelecommunication sector to recognize the importance of safeguarding personal data andupholding the privacy rights of individuals in such manner as may be prescribed.
(2) The encryption standard established under sub-section (i) shall,—
(a) outline the significance of encryption and other security measures focused
on the protection of personal data;
(b) require telecom service providers to implement encryption standards that
align with the secure transmission and storage of personal data to protect it fromunauthorized access and interception;
(c) mandate the use of strong encryption algorithms and key management
practices to maintain the confidentiality and integrity of data throughout its lifecycle;
(d) prioritize the implementation of appropriate technical and organizational
measures to safeguard personal information against unauthorized access, databreaches and misuse of sensitive data;
(e) involve the use of cryptographic keys to encode and decode data ensure
that only authorized parties may access and understand the information; and
(f) enable the telecom service provider to meet their legal obligations by
safeguarding personal data from unauthorized access and protecting individuals'privacy rights.
8.Every telecom service provider shall, in the event of a data breach, promptly notify
affected individuals to mitigate the potential harm caused by the unauthorized access totheir data.
9. The Central Government shall encourage telecom service provider to adopt best
practices in data security including the implementation of encryption technologies to protectpersonal data, fostering trust with customers and partners improve their overall datamanagement processes and secure handling of data, streamlining data managementprocedures, and enhancing the efficiency of data handling within the Indiantelecommunications sector.
10. (1) Every telecom service provider shall implement appropriate technical and
organizational measures to protect personal data against unauthorized access, disclosure,alteration, or destruction including encryption, access controls, firewalls, and regular securityaudits.
(2) Every telecom service provider shall ensure that their employees and contractors
adhere to strict security protocols.
CHAPTER IV
C
OMPLIANCE AND ENFORCEMENT
11. (1) The Central Government shall designate the Telecom Regulatory Authority of
India (TRAI) as Data Protection Authority to oversee the implementation and enforcementof privacy and data protection policies in the Indian telecommunications sector, incoordination with the State and Union territory authorities.
(2)The Data Protection Authority designated under sub-section ( 1) shall collaborateEncryption
Standards andData SecurityMeasures.
Telecom
ServiceProviders tomitigate theimpact ofDataBreaches.
Encouraging
Data SecurityBestPractices.
Security
safeguards.
Data
ProtectionAuthority.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 305
with the State and Union territory authorities to formulate and implement regulations and
guidelines that ensure the protection of privacy and data security in the telecommunicationsindustry, taking into account the specific requirements and concerns of each region.
(3)The Data Protection Authority, in collaboration with the State and Union Territory
authorities, shall,—
(a) monitor and assess the compliance of telecom service providers with privacy
and data protection regulations at the regional level;
(b) investigate complaints and reports of privacy violations within their
respective jurisdictions, including unauthorized access, use or disclosure of personaldata;
(c) conduct audits and inspections of telecom service providers' data protection
practices in coordination with the State and Union territory authorities;
(d) impose penalties, fines, or other appropriate sanctions on non-compliant
telecom service providers in accordance with the regional regulations and guidelines;
(e) collaborate with the State and Union territory authorities, other regulatory
bodies, law enforcement agencies, and international organizations to address privacyand data protection issues at the regional and national levels;
(f) promote public awareness and education regarding privacy rights and the
importance of data protection in the telecommunications sector, in coordination withthe State and Union territory authorities;
(g) issue region specific guidelines, codes of practice and standards to ensure
the effective implementation of privacy and data protection measures includingguidelines for,—
(i) requirements for obtaining and managing user consent for the
collection, processing, and storage of personal data, tailored to the regionalcontext;
(ii) specifications for secure storage and transmission of personal data,
including encryption standards, as per regional requirements;
(iii) protocols for data breach notifications and incident response
mechanisms, ensuring coordination with the State and Union territoryauthorities;
(iv) the protection of user rights, such as the right to access, rectify and
delete personal data aligned with regional privacy laws; and
(v) measures to ensure the privacy and security of communication services,
including the prohibition of mass surveillance and the protection of encryptiontechnologies, in coordination with the State and Union territory authorities.
(h) conduct regular assessments of the effectiveness of privacy and data
protection policies at the regional and national levels; and
(i) make recommendations for improvements and updates to ensure their
alignment with emerging privacy challenges, regional requirements, andtechnological advancements.
(4) The Data Protection Authority designated under sub-section ( i) shall have the
necessary powers and resources, in coordination with the State and Union territoryauthorities, to fulfill its responsibilities effectively.
(5) The Data Protection Authority may appoint such members of personnel with
expertise in privacy, data protection, and telecommunications at the regional level to supportits functions in such manner as may be prescribed.
(6) The Central Government shall provide the Data Protection Authority and the
regional authorities with the independence and autonomy required to carry out their dutieseffectively and ensure that the Data Protection Authority and the regional authorities
operate transparently and are accountable to the public and stakeholders.
(7) The Data Protection Authority, in coordination with the State and Union territory
authorities, shall maintain a proactive approach to privacy and data protection by
collaborating with industry stakeholders, academia, and civil society organizations at the
regional and national level to help stay abreast of emerging technologies, best practices,and evolving privacy concerns specific to each region.
(8) The Central Government, in consultation with the State and Union territory
authorities shall periodically review the performance and effectiveness in such manner asmay be prescribed.
CHAPTER V
P
RIVACY AND PROTECTION AGAINST MASS SURVEILLANCE
12. (1) No telecom service provider shall engage in or facilitate any form of mass
surveillance of users communications, including the bulk collection, interception, or
monitoring of personal data without the consent of the lawful authority.
(2) Any requests for interception or monitoring of personal data shall be based on
lawful grounds and subject to judicial review.
13. (1) The Central Government shall ensure transparency in government surveillance
activities by issuing an annual report that provides information on the number and nature
of surveillance requests made by government agencies.
(2) The report shall also include details regarding the legal basis for the surveillance,
the duration of surveillance and the measures taken to protect the privacy and security of
personal data.
14. (1) Any request for interception or monitoring of personal data by government
agencies shall require prior authorization from a competent judicial authority, in accordance
with the principles of due process and proportionality.
(2) The judicial authority shall review the necessity and proportionality of the
surveillance request, taking into consideration the potential impact on privacy rights and
the existence of alternative means to achieve the legitimate objective.
15. (1) Any whistleblowers who disclose information related to unlawful surveillance
practices shall be protected from any form of retaliation or prosecution.
(2) It shall be the responsibility of the Central to establish a Whistleblower protection
mechanism to encourage individuals to come forward and report any violations of privacyrights in the context of mass surveillance.
16. No telecom service provider shall be compelled to introduce vulnerabilities or
weaken encryption technologies in their communication services.
17. (1) The Data Protection Authority shall have the power to,—
(a) investigate any complaints or reports related to violations of privacy rights,
including unauthorized mass surveillance;
(b) impose penalties and sanctions on telecom service providers found guilty
of engaging in unlawful mass surveillance practices; and
(c) conduct audits and assessments to ensure compliance with privacy
regulations and the protection of citizens' rights.Prohibition of
MassSurveillance.
Transparency
inGovernmentSurveillance.
Judicial
Review.
Protection of
Whistleblowers.
Safeguarding
CommunicationEncryption.
Oversight and
Accountability.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 307
18. (1) The Central Government shall actively engage in international cooperation to
address cross border surveillance issues and promote the protection of privacy rights inthe global context.
(2) For the purpose of sub-section (1), bilateral and multilateral agreements shall be
established by the Central Government to facilitate information sharing and cooperation ininvestigating and combating unlawful mass surveillance activities.
CHAPTER VI
E
THICAL AND MIXED LICENSING
19. The Central Government shall, in order to promote ethical practices in the
telecommunications sector, establish a framework for ethical licensing to ensure that
telecom service providers adhere to ethical standards, including transparency, accountabilityand responsible business conduct.
20. Every telecom service provider seeking ethical license under section 19 shall meet
specific eligibility criteria, which may include:—
(a) demonstrated commitment to user privacy and data protection;
(b) compliance with relevant ethical guidelines and codes of conduct;
(c) Implementation of measures to mitigate environmental impact and promote
sustainability;
(d) support for social causes and corporate social responsibility initiatives.
21. Every ethically licensed telecom service providers shall,—
(a) adopt transparent and fair business practices;
(b) protect user privacy and confidentiality;
(c) safeguard personal data in accordance with applicable privacy laws and
regulations;
(d) promote digital inclusivity and accessibility for all users;
(e) contribute to environmental sustainability efforts; and
(f) support social initiatives, community development, and digital literacy
programmes.
22. The Central Government shall, in recognition of the benefits of public and private
collaboration in the telecommunications sector, establish a frame work for mixed licensing
for partnerships between public and private entities to promote efficient and inclusive
provision of telecommunication services.
23. (1) The Central Government may enter into partnerships with private entities for
the provision of telecommunication services, subject to transparent and competitive bidding
processes.
(2) The terms and conditions of public-private partnerships under sub-section (1)
shall be clearly defined, ensuring accountability, fair competition and in public interest.
24. (1) The mixed license holders shall have the access to public infrastructure,
spectrum allocation, or financial incentives.
(2)The mixed license holders shall bear certain responsibilities, including:—
(a) complying with regulatory requirements and standards;
(b) Ensuring fair pricing and quality of services;International
Cooperation.
Ethical
LicensingFramework.
Eligibility
Criteria forEthicalLicensing.
Obligation and
Responsibilitiesof EthicallyLicensedProviders.
Mixed
LicensingFramework.
Public-Private
Partnership.
Benefits and
Responsibilitiesof MixedLicenseHolders.
(c) protecting user privacy and data in accordance with applicable laws; and
(d) contributing to the development of telecommunications infrastructure in
underserved areas.
25. (1) The Data Protection Authority shall review and monitor the compliance of
ethical and mixed license holders with their obligations and responsibilities.
(2) For the purpose of sub-section(1), regular audits, inspections and reporting
mechanisms shall be implemented to ensure adherence to ethical standards and regulatoryrequirements.
26. (1) The Ethical or mixed licenses issued under this Act may be revoked in cases of
non-compliance with the prescribed obligations and responsibilities.
(2) The revocation process shall include due process, including notice, an opportunity
to be heard and appeal mechanisms.
27. (1) The Central Government shall establish mechanisms to recognize and promote
ethical and mixed license holders who demonstrate exceptional commitment to ethicalpractices, sustainability and social responsibility.
(2) The recognition under sub-section (1) may include awards, incentives or preferential
treatment in public procurement processes.
28. (1) The Ethical and mixed license holders shall be encouraged to collaborate and
share best practices to further enhance ethical standards, technological advancements andsocial impact in the telecommunications sector.
(2) For the purpose of sub-section ( 1), platforms and forums may be established to
facilitate knowledge exchange and foster innovation among ethical and mixed license holders.
CHAPTER VII
C
OLLECTION , STORAGE AND PROCESSING OF DATA BY TELECOM PUBLIC SERVICE PROVIDER
29. Every telecom service provider shall collect data, including personal, public,
business and national data, based on the consent of the data subject, compliance with legalobligations, performance of a contract, protection of vital interests, public interest or legitimateinterests pursued by the entity or a third party.
30. (1) Every telecom service provider shall provide clear and concise notices to
individuals at the time of data collection, informing them about the purposes, legal basis,categories of data collected, data retention period and any third parties with whom the datamay be shared.
(2) The notices and sub-section ( 1) shall contain the details about the rights the
individuals have over their data, including the right to access, rectify, erase, restrictprocessing, data portability, and object to the processing of their personal data.
31. (1) Every telecom service provider shall obtain voluntarily given, specific, informed
and un-ambiguous consent from individuals before collecting their data, unless an alternativelawful basis applies including obtaining consent for the collection, storage and processingof personal, public, business and national data.
(2) The Individuals shall have the right to withdraw their consent at any time and the
telecom service provider shall respect and facilitate the withdrawal process.
32. (1) Every telecom service provider shall implement appropriate technical and
organizational measures to ensure the security and confidentiality of the data theycollect,store, and process applicable to personal, public, business and national data.
(2) The Data under sub-section (1) shall be stored in a manner that prevents
unauthorized access, accidental loss, destruction, alteration, or disclosure and encryption,Review andMonitoring.
Revocation
of Ethical andMixedLicenses.
Promotion
andRecognition.
Collaboration
andKnowledgeSharing.
Basis for
lawful DataCollection.
Notice and
Transparency.
Consent and
Withdrawal.
Data Storage,
Security andConfidentiality.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 309
access controls, regular security assessments and other relevant security measures shall
be employed to safeguard data in such manner as may be prescribed.
33. (1) Every telecom service provider shall retain data, including personal, public,
business and national data as it deems necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it wascollected, unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law.
(2) Every telecom service provider shall establish data retention policies that are
proportionate, considering the nature of the data, legal requirements, legitimate businessneeds and any specific provisions related to public or national data and once the intentionperiod expires, the data shall be deleted.
CHPATER VIII
M
ISCELLANEOUS
34. No telecom service provider shall discriminate against users based on their
personal characteristics, including but not limited to race, religion, gender or sexualorientation, in the provision of services or the processing of personal data.
35. The Central Government shall undertake public awareness campaigns to educate
citizens about their privacy rights, the risks associated with mass surveillance and themeasures they may take to protect their privacy online.
36. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law
in this behalf, provide requisite funds to the Authority for carrying out the purposes of thisAct.
37. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any
other law, for the time being in force, regulating any of the matters dealt with in this Act.
38. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order, published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act as may appear to be necessary for removing thedifficulty:
Provided that no order shall be made under this section after the expiry of two years
from the commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is
made, before each House of Parliament.
39. (1) The Central Government, in consultation with the State Governments, may by
notification in the Official Gazette, make rules for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form orbe of no effect, as the case may be, so, however, that any such modification or annulmentshall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.DataRetention.
Non-
Discriminationand Equality.
Public
Awareness andEducation inmasssurveillance.
Central
Governmentto providefunds.
Act not to be
in derogationof other Laws.
Power to
removedifficulties.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
In recent years, there has been a growing emphasis on privacy and data protection
globally. In India, the right to privacy was recognized as a fundamental right by theSupreme Court in the landmark Puttaswamy judgment. By establishing and maintaining anindependent and empowered Data Protection Authority requires substantial financialresources. Robust compliance and enforcement mechanisms are essential for ensuringadherence to privacy regulations. Effective public awareness and education initiatives willplay a crucial role in promoting a privacy-conscious culture. By investing in privacy, Indiacan foster a secure and trusted digital environment, promote innovation, and enhance therights and trust of its citizens.
Data security measures are crucial in maintaining the confidentiality, integrity, and
availability of personal data. In an increasingly interconnected world, where threats to dataprivacy are ever-present, organizations must prioritize the implementation of appropriatetechnical and organizational measures to safeguard personal information. These measuresprotect against unauthorized access, data breaches, and misuse of sensitive data.
Encryption is a fundamental data protection technique that converts sensitive
information into an unintelligible format, rendering it unreadable to unauthorized individuals.By employing encryption, organizations can maintain the confidentiality and integrity ofpersonal data, thereby bolstering data security and protecting individuals' privacy rights.
Implementing encryption measures brings several benefits to organizations and
individuals within the Indian telecommunications sector. First and foremost, encryptionalso acts as a powerful deterrent to potential attackers, as encrypted data remains unreadableand unusable without the appropriate decryption keys.
Encryption plays a crucial role in minimizing the impact of data breaches by ensuring
that even if data is compromised, it remains secure and protected from unauthorized use.This significantly reduces the risks associated with data breaches and enhances the trustindividuals place in organizations handling their data.
Compliance with encryption standards and other data security measures outlined in
the Indian Telecom Privacy and Security Bill is essential for organizations operating withinthe telecommunications sector.
Compliance demonstrates a commitment to protecting personal data and upholding
individuals' privacy rights. Organizations that adhere to the prescribed encryption standards,employ robust encryption technologies, and implement effective data security measurescan demonstrate their accountability and responsibility in handling sensitive information.
The Bill emphasizes the need for continual evaluation and improvement of data security
measures. As technology evolves and new threats emerge, organizations must remainvigilant and adapt their encryption standards.
Hence this Bill
N
EW DELHI; RITESH PANDEY
July 04, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 311
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 11 of the Bill provides for the appointment of members of personnel with
expertise in privacy, data protection, and telecommunications at the regional level to supportthe functions of the Data Protection Authority. Clause 36 provides that the CentralGovernment shall under public awareness campaigns to educate citizens about their privacyrights and risks associated with mass Surveillance alongwith the measures they may taketo protect their privacy online. Clause 36 provides for the grant of funds by the CentralGovernment. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditure from the ConsolidatedFund of India. It is likely to involve a recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundredcrore per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees twenty crore is also likely to be involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 39 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
BILL NO. 286 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In the Citizenship Act, 1955 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act), in
section 2, in sub-section ( 1), in clause ( b), after sub-clause ( ii), the following second proviso
shall be inserted, namely:
"Provided further that any person belonging to the Tamil community from Sri Lanka,
who entered into India after 1st day of July, 1983 shall not be treated as illegal migrant for thepurposes of this Act."57 of 1955.Short title,
andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 2.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 313
3. In the Third Schedule to the principal Act, in clause (d), in the proviso, for the
words "Bangladesh or Pakistan", the words "Bangladesh or Pakistan and any personbelonging to the Tamil community in Sri Lanka" shall be substituted.Amendmentof the ThirdSchedule.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Citizenship Act, 1955 (57 of 1955) was enacted to provide for the acquisition and
determination of Indian citizenship. It is a historical fact that trans-border migration of Tamilpopulation has been taking place continuously to the territories of India from the areascomprised in Sri Lanka since the wake of the Sri Lankan Civil War. Tens of thousands of SriLankan Tamils have fled to India to seek shelter and continued to stay in India even if theirtravel documents have expired or they have incomplete or no documents. According to therecords of the Ministry of Home Affairs, there are over 92,000 Sri Lankan Tamil refugeesresiding in Tamil Nadu as of 2021.
Under the existing provisions of the Citizenship Act, migrants belonging to the Tamil
community from Sri Lanka who entered into India without valid travel documents or if thevalidity of their documents has expired are regarded as illegal migrants and ineligible toapply for Indian citizenship under section 5 or section 6 of the Act.
The Bill seeks to grant immunity to the migrant of the aforesaid Sri Lankan Tamil
community so that any proceedings against them regarding in respect of their status ofmigration or citizenship does not bar them from applying for Indian citizenship. The competentauthority, to be prescribed under the Act, shall not consider any proceedings initiatedagainst such persons regarding their status as illegal migrant or their citizenship matterwhile considering their application under section 5 or section 6 of the Act, if they fulfil all theconditions for grant of citizenship.
Many persons of Indian origin including persons belonging to the said minority
community from the Sri Lanka have been applying for citizenship under section 5 of theCitizenship Act, 1955 but they are unable to produce proof of their Indian origin. Hence,they are forced to apply for citizenship by naturalisation under section 6 of the said Act,which, inter alia, prescribe twelve years residency as a qualification for naturalisation in
terms of the Third Schedule to the Act. This denies them many opportunities and advantages
that may accrue only to the citizens of India, even though they are likely to stay in Indiapermanently. Therefore, it is proposed to amend the Third Schedule to the Act to makeapplicants belonging to the Tamil community from Sri Lanka eligible for citizenship bynaturalisation if they can establish their residency in India for five years instead of theexisting eleven years.
The Bill seeks to achieve the above objectives.Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; KALANIDHI VEERASWAMY
July 13, 2022
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 315
BILL NO. 13 OF 2023
A Bill to amend the Emigration Act, 1983.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Emigration (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. After section 8 of the Emigration Act, 1983 (hereinafter referred to as the principal
Act), the following Chapter and sections thereunder shall be inserted, namely:—Short title andcommencement.
31 of 1983. Insertion of
new ChapterIIA.
"CHAPTER IIA
WELFARE OF EMIGRANTS
8A. The Central Government shall undertake or cause to be undertaken, specially in
the countries where there are substantial number of emigrants, with a view to assess thefollowing in regard to emigrants:—
(a) access to basic human rights;
(b) access to healthcare facilities including emergency service;
(c) access to social protection schemes of the destination country;
(d) access to legal support services in cases of despite resolution with the
recruiting agent; and
(e) access to timely grievance redressal.
8B. The Central Government shall prepare and maintain a register of records containing
the details of emigrants and their dependent in such manner as may be prescribed.
8C. (1) The Central Government shall formulate and implement welfare schemes for
emigrants in such manner as may be prescribed.
(2)Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing procession, such schemes
shall provide for,—
(a) old age protection;(b) life insurance;(c) disability coverage;
(d) skill upgradation; and
(e) such other measures as the Central Government may consider necessary.
8D. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the official gazette, constitute
a Fund to be known as the Emigrants Welfare Fund for carrying out the purposes of thisAct.
(2)The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law
in this behalf grants such sums of money to the Fund as the Central Government may thinkfit for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(3)The Fund shall be utilized for the purposes of implementation of welfare schemes
formulated under section 8D.''.
3. In section 24 of the principal Act, in sub-section (1), for the words "two years and
with fine which may extend to two thousand rupees", the words "twenty five years and withfine which may extend to rupees five lakh" shall be substituted.CentralGovernmentto access thedetails ofemigrants.
Register of
Records ofEmigrants.
Formulation
of WelfareSchemes forEmigration.
Constitution
of EmigrantsWelfare Fund.
Amendment
of section 24.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 317
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Indians have a long history of migration to many parts of the world like Australia,
Canada, UAE, United Kingdom and the USA. Post-Independence, migrants have taken upjobs in almost all professions ranging from semi-skilled work in the construction industry tohighly skilled jobs as doctors and engineers. Today, India has the world's largest diasporacommunity. Data suggest that India's diaspora communities are in as many as 110 countrieswhere they have not just secured jobs but are as successful as to become CEOs of companiesand start-ups such as Google LLC & Alphabet Inc, Microsoft and Adobe. These emigrantshave contributed to not only the economic development of their host countries but haveequally benefited India. In 2021, India received U.S. $87 billion in official remittances whichwas the world's largest such flow, amounting to nearly fifteen per cent of all global transfersto low and middle-income countries, as noted by the World Bank.
But the growing number of Indian migrants overseas has proportionately heightened
the number of issues faced by them. The highly skilled population from India as perGovernment data migrates to countries like the UK, USA and Canada, where they have timeand again faced racially motivated attacks. Indians moving for tech-based jobs have beenexploited with low wages, long working hours and sometimes lawsuits for quitting the job.As per an independent report, Indian workers in the US are also being sued for quitting theirjobs.
Many Indian migrants comprising semi-skilled and unskilled workers migrated to Gulf
countries to work in construction and oil factories. These emigrants under Emigrant CheckRequired (ECR) migrate for a considerable number of years under contract. They areparticularly vulnerable due to their socio-economic and occupational status. Over yearsMinistry of External Affairs has received many complaints from emigrants for pendingwages, absence of any social support, language barriers, discrimination for being foreign,and poor living conditions.
While the Ministry of External Affairs has been looking after the emigrants' affairs as
directed in the Emigration Act of 1983. However, the core issues of safety and welfare ofemigrants is still to be addressed majorly because the Ministry does not maintain data onIndian citizens going abroad for migration. Without proper data, effective address of theissues of such a large Indian diaspora spread across countries is not possible. Further, ithas attained limited success in regulating the agents who deceive migrants by overpricingvisas and incomplete information about the contract period, salary, overtime and relateddetails. The Indian Government has so far not institutionalized any permanent mechanismand resources with host countries to evacuate its workers in case of emergency. Theevacuation of 1-2 million workers in a limited time becomes not only tough but also asecurity challenge.
This Bill, therefore, seeks to amend the Emigration Act, 1983 with a view to address
the emigrants' issues pertaining to social security and healthcare and also prioritizemaintaining robust data of all the Indian emigrants for better-informed decisions and fasteningtheir grievance redressal mechanism. It also provides for constitution of an Emigrant WelfareFund for the welfare of emigrants.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; KALANIDHI VEERASWAMY
November 24, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 2 of the Bill vide proposed section 8B provides for the Central Government to
prepare and maintain a register of records containing the details of emigrants and theirdependants. It further vide proposed section 8D provides for the constitution of Emigrants
Welfare Fund. It also provides for the Central Government to provide sums to the Fund. TheBill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India.It is estimated that a recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore will beinvolved per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees fifty crores is also likely to be involved
from the Consolidated Fund of India.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 319
BILL NO. 86 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for enhancement of livelihood security in the urban regions of the
country by providing at least one hundred days of guaranteed wage employment inevery financial year to every household whose adult members volunteers to do thegiven work and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India
as follows:—
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY
1.(1) This Act may be called the Pingali Venkayya National Urban Employment
Guarantee Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint:
Provided that different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this
Act and any reference in any such provision to the commencement of this Act shallbe construed as a reference to the coming into force of that provision.Short title andcommencement.
2.In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:—
(a) "adult" means a person who has completed eighteen years of age;
(b) "applicant" means the head of a household or any of its other adult members
who has applied for employment under the Scheme;
(c) "Central Council" means the Central Urban Employment Guarantee Council
constituted under sub-section ( 1) of Section 10;
(d) "household" means the members of a family related to each other by blood,
marriage or adoption and normally residing together and sharing meals or holding acommon ration card;
(e) "implementing agency" includes any department of the Central Government
or a State Government, any urban local authority or Government undertaking or
non-governmental organisation authorised by the Central Government or the State
Government to undertake the implementation of any work taken up under a Scheme;
(f) "manual work" means any physical work which any adult person is capable
of doing with or without any skill or special training;
(g) "minimum wage" in relation to any area, means the minimum wage fixed by
the State Government in accordance with the section 6 of the Code on Wages, 2019;
(h) "National Urban Fund" means the National Urban Employment Guarantee
Fund established under sub-section ( 1) of section 20;
(i) "notification" means a notification published in the Official Gazette;
(j) "preferred work" means any work which is taken up for implementation on a
priority basis under a Scheme;
(k) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(l) "Programme Coordinator" means an officer of the State Government
designated as such under sub-section ( 1) of section 14 for implementation of the
Scheme;
(m) "Programme Officer" means an officer appointed under sub-section ( 1) of
section 15 for implementing the Scheme;
(n) "project" means any work taken up under a Scheme for the purpose of
providing employment to the applicants;
(o) "Scheme" means a Scheme notified by the State Government under
sub- section ( 1) of section 4;
(p) "semi-skilled work" means any physical work which any adult person may
be capable of doing with little training or as specified by Union or State Government;
(q) "State Council" means the State Urban Employment Guarantee Council
established under sub-section ( 1) of section 12;
(r) "State Urban Fund" means the State Urban Employment Guarantee Fund
established under sub-section ( 1) of section 21;
(s) "urban area" means any area in a State as those areas covered by any urban
local body or a Cantonment Board established or constituted under any law for the
time being in force;
(t) "urban local body" means institution of self-Government constituted under
article 243 Q of the Constitution; and
(u) "wage rate" means the wage rate referred to in Section 6;Definitions.
29 of 2019.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 321
CHAPTER II
GUARANTEE OF EMPLOYMENT
3. (1) Save as otherwise provided, the State Government shall, in such urban area in
the State as may be notified by the Central Government, provide to every household whoseadult members, by application, volunteer to do manual or semi- skilled work not less than
one hundred days of such work in a financial year in accordance with the Scheme made
under this Act.
(2) Every person who has done the work given to him under the Scheme shall be
entitled to receive wages at the wage rate for each day of work.
(3) Save as otherwise provided in this Act, the disbursement of daily wages shall be
made on a weekly basis or in any case not later than a fortnight after the date on which suchwork was done.
(4) The Central Government or the State Government may, within the limits of its
economic capacity and development, make provisions for securing work to every adult
member of a household under a Scheme for any period beyond the period guaranteed under
sub-section (1), as may be expedient.
CHAPTER III
E
MPLOYMENT GUARANTEE SCHEME AND UNEMPLOYMENT ALOWANCE
4. (1) For the purposes of giving effect to the provisions of section 3, every State
Government shall, within six months from the date of commencement of this Act, by
notification, make a Scheme for providing one hundred days of guaranteed employment in
a financial year to every household in the urban areas covered under the Scheme and
whose adult members, by application, volunteer to do manual or semi-skilled work subjectto the conditions laid down by or under this Act.
(2) The State Government shall publish a summary of the Scheme made by it in at
least two local newspapers, one of which shall be in a vernacular language circulating in the
area or areas to which such Scheme shall apply.
(3) The Scheme made under sub-section ( 1) shall provide for the minimum features
specified in Schedule I.
5. (1) The State Government may, without prejudice to the conditions specified in
Schedule II, specify in the Scheme the conditions for providing guaranteed employment
under this Act.
(2) The persons employed under any Scheme made under this Act shall be entitled to
such facilities not less than the minimum facilities specified in Schedule II.
6.Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code on Wages, 2019, the State
Government(s) may, by notification, specify the wage rate for the purposes of this Act:
Provided that the wage rate specified shall not be less than floor wage which
the Central Government may, by notification, specify for the purposes of this Act.
Provided further that the wage rate specified from, time to time, under any such
notification shall not be at a rate less than one hundred and seventy-six rupees perday for the manual work and two hundred and seventy-six rupees per day for the
semi-skilled work.
7. (1) If an applicant for employment under the Scheme is not provided such
employment within fifteen days of receipt of his application seeking employment or from
the date on which the employment has been sought in the case of advance application,
whichever is later, he shall be entitled to adaily unemployment allowance in accordance
with this section.Guarantee ofEmploymentin UrbanAreas.
Employment
GuaranteeScheme andUnemploymentAllowance.
Conditions for
providingguaranteedemployment.
Wage Rate.
Payment of
UnemploymentAllowance.29 of 2019.
(2) Subject to such terms and conditions of eligibility as may be prescribed by the
State Government and subject to the provisions of this Act and the Schemes and the
economic capacity of the State Government, the unemployment allowance payable undersub-section (1) shall be paid to the applicants of a household subject to the entitlement ofthe household at such rate as may be specified by the State Government, by notification, inconsultation with the State Council:
Provided that no such rate shall be less than one-third of the wage rate for the
first thirty days during the financial year and not less than one-half of the wage ratefor the remaining period of the financial year.
(3) The liability of the State Government to pay unemployment allowance to a
household during any financial year shall cease as soon as—
(a) the applicant is directed by the Urban Local Body or the Programme Officer
to report for work either by himself or depute at least one adult member of his
household; or
(b) the period for which employment is sought comes to an end and no member
of the household of the applicant had turned up for employment; or
(c) the adult members of the household of the applicant have received in total at
least one hundred days of work within the financial year; or
(d) the household of the applicant has earned as much from the wages and
unemployment allowance taken together which is equal to the wages for one hundreddays of work during the financial year.
(4) The unemployment allowance payable to the household of an applicant shall be
sanctioned and disbursed by the Programme Officer.
(5) Every payment of unemployment allowance under sub-section ( 1) shall be made
or offered not later than fifteen days from the date on which it became due for payment.
(6) The State Government may prescribe the procedure for payment of unemployment
allowance under this Act.
8. (1) If the Programme Officer is not in a position to disburse the unemployment
allowance in time or at all for any reason beyond his control, he shall report the matter to theDistrict Programme Coordinator and announce such reasons in a notice to be displayed on
his notice board or website and the notice board or website of the Urban Local Body and
such other conspicuous places as he may deem necessary.
(2) Every case of non-payment or delayed payment of unemployment allowance shall
be reported in the annual report submitted by the Programme Coordinator to the StateGovernment along with the reasons for such non-payment or delayed payment.
(3) The State Government shall take all measures to make the payment of unemployment
allowance reported under sub-section ( 1) to the concerned household as expeditiously as
possible.
9. An applicant who—
(a) does not accept the employment provided to his/her household under a
Scheme; or
(b) does not report for work within fifteen days of being notified by the Programme
Officer or the implementing agency to report for the work; or
(c) continuously remains absent from work, without obtaining a permission
from the concerned implementing agency for a period of more than one week or
remains absent for a total period of more than one week in any month,
shall not be eligible to claim the unemployment allowance payable under this
Act for a period of three months but shall be eligible to seek employment under the
Scheme at any time.Non-
disbursementofunemploymentallowance incertaincircumstances.
Disentitlement
to receiveunemploymentallowance incertaincircumstances.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 323
CHAPTER IV
IMPLEMENTING AND MONITORING AUTHORITIES
10. (1) With effect fromsuch date as the Central Government may, by notification
specify, there shall be constituted a Central Council to be called the Central Urban Employment
Guarantee Council to discharge the functions and perform the duties assigned to it by orunder this Act.
(2) The headquarters of the Central Council shall be at Delhi.
(3) The Central Council shall consist of the following members to be appointed by the
Central Government, namely:—
(a) a Chairperson;
(b) not more than such number of representatives of the Central Ministries not
below the rank of Joint Secretary to the Government of India as may be determined
by the Central Government;
(c) not more than such number of representatives of the State Government as
may be determined by the Central Government as may be determined by the Central
Government;
(d) not more than fifteen non-official members representing Urban Local Bodies,
organizations of workers and disadvantaged groups:
Provided that not less than one-third of the non-official members nominated
under this clause shall be women:
Provided further that not less than one-third of the non-official members shall
be belonging to the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes, the Other Backward
Classes and Minorities;
(e) such number of representatives of the States as the Central Government
may, by rules, determine in this behalf;
(f) a Member-Secretary not below the rank of Joint Secretary to the Government
of India.
11. (1) The Central Council shall perform and discharge the following functions and
duties, namely:—
(a) establish a central evaluation and monitoring system;
(b) advise the Central Government on all matters concerning the
implementation of this Act;
(c) review the monitoring and redressal mechanism from time to time and
recommend improvements required;
(d) promote the widest possible dissemination of information about the Schemes
made under this Act;
(e) monitoring the implementation of this Act;
(f) preparation of annual reports to be laid before Parliament by the Central
Government on the implementation of this Act;
(g) any other duty or function as may be assigned to it by the Central
Government.
(2) The Central Council shall have the power to undertake evaluation of the various
Schemes made under this Act and for that purpose collect or cause to be collected statistics
pertaining to the urban economy and the implementation of the Schemes.Central Urban
EmploymentGuaranteeCouncil.
Functions and
Duties ofCentralCouncil.
12. (1) For the purposes of regular monitoring and reviewing the implementation of
this Act at the State level, every State Government shall constitute a State Council to be
known as the (name of the State) State Employment Guarantee Council with a Chairperson
and such number of official members as may be determined by the State Government and
not more than fifteen non-official members nominated by the State Government from Urban
Local Bodies, organisations of workers and disadvantaged groups:
Provided that not less than one-third of the non-official members nominated
under this clause shall be women:
Provided further that not less than one third of the non-official members shall
be belonging to the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes, the Other Backward
Classes and Minorities.
(2)The terms and conditions subject to which the Chairperson and members of the
State Council may be appointed and the time, place and procedure of the meetings (including
the quorum at such meetings) of the State Council shall be such as may be prescribed by the
State Government.
(3)The duties and functions of the State Council shall include—
(a) advising the State Government on all matters concerning the Scheme and its
implementation in the State;
(b) determining the preferred works;
(c) reviewing the monitoring and redressal mechanisms from time to time and
recommending improvements;
(d) promoting the widest possible dissemination of information about this Act
and the Schemes under it;
(e) monitoring the implementation of this Act and the Schemes in the State and
coordinating such implementation with the Central Council;
(f) preparing the annual report to be laid before the State Legislature by the
State Government;
(g) any other duty or function as may be assigned to it by the Central Council
or the State Government.
(4) The State Council shall have the power to undertake an evaluation of the Schemes
operating in the State and for that purpose to collect or cause to be collected statistics
pertaining to the urban economy and the implementation of the Schemes and Programmes
in the State.
13. (1) The Urban Local Bodies shall be the principal authorities for planning and
implementation of the Schemes made under this Act.
(2) The Urban Local Bodies shall,—
(a) finalize and approve shelf of projects to be taken up under a programme under the
Scheme;
(b) supervise and monitor the projects taken up; and
(c) carry out such other functions as may be assigned to it by the State Council, from
time to time.
14. (1) The Collector of the district or any other district level officer of appropriate
rank as the State Government may decide shall be designated as the District Programme
Coordinator for the implementation of the Scheme in the district.State Urban
EmploymentGuaranteeCouncil.
Principal
Authoritiesfor planningandimplementationof Schemes.
District
ProgrammeCoordinator.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 325
(2) The District Programme Coordinator shall be responsible for the implementation
of the Scheme in the district in accordance with the provisions of this Act and the rulesmade thereunder.
(3) The functions of the District Programme Coordinator shall be—
(a) to assist the Urban Local Bodies in discharging its functions under this Act
and any scheme made thereunder;
(b) to accord necessary sanction and administrative clearance wherever
necessary;
(c) to coordinate with the Programme Officers functioning within his jurisdiction
and the implementing agencies to ensure that the applicants are provided employmentas per their entitlements under this Act;
(d) to review, monitor and supervise the performance of the Programme Officers;
(e) to conduct periodic inspection of the works in progress; and
(f) to redress the grievances of the applicants.
(4) The State Government shall delegate such administrative and financial powers to
the District Programme Coordinator as may be required to enable him to carry out hisfunctions under this Act.
(5) The Programme Officer appointed under sub-section ( 1) of section 15 and all other
officers of the State Government and local authorities and bodies functioning within thedistrict shall be responsible to assist the District Programme Coordinator in carrying out hisfunctions under this Act and the Schemes made thereunder.
(6) The District Programme Coordinator shall prepare in the month of December every
year a labour budget for the next financial year containing the details of anticipated demandfor manual or semi-skilled work in the district and the plan for engagement of labourers inthe works covered under the Scheme and submit it to the State Government.
15. (1) Forevery State, the concerned Government shall appoint aperson who is not
below the rank of Joint Secretary with such qualifications and experience as may bedetermined by the State Government as Programme Officer.
(2) The Programme Officer shall assist the Urban Local Body in discharging its
functions under this Act and any Scheme made thereunder.
(3) The Programme Officer shall be responsible for matching the demand for
employment with the employment opportunities arising from projects in the area under hisjurisdiction.
(4) The Programme Officer shall prepare a plan for the Urban Local Body under his
jurisdiction by consolidating the project proposals received.
(5) The functions of the Programme Officer shall include—
(a) monitoring of projects taken up by the Urban Local Body and other
implementing agencies within the Block;
(b) sanctioning and ensuring payment of unemployment allowance to the eligible
households;
(c) ensuring prompt and fair payment of wages to all labourers employed under
a programme of the Scheme within the Block;
(d) ensuring that regular social audits of all works within the jurisdiction of the
Urban Local Body are carried out by the Gram Sabha and that prompt action is takenon the objections raised in the social audit;ProgrammeOfficer.
(e) dealing promptly with all complaints that may arise in connection with the
implementation of the Scheme within the jurisdiction; and
(f) any other work as may be assigned to him by the District Programme
Coordinator or the State Government.
(6) The Programme Officers shall function under the direction, control and
superintendence of the District Programme Coordinator.
(7) The State Government may, by order, direct that all or any of the functions of a
Programme Officer shall be discharged by the Urban Local Body.
16. (1) The Urban Local Body shall be responsible for identification of the projects in
the Urban area to be taken up under a Scheme and for executing and supervising suchworks.
(2) A Urban Local Body may take up any project under a Scheme within the Urban
area as may be sanctioned by the Programme Officer.
(3) Every Urban Local Body shall, prepare a development plan and maintain a shelf of
possible works to be taken up under the Scheme as and when demand for work arises.
(4) The Urban Local Body shall forward its proposals for the development projects
including the order of priority between different works to the Programme Officer for scrutinyand preliminary approval prior to the commencement of the year in which it is proposed tobe executed.
(5) The Programme Officer shall allot at least fifty per cent, of the works in terms of its
cost under a Scheme to be implemented through the Urban Local Body.
(6) The Programme Officer shall supply each Urban Local Body with:
(a) the muster rolls for the works sanctioned to be executed by it; and
(b) a list of employment opportunities available elsewhere to the residents of
the Urban Local Body.
(7) The Urban Local Body shall allocate employment opportunities among the
applicants and ask them to report for work.
(8) The works taken up by an Urban Local Body under a Scheme shall meet the
required technical standards and measurements.
17. (1) The Urban Local Body shall monitor the execution of works within the Urban
area.
(2) The Urban Local Body shall conduct regular social audits of all the projects under
the Scheme taken up within the Urban area.
(3) The Urban Local Body shall make available all relevant documents including the
muster rolls, bills, vouchers, measurement books, copies of sanction orders and otherconnected books of account and papers to the Urban area for the purpose of conductingthe social audit.
18. The State Government shall make available to the District Programme Coordinator
and the Programme Officers necessary staff and technical support as may be necessary forthe effective implementation of the Scheme.
19. The State Government shall, by rules, determine appropriate grievance redressal
mechanisms for dealing with any complaint by any person in respect of implementation ofthe Scheme and lay down the procedure for disposal of such complaints.Responsibilitiesof the UrbanLocal Bodies.
Social Audit
of work.
Responsibilities
of StateGovernments.
Grievance
RedressalMechanism.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 327
CHAPTER V
ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL AND STATE URBAN EMPLOYMENT GUARANTEE FUNDS AND AUDIT
20. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification, establish a National Urban
Fund to be called the National Urban Employment Guarantee Fund for the purposes of thisAct.
(2) The Central Government may, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, credit by way of grants or loans such sums of money as the Central Governmentmay consider necessary to the National Urban Fund.
(3) The amount standing to the credit of the National Urban Fund shall be utilised in
such manner and subject to such conditions and limitations as may be prescribed by theCentral Government.
21. (1) The State Government may, by notification, establish a State Urban Fund to be
called the State Urban Employment Guarantee Fund for the purposes of implementation ofthe Scheme.
(2)The amount standing to the credit of the State Urban Fund shall be expended in
such manner and subject to such conditions and limitations as may be prescribed by theState Government for the purposes of implementation of this Act and the Schemes madethereunder and for meeting the administrative expenses in connection with the implementationof this Act.
(3)The State Urban Fund shall be held and administered on behalf of the State
Government in such manner and by such authority as may be prescribed by the StateGovernment.
22. (1) Subject to the rules as may be made by the Central Government in this behalf,
the Central Government shall meet the cost of the following, namely:—
(a) the amount required for payment of wages for unskilled manual work under
the Scheme;
(b) up to three-fourths of the material cost of the Scheme including payment of
wages to skilled and semi-skilled workers subject to the provisions of Schedule II;
(c) such percentage of the total costof the Scheme as may be determined by the
Central Government towards the administrative expenses, which may include thesalary and allowances of the Programme Officers and his supporting staff, theadministrative expenses of the Central Council, facilities to be provided under ScheduleII and such other item as may be decided by the Central Government.
(2)The State Government shall meet the cost of the following, namely:—
(a) the cost of unemployment allowance payable under the Scheme;
(b) one-fourth of the material cost of the Scheme including payment of wages to
skilled and semi-skilled workers subject to the provisions of Schedule II;
(c) the administrative expenses of the State Council.
23. (1) The District Programme Coordinator and all implementing agencies in the
District shall be responsible for the proper utilisation and management of the funds placedat their disposal for the purpose of implementing a Scheme.
(2) The State Government may prescribe the manner of maintaining proper books and
accounts of employment of labourers and the expenditure incurred in connection with theimplementation of the provisions of this Act and the Schemes made thereunder.
(3) The State Government may, by rules, determine the arrangements to be made for
the proper execution of Schemes and programmes under the Schemes and to ensuretransparency and accountability at all levels in the implementation of the Schemes.NationalUrbanEmploymentGuaranteeFund.
State Urban
EmploymentGuaranteeFund.
Funding
Pattern.
Transparency
andAccountability.
(4) All payments of wages in cash and unemployment allowances shall be made
directly to the person concerned and in the presence of independent persons of thecommunity on pre-announced dates.
(5) If any dispute or complaint arises concerning the implementation of a Scheme by
the Gram Panchayat, the matter shall be referred to the Programme Officer.
(6) The Programme Officer shall enter every complaint in a complaint register maintained
by him and shall dispose of the disputes and complaints within seven days of its receiptand in case it relates to a matter to be resolved by any other authority it shall be forwardedto such authority under intimation to the complainant.
24. (1) The Central Government may, in consultation with the Comptroller and Auditor
General of India, prescribe appropriate arrangements for audits of the accounts of theSchemes at all levels.
(2) The accounts of the Scheme shall be maintained in such form and in such manner
as may be prescribed by the State Government.
CHAPTER V
M
ISCELLANEOUS
25. Whoever contravenes the provisions of this Act shall on conviction be liable to
a fine which may extend to one thousand rupees.
26. (1) The Central Government may, by notification, direct that the powers exercisable
by it (excluding the power to make rules) may, in such circumstances and subject to suchconditions and limitations, be exercisable also by the State Government or such officersubordinate to the Central Government or the State Government as it may specify in suchnotification.
(2) The State Government may, by notification, direct that the powers exercisable by
it (excluding the power to make rules and Schemes) may, in such circumstances and subjectto such conditions and limitations, be exercisable also by such officer subordinate to it asit may specify in such notification.
27. (1) The Central Government may give such directions as it may consider necessary
to the State Government for the effective implementation of the provisions of this Act.
(2) Without prejudice to the provisions of sub-section ( 1), the Central Government
may, on receipt of any complaint regarding the issue or improper utilisation of funds grantedunder this Act in respect of any Scheme if prima facie satisfied that there is a case, cause
·an investigation into the complaint made by any agency designated by it and if necessary,order stoppage of release of funds to the Scheme and institute appropriate remedial measuresfor its proper implementation within a reasonable period of time.
28. The provisions of this Act or the Schemes made thereunder shall have effect
notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith contained in any other law for the timebeing in force or in any instrument having effect by virtue of such law:
Provided that where a State enactment exists or is enacted to provide
employment guarantee for unskilled manual or semi-skilled work to urban householdsconsistent with the provisions of this Act under which the entitlement of the households
is not less than and the conditions of employment are not inferior to what is guaranteed
under this Act, the State Government shall have the option of implementing its own
enactment:
Provided further that in such cases the financial assistance shall be paid to the
concerned State Government in such manner as shall be determined by the Central
Government, which shall not exceed what the State would have been entitled to
receive under this Act had a Scheme made under this Act had to be implemented.Audit ofAccounts.
Penalty for
non-compliance.
Power to
delegate.
Power of
CentralGovernmentto givedirections.
Act to have
overridingeffect.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 329
29. (1) If the Central Government is satisfied that it is necessary or expedient so to do,
it may, by notification, amend Schedule I or Schedule II and thereupon Schedule I or Schedule
II, as the case may be, shall be deemed to have been amended accordingly;
(2) A copy of every notification made under sub-section (1) shall be laid before each
House of Parliament as soon as may be after it is made.
30. No suit, prosecution or other legal proceedings shall lie against the District
Programme Coordinator, Programme Officer or any other person who is, or who is deemed to
be, a public servant within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 in
respect of anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done under this Act or the
rules or Schemes made thereunder.
31. (1) The Central Government may, by notification, and subject to the condition of
previous publication, make rules to carry out the provisions of this Act.
(2) In particular, and without the prejudice of the foregoing power, such rules may
provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:—
(a) the number of representatives of the State Governments under clause (e) of
sub-section ( 3) of section 10;
(b) the terms and conditions subject to which the Chairman and other members
of the Central Council may be appointed, and the time, place and procedure of themeetings (including the quorum at such meetings) of the Central Council, under
sub-section ( 4) of section 10;
(c) the manner in which and the conditions and limitations subject to which the
National Fund shall be utilised under sub-section (3) of section 20;
(d) the rules relating to funding pattern to meet the cost of certain items under
sub-section (1) of section 22; or
(e) any other matter which is to be, or may be, prescribed or in respect of which
provision is to be made by the Central Government by rules.
32. (1) The State Government may, by notification, and subject to the condition of
previous publication, and consistent with this Act and the rules made by the Central
Government, make rules to carry out the provisions of this Act.
(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such
rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:—
(a) the terms and conditions upon which eligibility for unemployment allowance
may be determined under sub-section ( 2) of section 7;
(b) the procedure for payment of unemployment allowance under
sub-section ( 6) of section 7;
(c) the terms and conditions subject to which the Chairperson and members of
the State Council may be appointed, and the time, place and procedure of the meetings
(including the quorum at such meetings) of their appointment to the State Council,
under sub-section ( 2) of section 12;
(d) the grievance redressal mechanism at the Block level and the District level
and the procedure to be followed in such matter under section 19;
(e) the manner in which and the conditions and limitations subject to which the
State Fund shall be utilised under sub-section ( 2) of section 21;
(f) the authority who may administer and the manner in which he may hold the
State Fund under sub-section ( 3) of section 21;
(g) the manner of maintaining books of account of employment of labourers
and the expenditure under sub-section (
2) of section 23;Power to
amendSchedules.
Protection of
action takenin good faith.
Power of
CentralGovernmentto make rules.
Power of
StateGovernmentsto make rules.
(h) the arrangements required for proper execution of Schemes under sub-section ( j)
of section 23;
(i) the form and manner in which the accounts of the Scheme shall be maintained
under sub-section ( 2) of section 24; or
(j) any other matter which is to be, or may be, prescribed or in· respect of which
provision is to be made by the State Government by rules.
33. (1) Every rule made by the Central Government under this Act shall be laid, as
soon as may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, fora total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or moresuccessive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following thesession or the successive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modificationin the rule or both the Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall havethereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be;so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to thevalidity of anything previously done under that rule.
(2) Every rule or Scheme made by the State Government under this Act shall, as soon
as may be after it is made, be laid before each House of the State Legislature where there aretwo Houses, and where there is one House of the State Legislature, before that House.
34. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions, notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as appear to it to be necessary or expedient forremoving the difficulty:
Provided that no order shall be made under this section after the expiry of three
years from the commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is
made, before each House of Parliament.Laying ofrules andschemes.
Power to
removedifficulties.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 331
THE FIRST SCHEDULE
[See Section 4( 3)]
MINIMUM FEATURES OF THE URBAN EMPLOYMENT GUARANTEE SCHEME
1. The focus of the Scheme shall be on the following works, with no order of priority:
(i) Waste Collection, Disposal and Management;(ii) Water Supply and Harvesting;(iii) Housing;(iv) Sewage and Septage Management(v) Enhancement of Green Spaces;(vi) Land development;(vii) Flood control and protection works including drainage in water logged
areas;
(viii) Heritage augmentation; and
(ix) any other work which may be notified by the Central Government in
consultation with the State Government.
2. Creation of durable assets and strengthening the livelihood resource base of the
urban poor shall be an important objective of the Scheme.
3. The works taken up under the scheme shall be in urban areas.4. The State Council shall prepare a list of preferred works for different areas based
on their ability to create durable assets.
5. The Scheme shall be subject to appropriate arrangements as may be laid down by
the State Government under the rules issued by it for proper maintenance of the publicassets created under the Scheme.
6. Under no circumstances shall the labourers be paid less than the minimum wage
rate.
7. When wages are directly linked with the quantity of work, the wages shall be paid
according to the schedule of rates fixed by the State Government for different types of workevery year, in consultation with the State Council.
8. The schedule of rates of wages for unskilled labourers shall be so fixed that a
person working for seven hours would normally earn a wage equal to the wage rate.
9. The cost of material component of projects including the wages of the skilled and
semi-skilled workers taken up under the Scheme shall not exceed forty per cent. of the totalproject costs.
10. It shall be open to the Programme Officer or the Urban Local Body to direct any
person who applied for employment under the Scheme to do work of any type permissibleunder it.
11. The Scheme shall not permit engaging any contractor for implementation of the
projects under it.
12. As far as practicable, a task funded under the Scheme shall be performed by using
manual labour and not machines except sewage and septage Management.
13. Every Scheme shall contain adequate provisions for ensuring transparency and
accountability at all level of implementation.
14. Provisions for regular inspection and supervision of works taken up under the
Scheme shall be made to ensure proper quality of work as well as to ensure that the totalwages paid for the completion of the work is commensurate with the quality and quantity ofwork done.
15. The District Programme Coordinator, the Programme Officer and the Urban Local
Body implementing the Scheme shall prepare annually a report containing the facts andfigures and achievements relating to the implementation of the Scheme within his or itsjurisdiction and a copy of the same shall be made available to the public on demand and onpayment of such fee as may be specified in the Scheme.
16. All accounts and records relating to the Scheme shall be made available for public
scrutiny and any person desirous of obtaining a copy or relevant extracts therefrom may beprovided such copies or extracts on demand and after paying such fee as may be specifiedin the Scheme.
17. A copy of the muster rolls of each Scheme or project under a Scheme shall be made
available in the offices of the Urban Local Body and the Programme Officer for inspectionby any person interested after paying such fee as may be specified in the Scheme.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 333
THE SECOND SCHEDULE
[See Section 5]
CONDITIONS FOR GUARANTEED URBAN EMPLOYMENT UNDER THE SCHEME AND
MINIMUM ENTITLEMENTS OF LABOURERS
1. The adult members of every household who reside in any urban area; and are
willing to do unskilled manual or semi-skilled work, may submit their names, age and the
address of the household to the Urban Local Body in the jurisdiction of which they reside
for registration of their household for issuance of a job card.
2. It shall be the duty of the Urban Local Body to register the household, after making
such enquiry as it deems fit and issue a job card containing such details of adult membersof the household affixing their photographs, as may be specified by the State Governmentin the Scheme.
3. The registration made under paragraph 2 shall be for such period as may be laid in
the Scheme, but in any case, not less than five years, and may be renewed from time to time.
4. Every adult member of a registered household whose name appears in the job card
shall be entitled to apply for unskilled manual or semi-skilled work under the Scheme.
5. All registered persons belonging to a household shall be entitled to employment
in accordance with the Scheme made under the provisions of this Act, for as in any days as
each applicant may request, subject to a maximum of one hundred days per household in a
given financial year.
6. The Programme Officer shall ensure that every applicant referred to in paragraph 5
shall be provided unskilled manual or semi-skilled work in accordance with the provisionsof the Scheme within fifteen days of receipt of an application or from the date he seeks workin case of advance application, whichever is later:
Provided that priority shall be given to women in such a way that at least one-third of
the beneficiaries shall be women who have registered and requested for work under this Act.
7. Applications for work must be for at least fourteen days of continuous work.8. There shall be no limit on the number of days of employment for which a person
may apply, or on the number of days of employment actually provided to him subject to theaggregate entitlement of the household.
9. Applications for work may be submitted in writing either to the Gram Panchayat or
to the Programme Officer, as may be specified in the Scheme.
10. The Urban Local Body and Programme Officer, as the case may be, shall be bound
to accept valid applications and to issue a dated receipt to the applicant. Group applications
may also be submitted.
11. Applicants who are provided with work shall be so intimated in writing, by means
of a letter sent to him at the address given in the job card and by a public notice displayed
at the office of the Panchayats at the district, intermediate or village level.
12. As far as possible, employment shall be provided within a radius of five kilometres
of the village where the applicant resides at the time of applying.
13. A new work under the Scheme shall be commenced only if—
(a) at least fifty labourers become available for such work; and
(b) the labourers cannot be absorbed in the ongoing works.
14. In cases the employment is provided outside such radius, the labourers shall be
paid ten per cent. of the wage rate as extra wages to meet additional transportation andliving expenses.
15. Aperiod of employment shall ordinarily be at least fourteen days continuously
with not more than six days in a week.
16. In all cases where unemployment allowance is paid, or due to be paid, the Programme
Officer shall inform the District Programme Coordinator in writing the reasons why it was not
possible for him to provide employment or cause to provide employment to the applicants.
17. The District Programme Coordinator shall, in his Annual Report to the State
Council, explain as to why employment could not be provided in cases where payment ofunemployment allowance is involved.
18. Provision shall be made in the Scheme for advance applications, that is, an application
which may be submitted in advance of the date from which employment is sought.
19. Provision shall be made in the Scheme for submission of multiple applications by
the same person provided that the corresponding periods for which employment is soughtdo not overlap.
20. The Urban Local Body shall prepare and maintain or cause to be prepared and
maintained such registers, vouchers and other documents in such form and in such manneras may be specified in the Scheme containing particulars of job cards and passbooksissued, name, age and address of the head of the household and the adult members of the
household registered with the Urban Local Body.
21. The Urban Local Body shall send such list or lists of the names and addresses of
households and their adult members registered with it and supply such other information to
the concerned Programme Officer at such periods and in such form as may be specified in
the Scheme.
22. A list of persons who are provided with the work shall be displayed on the notice
board of the Urban Local Body and at the office of the Programme Officer and at such other
places as the Programme Officer may deem necessary and the list shall be open for inspectionby the State Government and any person interested.
23. If the Urban Local Body is satisfied at any time that a person has registered with
it by furnishing false information, it may direct the Programme Officer to direct his name tobe struck off from the register and direct the applicant to return the job card:
Provided that no such action under this paragraph shall be directed unless the applicant
has been given an opportunity of being heard in the presence of two independent persons.
24. If any personal injury is caused to any person employed under the Scheme by
accident arising out of and in the course of his employment, he shall be entitled to, free of
charge, such medical treatment as is admissible under the Scheme.
25. Where hospitalization of the injured worker is necessary, the State Government
shall arrange for such hospitalization including accommodation, treatment, medicines and
payment of daily allowance not less than half of the wage rate required to be paid had theinjured been engaged in the work.
26. If a person employed under a Scheme dies or becomes permanently disabled by
accident arising out of and in the course of employment, he shall be paid by the implementingagency an ex-gratia payment at the rate of twenty-five thousand rupees or such amount asmay be notified by the Central Government, and the amount shall be paid to the legal heirsof the deceased or the disabled, as the case may be.
27. The facilities of safe drinking water, shade for children and periods of rest,
first-aid box with adequate material for emergency treatment for minor injuries and otherhealth hazards connected with the work being performed shall be provided at the work site.
28. In case the number of children below the age of six years accompanying the
women working at any site is five or more, provisions shall be made to depute one of suchwomen workers to look after such children.
29. The person deputed under paragraph 28 shall be paid wage rate.30. In case the payment of wages is not made within the period specified under the
Scheme, the labourers shall be entitled to receive payment of compensation as per theprovisions of the Code on Wages, 2019.
31. The wages under a Scheme may be paid either wholly in cash or in cash and kind
provided that at least one-fourth of the wages shall be paid in cash only.
32. The State Government may prescribe that a portion of the wages in cash may be
paid to the labourers on a daily basis during the period of employment.
33. If any personal injury is caused by accident to a child accompanying any person
who is employed under a Scheme, such person shall be entitled to, free of charge, such
medical treatment for the child as may be specified in the Scheme and in case of death or
disablement, through an ex-gratia payment as may be determined by the State Government.
34. In case of every employment under the Scheme, there shall be no discrimination
solely on the ground of gender and the provisions of the Industrial Relations Code, 2019,
shall be complied with.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 335
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act was enacted in the year
2005, as one of the largest work guarantee programmes to guarantee one hundred days ofemployment in every financial year to adult members of any rural household willing to dopublic work-related unskilled manual work, thereby aiming to address the causes of chronicpoverty through a rights-based framework.
However, with the impact of COVID-19 being largely concentrated on urban centres
of the economy, which contribute nearly sixty-five percent to India's GDP, urban poverty asa form of poverty that is particularly visible in mega cities, characterized by poor livingcircumstances and income has been aggravated.
With seventeen percent of urban households being slum dwellers, increasing
inequalities and urban poverty ratios have a possibility of leading up to ghettoization ofcommunities and rise in crime rates. In view of the above, it has become necessary to enacta legislation to ensure Urban Employment Guarantee.
The Bill inter alia, seeks to,—
(a) provide for one hundred days of guaranteed wage employment to every
household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work, or in addition,semi-skilled work to prepare a scheme to give effect to the guarantee proposed underthe legislation;
(b) ensure that every State Government, within six months from the date of
commencement of this legislation, prepare a scheme to give effect to the guaranteeproposed under the legislation;
(c) provide one-hundred days of employment under the legislation at the wage
rate as specified by the State Governments which shall not be less than the floor wageas specified by the Central Government in accordance with the Code on Wages, 2019;
(d) ensure that if an eligible applicant is not provided work as per the provisions
of this legislation within the prescribed time limit, it will be obligatory on the part ofthe State Government to pay unemployment allowance at the prescribed rate;
(e) constitute a Central Urban Employment Guarantee Council at the Central
level and State Urban Employment Guarantee Councils at the State level in all Stateswhere the legislation is made applicable to for review, monitor and effective implementthe legislation in their respective areas;
(f) empower the Central Government to establish a National Urban Employment
Guarantee Fund for the purposes of this legislation and also the State Governmentsto constitute National State Employment Guarantee Funds;
(g) make provisions for transparency and accountability, audit, establishment
of grievance and redressal mechanisms and penalty of non-compliance are alsoenvisaged; and
(h) make provisions for Minimum features of Urban Employment Guarantee
Scheme and conditions for guaranteed Urban Employment under a scheme andminimum entitlements of labourers have been laid.
The Bill seeks to achieve the above objectives.
N
EW DELHI; TALARI RANGAIAH
March 15, 2023.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides that the State Government shall, in such urban area in the
State and for such period as may be notified by the Central Government, provide to everypoor household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work not less thanone hundred days of such work in a financial year in accordance with the Scheme. Clause 7provides that if an applicant for employment under the Scheme made under proposedlegislation is not provided employment within fifteen days of receipt of his application, heshall be entitled to a daily unemployment allowance. Clause 10 provides for constitution ofa Central Urban Employment Guarantee Council and for appointment of its members. Clause12 provides for the Constitution of a State Urban Employment Guarantee Council. Clause 15provides for appointment of Programme Officer for implementing the provisions in themunicipalities. Clause 20 provides for establishment of the National Urban EmploymentGuarantee Fund. Clause 21 provides for establishment of the State Urban EmploymentGuarantee Fund. Clause 22 provides that the Central Government shall meet the administrativeexpenses of the Programme Officers and his supporting staff and the administrative expensesof the Central Council. The expenditure in relation to States shall be borne by the StateGovernment concerned. However, the expenditure in relation to Union Territories shall beborne by the Central Government. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditurefrom the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that an annual recurring expenditure ofabout rupees five thousand crore is likely to be involved per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees fifty crore will also be involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 31 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 337
BILL NO. 231 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 8 of the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988, in sub-section (4), after the first
proviso the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:—
"Provided further that the licensing authority shall not refuse to issue a learner's
license to applicant affected by leprosy if such applicant has been certified by aregistered medical practitioner as having either been cured of leprosy or having beenadministered with the first dose under Multi-Drug Therapy and with continuingtreatment for leprosy being provided by such registered medical practitioner."Short titleandcommencement.
Amendment
of section 8.59 of 1988.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Leprosy, caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae, primarily affects the peripheral
nervous system causing skin lesions, numbness, and other deformities. As per the latestdata from National Leprosy Eradication Programme (NLEP), a total of 65,147 new leprosycases were detected during the year 2020-21 in India. India accounts for over half of theworld's new leprosy patients, according to World Health Organisation.
According to the 20th Law Commission report titled "Eliminating Discrimination
against Persons Affected by leprosy" as of 2014, India accounts for fifty eight per cent. ofthe new leprosy cases in the world, leading the list of countries that have reported highfigures of leprosy infection globally. Although leprosy may cause irreversible disabilities,with advances in medicine, it is now a completely curable disease that can be renderednon-infectious early on in treatment itself, through Multi-Drug Therapy, which has curedmore than fifteen million persons over two decades alone. Government of India has undertakenprograms to provide free-of-cost treatment to Persons affected by leprosy. A major obstacleto uplift the status of Persons affected by leprosy is the social stigma associated withleprosy. In many spheres of life, such persons continue to be outcast from society.
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, 2007
("UNCRPD") promotes, protects and ensures the full and equal enjoyment of all humanrights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with disabilities. India has signed andratified the UNCRPD, and is also a member of the UN General Assembly that unanimouslypassed the Resolution on the Elimination of Leprosy.
Despite the fact that the notable efforts have been made so far and have significantly
improved the lives of many people affected by leprosy and their family members, the long-standing stigma associated with leprosy and the archaic laws that apply to them persist.Thus, in order to remove the stigma of leprosy and eliminate the discrimination that stillexists in society, the laws that directly affect the individual must be revised.
In addition to the various laws that had been amended to eliminate discrimination,
one such law is the Motor Vehicle Act of 1988, which does not grant license to the personsaffected by leprosy. This need is to amend section 8 of the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988, as anexercise in affirmative action to accommodate the needs of people suffering from leprosy.The amendment makes the licensing authority liable to not deny a learner's license to anyperson affected by leprosy.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; UNMESH BHAIYYASAHEB PA TIL
November 23, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 339
BILL NO. 78 OF 2023
A Bill to amend the Code on Social Security, 2020.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Code on Social Security (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title andcommencement.
2.In section 15 of the Code on Social Security, 2020 (hereinafter referred to as principal
Act), in sub-section ( 1), in clause ( b), after sub-clause ( iii) the following proviso shall be
inserted, namely:—
"Provided that the Employees Pension Scheme shall be revised every
five years to index for inflation or to be linked to the interest payable on GovernmentSecurity in such manner as may be prescribed.
Explanation .— For the purposes of this clause,—"( a) "inflation" includes the rate of
increase in the observed general price index between two time periods; and
(b) "Government Security" includes a tradable instrument issued by the Central
Government or the State Governments acknowledge the Government's debt obligationtowards short term (usually called treasury bills with original maturities of less thanone year) or long term security (usually called Government bonds or dated securitieswith original maturity of one year or more).".
3.In Chapter VIII of the principal Act, for the heading the following heading shall be
substituted, namely:—
"SOCIAL SECURITY AND CESS IN RESPECT OF BUILDING, OTHER
CONSTRUCTION WORKERS AND INTER-STATE MIGRANT WORKERS".
4.After section 108 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted,
namely:-
"108A. (1) There shall be constituted an Inter-State Migrant Workers Welfare
Fund for the welfare of inter-state migrant workers and there shall be creditedthereto—
(a) contribution from the States from where the inter-migrant worker has
migrated;
(b) contribution from the States to which migrant worker has migrated;
(c) contribution from the principal employers; and
(d) minimum contribution from the inter-State migrant worker.
(2)The amount from the Inter-State Migrant Worker Welfare Fund shall exclusively
be utilized for the welfare of inter-State migrant workers.".Amendmentof section 15.
Substitution
of newheading forheading.
Insertion of
new section108A.36 of 2020.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 341
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Social Security Code (the Code), 2020 has been enacted to amend and consolidate
the laws relating to social security with the goal to extend social security to all employeesand workers either in the organized or unorganized or any other sectors. The Code has vitalprovisions with respect to social security benefits to workers including gig workers. India'sobligation to provide a comprehensive social security cover for the workers may be tracedto several provisions enshrined in the Constitution of India which include inter-alia securingequal pay for equal work for both men and women; directions pertaining to the State'sresponsibility for making effective provisions for assistance in cases of unemployment, oldage, sickness and disablement; for securing just and humane conditions of work.
Pensions contribute to economic growth through a range of pathways at household,
community and national levels. Within households, they are used for investing in children,tackling stunting and enabling them to attend and perform well in school, thereby helpingthem become a more effective and productive workforce. Pensioners and their families usethe cash they receive to supplement in income generating activities while working agehousehold members are better able to gain employment, increasing overall productivity ofthe labour force. They also enable households to recover their productivity more quicklyfollowing shocks.
Pension indexation affects the income of a large and increasing number of older
people. Without indexation, benefit increases are subject to discretionary decisions bygovernments or pension authorities, implying that the value of a pension in payment dependson economic and political cycles. Therefore, section 15 of the Code has been amended toinclude inflation indexed pensions schemes.
Further, in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic one of the issues that emerged is the
conditions of the Inter-State Migrant Workers, their retention in job, food and ration facilities
for them, etc. Therefore it is only imperative that a separate fund be created for the purpose
of providing monetary support to Inter-state Migrant Workmen.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; UNMESH BHAIYYASAHEB PATIL
November 23, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill vide proposed new section 108A provides for constitution of an
Inter State Migrant Workers Welfare Fund for the purpose of welfare of inter-state migrantworkers.
The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund
of India. It is likely to involve a recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore perannum from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about one hundred crore is also likely to be involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 343
BILL NO. 35 OF 2022
A Bill for combating and eliminating tuberculosis, and for the protection of the rights of
patients affected by the tuberculosis disease and for matters connected therewith orincidental thereto.
WHEREAS the General Assembly of the United Nations has adopted the Sustainable
Development Goals, which call for a reduction in tuberculosis- related deaths and the World
Health Organization has adopted the End TB Strategy for a reduction in the incidence ofTuberculosis by 2035 through collective global efforts;
AND WHEREAS the Republic of India, being a signatory to the aforementioned Goals
and Strategy, it is expedient to give effect to the said Goals and Strategy;
AND WHEREAS the Republic of India ratified theWorld Health Organisation Framework
Convention on Tobacco Control in 2005;
AND WHEREAS the Republic of India has framed a National Strategic Plan for
Tuberculosis Elimination 2017-2025.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Tuberculosis (Treatment and Eradication) Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2.In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “Aadhaar” means Aadhaar number issued by the Unique Identification
Authority of India under sub-section ( 3) of section 3 of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery
of Financial and other Subsidies Benefits and Services) Act, 2016;
(b) “annual report” means a report giving the details of developmental activities
taken up over the year by the Authority and detailing about targets set and achieved;
(c) “appropriate Government” means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases, the Central Government.
(d) “Authority” means the Tuberculosis Eradication Authority constituted under
section 4;
(e) “company” means an entity registered under the Companies Act, 2013;
(f) “discrimination” means any act or omission which directly or indirectly,
expressly or by effect, immediately or over a period of time,—
(i) imposes any burden, obligation, liability, disability or disadvantage on
any person or category of persons, based on one or more tuberculosis-relatedgrounds; or
(ii) denies or withholds any benefit, opportunity or advantage from any
person or category of persons, based on one or more tuberculosis-relatedgrounds, and the expression “discriminate” to be construed accordingly;
(g) “guidelines” means any statement or any other document issued by the
Central Government indicating policy or procedure or course of action relating totuberculosis to be followed by the Central Government, State Governments,Governmental and non-Governmental organisations and establishments andindividuals dealing with prevention, control and treatment of tuberculosis;
(h) “Multi-drug Resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB)” means a strain of the
tuberculosis bacteria resistant to two of the most effective anti- tuberculosis drugsavailable, isoniazid and rifampicin;
(i) “prescribed” means prescribed by the rules made under this Act;
(j) “tuberculosis” means an infectious disease caused by a bacterium,
Mycobacterium Tuberculosis that is spread through the air;
(k) “tuberculosis-affected person” means an individual who is suffering from
any strain of the tuberculosis disease; and
(l) “society” means an entity registered as society under the Societies
Registration Act, 1860.
3. No person shall discriminate against the tuberculosis-affected person on any ground
including any of the following, namely:—
(a) the unfair treatment in, or in relation to employment or occupation;Short title,
extent andcommencement.
Definitions.
Prohibition of
Discrimination.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 345
(b) the denial or discontinuation of, or unfair treatment in, healthcare services;
(c) the denial or discontinuation of, or unfair treatment in educational
establishments and services thereof;
(d) the denial or discontinuation of, or unfair treatment with regard to, the right
of movement;
(e) the denial or discontinuation of, or unfair treatment with regard to the right
to reside, purchase, rent or otherwise occupy, any property;
(f) the denial of access to, removal from, or unfair treatment in,
Government or private establishment in whose care or custody a person may
be; and
(g) the isolation or segregation of a tuberculosis-affected person.
4. (1) With effect from such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the
Official Gazette specify, there shall be constituted an Authority to be known as theTuberculosis Eradication Authority for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) The Authority shall consist of,—
(a) Minister of State, Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare—
Chairperson, ex-officio ;
(b) Minister of State, Union Ministry of Women and Child Development—Vice-
Chairperson, ex-officio ;
(c) Director General of Health Services, Union Ministry of Health and Family
Welfare—member, ex-officio ;
(d) Secretaries of the Union Ministries of Women and Child Development, Health
and Family Welfare and Statistics and Programme Implementation—members, ex-officio ;
(e) Chairperson, National Commission for Women—member, ex-officio;
(f) Director, National Institute of Health and Family Welfare—member, ex-officio ;
and
(g) five doctors having expertise and with not less than thirty years of practice
in the field of tuberculosis treatment to be appointed by the Central Government insuch manner as may be prescribed.
(3) The Authority shall have a Secretariat consisting of such number of officers and
staff as may be necessary for efficient discharge of its functions.
(4) The salary, allowances and terms of conditions of service of doctors appointed as
members of the Authority and officers and staff of the Authority shall be such as may beprescribed.
(5) The Authority shall meet at such times and places and shall observe such rules of
procedure in regard to transaction of business at its meetings as may be prescribed.
5. (1) The Authority shall discharge such functions as may be necessary for treatment,
prevention and eradication of tuberculosis in the country.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of forgoing provision, the Authority shall—
(a) formulate a Charter outlining its objectives along with roadmap to eradicate
tuberculosis, within one year of its constitution;
(b) provide knowledge and information relating to control of tuberculosis to
Tuberculosis Control Centres for disseminating it to people;Constitutionof theTuberculosisEradicationAuthority.
Functions of
the Authority.
(c) within one year of constitution, undertake a baseline study to collect
comprehensive data about causes of tuberculosis, risk factors and vulnerablepopulation.
(d) direct the appropriate Government to assist in not necessary the baseline
study;
(e) direct healthcare service providers to follow the standard tuberculosis
diagnosis and treatment protocol; and
(f) undertake such other functions as may be assigned to it, from time to time for
carrying out the purposes of this Act.
6. (1) It shall be the responsibility of the appropriate Government to set up, within one
year of its coming into force of this Act, in every district a centre to be known as theTuberculosis Control Centre.
(2) The Tuberculosis Control Centres shall provide free screening of tuberculosis and
cost-free treatment to the patients.
7. (1) The appropriate Government shall take measures for providing, as far as possible,
Molecular Testing methods for diagnosis and daily dosage treatment for those living withMulti-Drug Resistant (MDR-TB) Tuberculosis, in particular.
(2) The Central Government shall issue and give wide publicity to the necessary
guidelines in respect of protocols for tuberculosis relating to Molecular Testing and DailyDosage treatment.
8. The Central Government shall take steps to ensure the introduction and availability
of the latest anti tuberculosis drugs in all public hospitals and Government-run pharmacies.
9. The Central Government and every State Government shall take measures to ensure
that every Tuberculosis-affected person is enrolled under Aadhaar to ensure uniqueidentification of patients seeking care and facilitate direct benefit transfers under the welfaremeasures.
10. The appropriate Government shall also provide healthcare coupons to patients
diagnosed with tuberculosis, which may be redeemed for cost-free treatment at privatehospitals.
11. (1) The appropriate Government shall provide for mobile tuberculosis vans for
active screening of tuberculosis, especially in remote rural areas.
(2) The Patients found tuberculosis positive on mobile screening, shall be referred to
the nearest tuberculosis Control Centre for follow-up care and treatment.
12. The appropriate Government shall undertake mobile tuberculosis immunization
drive to vaccinate children who were either not vaccinated or underwent incompletevaccination.
13. The appropriate Government shall direct the concerned authorities to undertake air
borne infection control in high risk and vulnerable areas.
14. The appropriate Government shall provide additional nutritional support to
tuberculosis patients at tuberculosis Control Centres, to incentivise patients to continuetreatment and reduce drop outs.TuberculosisControlCentre.
Molecular
Testing anddaily dose ofMulti- DrugResistant(MDR-TB)Tuberculosis.
Availability of
latest Anti-TuberculosisDrugs.
Enrolment
under AadhaarforTuberculosisPatientsseekingtreatment.
Healthcare
coupons.
Mobile
tuberculosisvans foractivescreening.
Mobile
tuberculosisvaccineimmunizationdrive.
Air borne
infectioncontrol inhigh riskareas.
Nutritional
support totuberculosispatients.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 347
15. Every registered company and society manufacturing and distributing tobacco
related products, shall contribute five per cent. of their annual sales value towards researchon new drugs and diagnostic tools for tuberculosis.
16. The State Government shall provide extensive facilities at the primary health centres
and tuberculosis Control Centres for diagnosis and treatment of drug resistant strain oftuberculosis.
17. (1) The appropriate Government shall undertake outreach activities to communicate
to citizens of the factors contributing to tuberculosis, symptoms of tuberculosis and its illeffects, especially in rural areas.
(2) The nurses and the staff at the tuberculosis Control Centres shall educate the
tuberculosis patients on the cough etiquette.
(3) The appropriate Government shall mobilise the local population in increasing
awareness of tuberculosis in citizens.
18. The appropriate Government shall provide for tobacco cessation counselling
services at all tuberculosis Control Centres.
19. The appropriate Government shall—
(a) undertake outreach and communication activities to increase awareness in
women, especially in rural areas, of ill effects of tobacco consumption on theirreproductive health and babies;
(b) provide for tobacco cessation counselling services at all antenatal clinics
and primary health centres; and
(c) increase awareness in rural households about the lethal effect of indoor air
pollution from chulhas, and undertake necessary steps to curb the same.
20. (1) The Authority shall prepare once every year, as may be prescribed, an annual
report giving the summary of its activities, including schemes it has undertaken andrecommended to the Government over the year and it shall contain statements of annualaccounts of the Authority.
(2) A copy of the report shall be forwarded to the Central Government, and the Central
Government shall cause the report to be laid before each House of Parliament.
21. The Central Government, shall from time to time, provide, after due appropriation
made by Parliament by law in this behalf, requisite funds for carrying out the purposes of thisAct.
22. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may make such order or give such direction, not inconsistent with the provisionsof this Act, as may appear to be necessary or expedient for removing the difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made after the expiry of the period of two years
from the date of commencement of this Act.
23. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,Fundingresearch onnew drugs anddiagnostictools fortuberculosis.
Facilities for
treating drugresistant strainoftuberculosis.
Outreach
activities toincreaseawareness oftuberculosis.
Tobacco
cessationservices.
Awareness in
women of illeffects oftobaccoconsumptiononreproductivehealth.
Annual report
and its layingbefore theParliament.
Central
Governmentto providefunds.
Power to
removedifficulty.
Power to
make rules.
both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that the
rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 349
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Tuberculosis (TB), the second (after COVID-19) deadliest infectious killer, is caused
by bacteria (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) that most often affect the lungs. It can spreadwhen people who are sick with TB expel bacteria into the air – for example, by coughing.Most people who develop the disease are adults in 2020 – men accounted for 56 per cent ofall TB cases, adult women accounted for 33 per cent and children for 11 per cent. Many newcases of TB are attributable to five risk factors which are: under-nutrition, HIV infection,alcohol use, (disorders) smoking and diabetes.
TB is preventable and curable. About 85 per cent of people who develop TB disease
can be successfully treated with a 6-month drug regimen. Treatment has the added benefit ofcurtailing onward transmission of infection.
The COVID-19 pandemic has reversed years of global progress in tackling tuberculosis
and for the first time in over a decade, TB deaths have increased, according to the World
Health Organization’s 2021 Global TB Report. Approximately, 1.5 million people died from TBin 2020 globally.
Reporting of tuberculosis (TB) cases in India went down by 41 per cent between 2019
and 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the World Health Organization’s 2021Global TB Report. In March 2021, an analysis by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfarerevealed that notification of TB cases in India reduced by 25 per cent between January andDecember 2020 because of the lockdown and diversion of resources for COVID-19 controlmeasures. In March, April and May 2020, TB case notifications in India dropped by 20.55 percent, 63.47 per cent and 46.33 per cent respectively, according to the Nikshay database, aweb-enabled patient management system for TB control under the Union Government’sNational TB Elimination Programme. During India’s second COVID-19 wave in 2021, a similartrend was seen, with notifications beginning to decline by April 2021. As many as 1,16,645
cases were notified in April 2021, according to the Nikshay portal. India (26.2) was among the
eight countries that accounted for over two-thirds of the global TB cases. India was alsoamong the 10 countries making up 74 per cent of the global gap between estimated TBincidence and the number of people newly diagnosed with TB, according to the Global TBReport 2021. An estimated 1.48 million people died due to TB globally in 2020. India accountedfor 34% of them. Deaths due to TB in the country also rose by 13% compared to 2019.Keeping all these points in view, a act is needed which ensures that proper treatment is givento Tuberculosis patients irrespective to other factors.
The proposed Bill provides for free screening and treatment of tuberculosis at
tuberculosis Control Centres established at district level in every State, provision forhealthcare coupons that can be redeemed at any private hospital for free tuberculosis relatedtreatment and care, mobile tuberculosis vans for screening of tuberculosis in high riskpopulation, especially in rural areas. Tuberculosis positive patients thus screened shall bereferred to the nearest tuberculosis Control Centres for follow-up treatment and care. TheBill also directs the appropriate Government to undertake mobile tuberculosis immunizationdrive to vaccinate children and to undertake air borne infection control activities in areasvulnerable to disease. The Bill aims to reduce drop outs from treatment and increase thepatients compliance, through provision of nutritional supplements at tuberculosis ControlCentres. To fund research in new drugs and diagnostic tools for tuberculosis, the Bill mandatesall private and government companies involved in manufacture and distribution of tobaccorelated products, to contribute five per cent of their annual sales value. The Bill has provisionto mobilise local population to increase outreach to citizens about factors contributing totuberculosis, symptoms of tuberculosis, cough etiquette. The Bill provides for activescreening and extensive facilities for treatment of multi-drug resistant strain of tuberculosisat tuberculosis Control Centres.
Tobacco use is one of the main causes of tuberculosis, contributing to 7.9 per cent of
tuberculosis related deaths in the country. Research has shown that providing tobacco
cessation services to tobacco users, has proved to reduce the disease burden of tuberculosis.
Recognising tobacco as a major contributor to tuberculosis, the Bill provides for integrationof tobacco cessation counselling services at all tuberculosis Control Centre. As per theWorld Health Organisation statistics, India is home to second highest number of womensmokers globally. According to the National Family Health Survey-3, the proportion of childrenwith low birth weight, is greater among children born to mothers who use tobacco. The Billalso has provision to educate women of the ill effects of tobacco consumption on theirreproductive health, provide for tobacco cessation couselling services at all antenatal clinicsand primary health centres. The Bill also provides for measures to curb indoor air pollutioncreated by chulhas (used in rural areas for cooking purposes).
The Bill thus aims for the control, prevention and complete eradication of tuberculosis
in the country.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI;
January 18, 2022. SHRIRANG APPA BARNE
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 351
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill provides for the constitution of the Tuberculosis Eradication
Authority and also appointment of such number of officers and staff for its functioning.Clause 6 provides for establishment of Tuberculosis Control Centre. Clause 7 provides formolecular testing methods for diagnosis and daily dose of Multi-drug Resistant (MDR-TB)Tuberculosis. Clause 8 provides for introduction and availability of the latest anti- tuberculosisdrugs in all public hospitals and Government- run pharmacies. Clause 10 provides for thecost-free screening and treatment of tuberculosis. Clause 11 provides for mobile tuberculosisvans for active screening of tuberculosis. Clause 12 provides for mobile tuberculosisimmunization drive. Clause 14 provides for nutritional support to tuberculosis patients.Clause 15 provides for funding research on new drugs and diagnostic tools for tuberculosis.Clause 16 provides for facilities for treating drugs resistant strain of tuberculosis. Clause 21makes it obligatory for the Central Government to provide requisite funds for carrying outthe purposes of this Bill. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, will involve recurring expenditure ofthree hundred crore rupees per annum which shall be charged from the Consolidated Fundof India.
A non-recurring expenditure to the tune of rupees one hundred crore is also likely to
be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 23 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make necessary rules for
carrying out the purposes of this Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of details only, thedelegation of legislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 353
BILL NO. 235 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for establishment of Tourism Development Board for the Development of
tourism in the country and for matters connected therewith.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Tourism Development Board Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “Board” means the Tourism Development Board constituted under section
4; and
(b) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act.Short title,
extent andCommencement.
Definitions.
3. (1) The Central Government may, if it is of the opinion that an area has tourism
potential in view of its location, ancient or historical importance or natural beauty, it may, bynotification in the Official Gazette, declare that area to be a tourist destination.
(2) An area declared under sub-section ( 1) as tourist destination shall be developed
by the Board as per international standards.
4. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute
a Board to be known as the Tourism Development Board for development of tourismdestinations.
(2) The Board shall consist of—
(a) The Union Minister of Tourism who shall be Chairperson, ex-officio;
(b) The Union Minister of State in the Ministry of Tourism shall be
Vice—Chairperson;
(c) The Minister of Tourism of States representing each State shall act as
ex-officio member; and
(d) One member from each State having expertise in the field of tourism
development, marketing and advertisement, to be nominated by the Central Governmentin consultation with State Government.
(3) The nominated members shall hold office for a period of three years.
(4) The salary and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of nominated
members shall be such as may be prescribed.
5. (1) The Central Government shall appoint the Secretary and the Chief Accounts
Officer, respectively, of the Board in such manner as may be prescribed.
(2) The Secretary and the Chief Accounts Officer shall exercise such powers and
perform such duties as may be specified by the Central Government.
(3) The Central Government shall provide such number of other officers and staff to
the Board as may be required for its efficient functioning.
(4) The salary and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of the officers
and staff of the Board shall be such as may be prescribed.
6. (1) The headquarters of the Board shall be at New Delhi.
(2) The Board shall have its State offices in every State capital or at such other places
as it may deem fit for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
7. The Board shall meet at such times and places and shall observe such rules of
procedure in regard to the transaction of its business at its meetings, as may be prescribed.
8. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute
a Fund to be known as the Tourism Development Board Fund.
(2) The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law
in this behalf, provide requisite sums to the Fund for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
9. The objects of the Board shall be—
(a) to promote and develop tourism;
(b) to improve and strengthen the existing infrastructure in and around ancient
monuments, heritage sites and tourist destinations;
(c) to develop new tourist destinations with all basic amenities;
(d) to coordinate, support and interact with other departments and agencies for
streamlining services and amenities in and around tourist destinations;Declaration ofan area asTouristDestination.
Constitution
of TourismDevelopmentBoard.
Appointment
of Secretaryand ChiefAccountsOfficer andother staff ofthe Board.
Headquarter
and otheroffices of theBoard.
Meetings and
procedure ofthe Board.
Constitution
of a TourismDevelopmentBoard Fund.
Objectives of
the Board.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 355
(e) to provide safety and security to tourists;
(f) to facilitate and enhance the experience of the tourists; and
(g) to publish in at least one local newspaper having circulation in that area for
inviting objections and suggestions for development of a master plan of each touristdestination.
10. The Board shall, as soon as may be, prepare a separate Master Plan for the
development of each tourist destination:
The Board shall, before finalising a Master Plan, take into consideration all
objections and suggestions from general public made under sub section 9(g).
11. The Board shall—
(a) prepare a calendar of activities including annual festival, melas, haats to be
organized in the each forthcoming financial year for the Development of tourism atdifferent tourist destinations;
(b) advertise such activities as it considers necessary to promote tourism at
different tourist destinations;
(c) interact once in three months with the stake holders including representatives
of the hoteliers, local authorities, police, Archaeological Survey of India and the TourismDepartment of the State Government concerned for proper co- ordination to developand strengthen tourism infrastructure in and around tourist destinations in the area;
(d) provide amenities at such rate and in such manner to the visitors as may be
notified by the Central Government in this regard;
(e) provide such other amenities as it may deem fit for the development of
tourist destinations;
(f) recommend to the Central Government the measures to be taken for the
development of tourist destinations;
(g) coordinate with the local authorities functioning in the area regarding any
developmental work undertaken or to be undertaken in or around a tourist destinations;and
(h) maintain a website containing all essential information regarding the tourist
destinations including hotels, monuments and heritage sites, tourist maps, help desk,district administration and tour operators with a view to provide necessary informationand help to the tourists.
12. The Central Government shall, from time to time, issue such directions to the
Board, as may be necessary for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
13. (1) The Board shall prepare every year an annual report in such form and manner,
as may be prescribed by the Central Government, giving a full account of its activities duringthe previous year, and copies of the report shall be forwarded to the Central Government.
(2) A copy of the report forwarded under sub-section (1) shall be laid, as soon as may
be after it is received, before each House of Parliament.
14. The Board may, by general or special order, direct that any power exercisable by it
under this Act may be exercised by such officer or local Board in such cases and subject tosuch conditions as may be specified therein.
15. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions notMaster Planfordevelopmentof touristdestination.
Duties of the
Board.
Central
Governmentto issuedirections.
Annual
Report.
Power to
delegate.
Removal of
difficulty.
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as may appear to it to be necessary or expedient
for removal of the difficulty:
(i) provided that no such order shall be made after the expiry of a period of two
years from the date of the commencement of this Act; and
(ii) every order made under this section shall, as soon as may be after it is made,
be laid before each House of Parliament.
16. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Power tomake rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 357
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The tourism sector in India is an integral part of the Make in India programme. The
tourism industry in India plays a role of significant economic multiplier and becomes criticalsince India has to grow at rapid rates and create jobs.
The objectives of tourism development are to foster understanding between people,
to create employment opportunities and bring about socio-economic benefits to thecommunity, particularly in the interior and remote areas and to strive towards balanced andsustainable development and preserve, enrich and promote India’s cultural heritage. One ofthe major objectives is the preservation and protection of natural resources and environmentto achieve sustainable development. India offers geographical diversity, world heritagesites and niche tourism products like cruises, adventure, medical, eco-tourism, etc. Promotionprogrammes like Incredible India has spurred growth in Tourists’ Arrivals and Employment.
India is currently ranked 54th in World Economic Forum’s Travel and Tourism
Development Index (2021). The Government has also said that the country’s tourism sectorwill recover to the pre-pandemic level by mid-2024. The Centre also said that by 2030, thetourism sector will contribute $250 billion to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
By 2047, the country intends to achieve $1 trillion through the tourism sector — a
sector that was worst affected by the corona virus pandemic.
Since Tourism is a multi-sectoral activity and the industry is affected by many other
sectors of the national economy. To achieve $1 trillion target, the State has to ensure inter-governmental linkages and coordination.
There are still a large number of places in India which have got immense tourist
potential, but due to various reasons the potential could not be best utilized. Though,Incredible India programme has increased inflow of tourists, India still stands at 54th rankingwhich shows lack of facilities and amenities for the tourists.
Whether it is Central Government or State Government, development of tourism sector
can never be achieved by any Government alone. It can be developed only when bothCentral and State Governments work hand in hand. Keeping present scenario in view, aboard empowered by an Act is needed to cater to the demand of tourism development.
Hence, this Bill.
New Delhi;
November 21, 2022. SHRIRANG APPA BARNE
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill provides for the constitution of the Tourism Development Board by
the Central Government. Clause 5 provides for appointment of Secretary, Chief AccountOfficer and other staff of the Authority. Clause 6 provides for headquarters and other officesof the Authority. Clause 7 provides for meetings and procedure of the Authority. Clause 8provides for constitution of a Tourism Development Board Fund. Clause 11 provides for thedevelopment of tourism through advertisement, maintaining of website and providingamenities for development of tourist destinations. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, wouldinvolve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. At this stage, it is not possible togive the exact amount to be incurred. However, it is estimated that a recurring expenditure ofabout one thousand crore will be involved per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees one thousand crore is also likely to be involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 16 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 359
Short title,
extent andcommencement.BILL NO. 216 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for the welfare of sculptors, artists and artisans in rural areas and for
matters connected therewith.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Sculptors, Artists and Artisans of Rural Areas
Upliftment Council Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “artisan” means any person engaged in making useful, decorative or artistic
items manually from leaves or weeds or bamboo or any other material by traditionalmeans in rural areas for earning his livelihood;
(b) “artist” means any person who earns his livelihood by performing arts
including music, dance, drama, play, singing to entertain public or displaying of hispaintings or artistic skills to public in rural areas;
(c) “Council” means the National Sculptors, Artists and Artisans of Rural Areas
upliftment Council constituted under section 4;
(d) “Fund” means the National Sculptors, Artists and Artisans of Rural Areas
Welfare Fund constituted under section 3;
(e) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act; and
(f) “sculptor” means any person engaged in carving of statues or making of
decorative pieces or any other useful items from clay, cement, stone or any othermaterial in rural areas for earning his livelihood.
3. (1) The Central Government shall constitute a Fund to be known as the National
Sculptors, Artists and Artisans of Rural Areas Upliftment Fund.
(2) The Central Government and State Governments shall contribute to the Fund in
such proportion, as may be prescribed.
4. (1) The Central Government shall establish a Council to be known as the National
Sculptors, Artists and Artisans of Rural Areas Upliftment Council.
(2) The Council shall consist of following members, namely:—
(a) Chairperson, to be appointed by the Central Government;
(b) Joint Secretary of Ministry of Textiles, Vice-Chairperson, ex-officio;
(c) A representative of the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
conversant with problems of small enterprises of sculptors, artists and artisans in ruralareas of country;
(d) five members representing Non-Governmental Organisations working for
the welfare of sculptors, artists and artisans in rural areas, to be appointed by theCentral Government;
(e) five members representing the sculptors, artists and artisans in rural areas, to
be appointed by the Central Government; and
(f) A representative each of such other Ministries and Departments of the
Government of India as may be decided by the Central Government.
(3) The salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of service of
the Chairperson and members of the Council shall be such, as may be prescribed by theCentral Government.
5. (1) The Council shall administer the Fund for the welfare of sculptors, artists and
artisans of rural areas.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provision, the Fund shall also
be used for,—
(a) payment of compensation to the next of kin of the sculptors, artists and
artisans in the event of death during work;
(b) payment of premium for life insurance;Definitions.
The National
Sculptors,Artists andArtisans ofRural Areas
UpliftmentFund.
The National
Sculptors,Artists andArtisans ofRural Areas
UpliftmentCouncil.
Functions of
the Council.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 361
(c) payment of old age pension;
(d) payment of disability allowance;
(e) provision of free health care facility to sculptors, artists and artisans and
their family members;
(f) housing facility at subsidised rate to sculptors, artists and artisans;
(g) financial assistance to sculptors, artists and artisans for production and
marketing of their products and organization and advertisement of events;
(h) preservation, promotion, development and dissemination of art, culture,
education and social welfare of sculptors, artists and artisans;
(i) empower unemployed sculptors, artists and artisans by providing them tools,
techniques and financial assistance for self-employment and upliftment;
(j) imparting skill development training to the sculptors, artists and artisans;
(k) granting fellowship and scholarship for carrying out research in the rural
areas particularly in the sculptures; and
(l) awarding the well known sculptors, artists and artisans having social impact
in the society.
6. The Council shall submit every year a report, in such form and manner, as may be
prescribed, of its activities to the Central Government.
7. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Annual Report.
Power to make
rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Though various government and non-government projects, research studies, training
programmes and financial/marketing assistance schemes are available to protect the interestof artisans involved in preserving such heritage of India in the form of handicrafts, the resultis yet not satisfactory. It is general perception that Indian handicrafts are famous worldwidesince centuries, but the fact is that apart from some artists the majority of rural sculptors,artists and artisans are starving and struggling to meet basic needs.
Due to various reasons, this great cultural heritage is being threatened by forces both
from within and outside. Hence, majority of such sculptors, artists and artisans now are atsaturated position and do not wish their children to continue with such occupation.
In view of the miserable condition of these sculptors, artists and artisans, it is the duty
of the Government to provide social security and other financial assistance to them byformulating and implementing appropriate policies for their upliftment. Thus, it is our duty towork towards making our current and future generations more aware about our culture andtradition and help and empower the people from rural areas earning their livelihood assculptors, artists and artisans.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI ; SHRIRANG APPA BARNE
November 21, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 363
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for the constitution of a Fund for the welfare of sculptors,
artists and artisans of rural areas. Clause 4 provides for establishment of a Council toadminister the Fund for the welfare of sculptors, artists and artisans in the rural areas. TheBill, therefore, if enacted and brought into operation will involve expenditure from theConsolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a sum of rupees one thousand crore may beinvolved as recurring expenditure per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure to the tune of rupees one thousand crore may also involve
from the Consolidated Fund of India.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 7 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of this Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 365
BILL NO. 284 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for reservation for sportspersons in national sports administration bodies
in India.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Sportspersons (Reservation in Sports bodies)
Bill, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(b) “sportsperson” means a person who has represented India as a member ofShort title,
extent andcommencement.
Definitions.
the national team, or a member of the State or regional team, or has established himself
as a sportsperson of international repute in chosen field of sport; and
(c) “sports body” means—
(i) the Indian Olympic Association; or
(ii) Sports Authority of India; or
(iii) a national sports federation recognized by the Ministry of Sports and
Youth Affairs of the Central Government, and its affiliated federations; or
(iv) national sports promotion organizations recognized by the Ministry
of Sports and Youth Affairs of the Central Government; or
(v) a federation recognized by the International Olympic Association; or
(vi) a federation or a body which regulates sport at international level and
its affiliated federations or bodies regulating sport in India.
3.The Central Government shall reserve fifty percent of administrative posts for
sportspersons in sports bodies in such manner as may be prescribed:
Provided that out of fifty percent reserved posts, twenty percent shall be reserved for
women sportspersons.
4. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order, published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act as may appear to it to be necessary for removingthe difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made under this section after the expiry of a
period of two years from the date of commencement of this Act.
5. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule and every notification or order issued under this Act shall be laid, before
each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days which may becomprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before the expiry ofthe session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid, bothHouses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that the ruleshould not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in a such modified form or be ofno effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall bewithout prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Reservation inappointmentin Sportsbodies.
Power to
removedifficulties.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 367
STA TEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Sports play a vital role in physical development of human body. It also plays an
important role in psychological conditioning of human brain. Therefore, sports has occupiedcrucial place in Indian way of life and culture since ages.
Given the wide variety of sports that are played in India, administering them has
always been a challenge. India has successfully created various institutions for sportsadministration at State and National level. However, our sports administration has beenmany a times proved impediment in allowing emerging sportspersons to realize their fullpotential and leave a mark of India at international competition.
This bill, seeks to attempt reforms in sports administration through reservation of
seats for sportspersons in national sports administrative bodies. Within the seats reservedfor sportsperson, 50 percent of the seats shall be reserved for women.
The primary motive of this bill is to utilize the experience and perspective of sportsperson
in making sports administration more effective and efficient. It will give a bird eye view tosports institutions regarding the actual needs of sportsperson and addressing them in bestpossible manner.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; PARVESH SAHIB SINGH
November 21, 2022.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 5 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail, the delegation of legislativepower is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 369
BILL NO. 52 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:–
1. (1) This Act may be called the Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 267 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as the
Code), in sub-section (1), for the words “before the court” wherever they occur, the words“ before the court physically or with the permission of the court through video conferencing”shall be substituted.
3. In section 273 of the code, for the words “shall be taken in the presence of the
accused”, the words “shall be taken in the presence of the accused in normal circumstancesor with the permission of the court through video conferencing” shall be substituted.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section267.
Amendment
of section273.2 of 1974.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The law must adapt to new advancements in science and other social trends as they
occur. As a result, the Supreme Court correctly stated in the case of Som Prakash vs. State ofDelhi that “in our technological age nothing more primitive can be conceived of than denyingdiscoveries and nothing cruder can retard forensic efficiency than swearing by traditionaloral evidence only thereby discouraging the liberal use of scientific aids to prove guilt”.Laws must be changed in order to deal with the investigators’ and judges’ excessive workloadsand to more completely implement a problem-solving approach to criminal proceedings. Theintroduction of the idea of video conferencing in the Indian criminal justice system is oneillustration of this kind of transformation.
The idea of video conferencing has been used as a tool in two different ways, first for
gathering evidence in unique situations and then for bringing the undertrials before thecourt from the prison itself for reasons of an extension of remand or other purposes. Forvideo conferencing to be permitted, the courts in India similarly used a purposefulinterpretation.
By using the advance technologies Indian judicial system can increase its efficiency
in delivering justice and giving important verdicts, in case of criminal cases courts can holdtrial of dreaded gangsters through video conferencing from prison itself, so that cops don’thave to ferry them to courts. Presently it is the case that only remand hearings are conductedby video conference. Criminals find various ways to carry out crime or escape when they arebrought to the court as there has been various Instances of undertrial convicts escapingwhich would also be reduced if all prisoners’ remand and trials were conducted by videoconference. It also happens that during their presence in court for trial, criminals may threatenwitnesses or plan to commit crimes with the assistance of their assistants. Video conferencingcan help catch these actions.
Video conferencing is greatly required since it enhances the administration of justice
by saving both the Court and undertrials’ time. The concept’s introduction will make itpossible to record evidence and eliminate the risk associated with transporting high-riskinmates who are being tried in various courts across the nation. This will also make itpossible to record the testimony of foreign-based experts and witnesses without having topay the exorbitant transportation costs to get them to the trial court. Modern times’ complexitynecessitates that the law be updated at the same rate as technological advancements.
Justice would undoubtedly benefit from the idea of video conferencing since it would
enable judges to be as accurate as possible and comprehend the case with the aid of allvideo recordings. These cutting-edge techniques for connecting the prison and the courtvia video linkage will guarantee a quick trial and eliminate the difficulties of undertrials.Additionally, it should be remembered that the Law Courts would lag behind other industriesif they did not accept technological advancement in court processes.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; PARVESH SAHIB SINGH
January 17, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 371
BILL NO. 254 OF 2022
A Bill to establish a Social Media and Over-The-Top Platform Regulatory Board to regulate
the content shown by individuals, art, cultural organizations in socialmedia in the name of creativity through art, music, films, cinema, OTT cinema,advertisement, standup comedy, poetry, social media, cultural staging, theatricalstaging and for matters connected therewith.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Social Media and Over-The-Top Platform Regulatory
Board Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,extent andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “anarchy” means promotion of social and cultural malpractices in the country
in the name of creativity, distortion of Indian culture, attack on the unity and integrityof the country, nurturing and support of terrorist and jihadi ideology, depiction andsupport of anti-national ideologies, staging mundanity against any particular religionout of prejudice, support and any other kind of creative activity which is againstIndian culture, life values, spirit of public welfare, philanthropy, coexistence, harmony,the spirit of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam and world peace;
(b) “creativity” means arts, literature, films, cinema, visual and audio poetry
programmes presented through Over-the-Top media platform;
(c) “Over-The-Top platform” means a media service that offer access to the film
and television content provided over the internet connection at the request and tosuit the requirement of individual consumer;
(d) “media” means any data, text, sound, image, graphics, music, photography,
advertisements, video, website and podcasts;
(e) “Board” means the Social Media and OTT Regulation Board established
under section 3; and
(f) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
3. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official gazette, constitute
a Board to be known as the Social Media and Over-The-Top Platform Regulatory Board forregulation of anarchy in the fields of film, cinema and Over-The-Top platform.
(2) The headquarters of the Board shall be at Mahoba in the State of Uttar Pradesh.
(3) The Board shall consist of not less than seven members to be appointed by Central
Government in such manner as may be prescribed:
Provided that the Board shall consist of,—
(a) one member each from North, South, East, West and Central India who have
at least fifteen years of experience in the field of art and culture; and
(b) two other members who have at least twenty years of experience in classical
Indian literature or its staging.
(4) The Chairperson of the Board shall be selected by consensus of the members of
the Board.
(5) The meeting of the Board shall be compulsorily held at least once every month and
the Central Government may make such provisions as may be necessary for review of thework and coordination amongst the various Ministries.
(6) The salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of services
of members appointed under this section shall be such as may be prescribed.
4. The Board shall,—
(a) inspect all cinema, art, cultural and communication mediums;
(b) organize seminars, workshops, counselling sessions from time to time to
understand the creation of cinema, motion picture in which persons and organizationswho create anarchy in the name of creativity may also be invited;
(c) from time to time, issue guidelines for regulation of anarchy;
(d) motivate person and group of persons and institutions for creative
development in accordance with Indian values;Definitions.
The Social
Media andOver-The-Top PlatformRegulatoryBoard.
Functions of
Board
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 373
(e) work as complementary arrangement with other commissions and boards of
other art, culture, cinema under the Board for film certification constituted under theCinematography Act, 1952; and
(f) such other function as may be prescribed.
5. If any person publishes any social media content on the OTT or such other platform
harming the unity and integrity of the country, hurting social harmony, acting with prejudiceagainst a particular religion, supporting terrorist and jihadi ideology, he shall be liable forimprisonment for a term which shall not be less than twenty years and fine of rupees twocrore.
6. The Central Government shall after due appropriation made by the Parliament in this
regard provide the requisite funds from time to time for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
7. The Central Government, for the purpose of carrying out any of the provisions of
this Act or the rules made thereunder, within the territorial jurisdiction of any State includedunder this Act, may give such directions to the Government of that State as may appear to itto be necessary.
8. (1) The Central Government may, by notification, make rules to carry out the
provisions of this Act.
(2) Every rule made by the Central Government under this Act shall be laid, as soon as
may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a totalperiod of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successivesessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or thesuccessive sessions aforesaid, both the Houses agree in making any modification in the ruleor regulation or both Houses agree that the rule or regulation should not be made, the rule orregulation shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as thecase may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudiceto the validity of anything previously done under that rule or regulation.
Power tomake rules.Penalty.
Central
Governmentto providefunds.
Power to give
directions.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Indians have not only done subtle and extensive research on all the possible dimensions
of life, but also created science and highly specialized techniques for this, based on thefundamental understanding of philosophy and towards this understanding, it has also beenproved that there is no proven end of learning. The proof of this is obtained from thedeclaration “Ekam Sadvipra Bahudha Vadanti”, in which instead of curbing creative freedom,it was encouraged, but on this basis harmful freedom was also regulated, the basis of whichwas practical understanding with Indian cultural values.
In the tradition of Indian thought, the first thinkers were called poets and the expression
made by them was called poetry. And the Upanishads were revealed and the original thinkerswere called Kavikritu, but with time they were called poets who depicted literature and art,which is a common word for this in our language today. But in the development of literatureand art, spirituality never lost its control over creativity, although morality, intellectualismand materialism were present in more and less form in many periods, but the controllingspirituality of all of them remained intact. Maharishi Valmiki ji created many classical workslike moral oriented Ramayana, Ved Vyas ji intellectually oriented Mahabharata and Kalidascreated many classical compositions like Abhijnanshakuntalam etc., after which the traditionof this type of creativity continued for a long time in India, which deviated in the medievalperiod and came till the British period. There were concerted state efforts to erase thistradition from public mind. But in the nineteenth century, at the individual level, creativityaccording to Indian values re-appeared in the society and this was possible only through thelife force of the never-ending Indian culture. This change in the field of creation was soextensive that it not only influenced the genres of literature, art, poetry and drama but alsojolted the political awareness and set patterns of leaders and legendary personalities etc.
However, in the last few decades and especially in the last few years, there is again a
deviation in the values of this creativity due to certain reasons. The main reason of thedisinterest as well as ignorance from the excellent values of Indian poetry, art etc. of thecreative workers engaged in the field of creativity is due to some specific reasons. While thecreativity in respect of Indian values, the intimacy of human relations and the high materialityis also practiced by converting the same into spirituality, the proofs of which are found inabundance in crafts, architecture, scriptures, books, etc., these days the movies, OTTplatforms, music albums, bring forth uncontrolled display of body and language which isdefinitely against artistic harmony and Indian values. It denotes ignorance about the creativityof art etc. This deviation can be checked by establishing constant communication slowly.
The second major reason is very serious and that is due to anti-national ideology and
religious frenzy. Presently, in the name of creativity, efforts are being made to nurture anarchyand hysteria in the society and the country, and support for terrorist and jihadi ideologywhereas ridicule and hatred towards a particular religion are also being promoted. This is abig threat to the country and there is an urgent and imperative need to curb it rationally.
Through this bill, the development of creative sense with lofty, rational, continuously
active and spiritually controlled values of Indian culture in cinema, art etc. can be rapidlyensured.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; KUNWAR PUSHPENDRA SINGH CHANDEL
November 21, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 375
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for the constitution of the Media and Over-The-Top
Platform Regulatory Board. It further provides for appointment of members of the Board.Clause 6 provides for the Central Government to provide funds. The Bill, therefore, if enacted,will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. A recurring expenditure ofabout rupees ten crore per annum is likely to be involved.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees five crore is also likely to be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 8 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of this Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 377
BILL NO. 291 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:–
1.(1) This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In article 72 of the Constitution, after clause ( 1), the following clause shall be added
at the end, namely:—
“(1A) Nothing in this article shall apply to the punishment or sentence of any person
convicted of rape and murder of a girl child.
Explanation. — For the purpose of this clause ‘girl child’ means a girl upto the age of
sixteen years.”.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of article 72.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
“Where W omen are honored, Divinity blossoms there” such thinking is one of the
prominent views of Indian culture. Mother is regarded a first guru not only in Indian society
but in all societies across the world. Many philosophers and great souls including Swami
Vivekanand have given highest priority to the honor of women. Despite of such sacrosanct
thinking, some people in our society, who have distorted mentality, not only commit heinouscrime such as rape against girls but they also kill those girls. In our country, many such caseshave come to light and such distorted mentality can be seen in “Nirbhaya Case” as well. Nosociety can accept this distorted mentality and drastic measures are required to be taken toprotect girl child.
Therefore, the provision of President’s discretionary power to grant pardon or suspend
sentences pronounced by the Supreme Court should not be available to the personsconvicted of rape and killing of girl child.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; KUNWAR PUSHPENDRA SINGH CHANDEL
November 21, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 379
BILL NO. 11 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for the constitution of a Board for prevention of man-animal conflicts in
the country and for matters related therewith.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Man-Animal Conflict Prevention Board Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “appropriate Government” in the case of a State the Government of that
State and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(b) "Board" means the Man-Animal Conflict Prevention Board constituted under
section 3;Short title,andcommencement.
Definitions.
(c) "experts" means persons having requisite qualification and experience in
the field of prevention of man-animal conflicts; and
(d) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
3. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette constitute,
a Board, to be known as the Man-Animal Conflict Prevention Board in such manner as maybe prescribed.
(2) The Board shall be a body corporate by the name aforesaid having perpetual
succession and a common seal with power, subject to the provisions of this Act, to contractand shall, by the said name, sue and be sued.
(3) The Board shall consist of such number of members, not exceeding ten, as may be
prescribed, and unless the rules made in this behalf otherwise provide, the Board shallconsist of the following members, namely:—
(a) a Chairperson;
(b) three Members of Parliament, of whom two shall be elected by the House of
the People and one by the Council of States;15
(c) four members to represent respectively by the Ministries of the Central
Government dealing with—
(i) Environment, Forest and Climate Change;
(ii) Home Affairs;
(iii) Railways; and20
(iv) Jal Shakti.
(d) two members to represent respectively dealing with—
(i) National Board for Wildlife; and
(ii) Wildlife Institute of India, to be appointed by the Central Government
in such manner as may be prescribed.
(4) The office of member of the Board shall not disqualify its holder for being chosen
as, or for being, a member of either House of Parliament.
(5) The Salary and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of service of
members shall be such as may be prescribed.
(6) The Chairperson shall, in addition to presiding over the meetings of the Board,
exercise and discharge such powers and duties of the Board as may be delegated to him bythe Board and such other powers and duties as may be prescribed.
(7) The Board shall elect from amongst its members a Vice-Chairperson who shall
exercise such powers and perform such functions of the Chairperson as may be prescribedor as may be delegated to him by the Chairperson.
(8) No act or proceeding of the Board shall be invalidated merely by reason of—
(a) any vacancy in, or any defect in the constitution of, the Board;
(b) any defect in the appointment of a person acting as a member of the Board;
(c) any irregularity in the procedure of the Board not affecting the merits of the case.
4. (1) The Board may appoint the Secretary and such other officers and employees as
it considers necessary for the efficient discharge of its functions under this Act.
(2) The salary and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of service of
the Secretary and other officers and employees of the Board shall be such as may bedetermined by regulations.Constitutionof Man-AnimalConflictPreventionBoard.
Secretary and
other Officers.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 381
5. (1) Subject to any rules made in this behalf, the Board may, from time to time,
constitute such committees as may be necessary for the efficient discharge of its functions.
(2) Every committee constituted under sub-section ( 1) shall consist of such number
of persons as the Board may deem fit.
6. The Board may—
(i) conduct seminars, classes, training or training camps to avoid and prevent
man-animal conflicts in the country;
(ii) create awareness for avoiding man-animal conflicts;
(iii) assist and encourage studies and research for prevention of man-animal
conflicts;
(iv) strive towards achieving reduction in man-animal conflicts;
(v) appoint experts to find out the reasons for man-animal conflicts and to make
suggestions to prevent the same;
(vi) suggest measures to control man-animal conflicts to all concerned;
(vii) provide financial or other assistance for preventing man-animal conflicts;
(viii) provide guidelines for training in prevention of man-animal conflicts;
(ix) maintain register and record details of man-animal conflicts occurred; and
(x) secure better working conditions for any and all people or officials involved
in the task of reducing man-animal conflicts in the country.
REGISTRATION OF INSTITUTION WORKING TOWARDS PREVENTION OF MAN-
ANIMAL CONFLICTS
7. (1) Every institution working towards prevention of man-animal conflicts, shall,
register itself with the Board immediately after the commencement of this Act in such manneras may be prescribed.
(2) The registration made under sub-section (1) shall continue to be in force until it is
cancelled by the Board.
8. (1) Every institution registered under section 7, shall furnish such details, including
the number of persons involved in the cases dealt regarding man-animal conflicts to theBoard on a quarterly basis in such manner as may be prescribed.
(2) Any person who fails to furnish any detail as required under sub-section (1) or
furnishes any particular which is false and which he knows to be false or does not believe tobe true shall be punishable with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees.
(3) The Board may authorize an officer to visit any facility at any time to verify the
accuracy of any detail made under this section or to ascertain the functioning of the institutionregistered.
FINANCE, ACCOUNTS AND AUDIT
9. The Central Government may, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law, in
this behalf, provides to the Board grants and loans of such sums of money as it mayconsider necessary.
10. (1) There shall be constituted a Fund to be called the Man-Animal Conflicts
Prevention Fund for carrying out the purpose of this Act to which shall be credited—
(a) grants and loans made to the Board by the Central Government;
(b) fee levied and collected in respect of licenses granted under this Act; andAdvisory
Committee.
Functions of
the Board.
Registration
of Institution.
Disclosure of
informationof registeredowner.
Grants and
loans to theBoard.
Constitution
of Man-AnimalConflictPreventionFund.
(c) sums received by the Board from such other sources as may be decided by
the Central Government.
11. The Board shall prepare in such form and at such time, as may be prescribed, its
budget for each financial year, showing the estimated receipts and expenditure of the Boardand forward the same to the Central Government.
12. The Board shall prepare, in such form and at such time each financial year, as may
be prescribed, its annual report, giving a full account of its activities during the previousfinancial year, and submit the report to the Central Government.
13. The accounts of the Board shall be maintained and audited in such manner as may,
in consultation with the Comptroller andAuditor-General of India, be prescribed and theBoard shall furnish to the Central Government before such date, as may be prescribed, itsaudited copy of accounts together with the auditors, report thereon.
14. The Central Government shall cause the annual report and auditor’s report to be
laid, as soon as may be after they are received, before each House of Parliament.
15. Subject to any rule made in this behalf, any person, generally or specially authorized
by the Board in this behalf, may, whenever it is necessary so to do, for any of the purposesof this Act, at all reasonable times, enter upon any land or premises and make any inspectionor inquiry or do such other Act or thing as may be prescribed:
Provided that no such person shall enter any building or any enclosed courtyard or
garden attached to a dwelling-house (unless with the consent of the occupier thereof) withoutpreviously giving such occupier at least twenty-four hours’ notice in writing of his intentionto do so.
16. Any person who—
(a) obstructs any member authorized by the Chairperson in writing or any officer
or other employee of the Board authorized by it in this behalf or any person authorizedin this behalf by the Central Government or by the Board, in the exercise of any powerconferred, or in the discharge of any duty imposed, on him by or under this Act; or
(b) having control over or custody of any account book or other record, fails to
produce such book or record when required to do so by or under this Act,
shall be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to six months, or with fine
which may extend to one thousand rupees, or with both.
17. The Board may, by general or special order in writing, delegate to the Chairperson
or any other member or to any officer of the Board, subject to such conditions and limitations,if any, as may be specified in the order, such of its powers and functions under this Act as itmay deem necessary.
18. All members, officers and other employees of the Board shall be deemed, when
acting or purporting to Act in pursuance of any of the provisions of this Act, to be publicservants within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
19. No prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie against the Government or the
Board or any committee appointed by it, or any member of the Board or such committee, orany officer or employee of the Government or the Board or any other person authorised bythe Government or the Board, for anything which is done or intended to be done in good faithunder this Act or the rules or regulations made thereunder.
20. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Officlal Gazette, make rules
to carry out the purposes of this Act.Budget.
Annual
Report.
Accounts and
Audits.
Annual Report
and auditorsreport to belaid beforeParliament.
Power to enter.
Penalties for
obstructing anofficer ormember ofthe Board inthe dischargeof his dutiesand for failureto producebooks andrecords.
45 of 1860.Delegation.
Member,
Officers andemployees ofthe Board tobe publicservant.
Protection of
Action takenin good faith.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 383
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide
for all or any of the following matters, namely:
(a) the constitution of committees under section 5;
(b) the form of the application for registration, cancellation, fee payable,
particulars to be included in such application, the procedure to be followed in grantingregistration under section 8;
(c) the conditions and the restrictions with respect to the exercise of the power
to enter under section 20; and
(d) any other matter which is to be, or may be, prescribed or in respect of which
provision is to be, or may be, made by rules.
21. The Board may, with the previous approval of the Central Government, by notification
in the Official Gazette, make regulations consistent with this Act and the rules made thereunderto carry out the purposes of this Act.
22. Every rule made by the Central Government and every regulation made under this
Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, whileit is in session, for a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or intwo or more successive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately followingthe session or the successive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making anymodification in the rule or regulation or both Houses agree that the rule or regulation shouldnot be made, the rule or regulation shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form orbe of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulmentshall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule orregulation.
23. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order, published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act as may appear to be necessary for removing thedifficulty:
Provided that no order shall be made under this section after the expiry of two years
from the commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament.Power to makeregulations.
Rules and
regulations tobe laid beforeParliament.
Power to
removedifficulties.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The incidents of man-animal conflicts in the country are on the rise and many people
have lost their lives, particularly during the year 2021 when it was at its peak. The incidentsof man-animal conflicts are reported from all parts of the country and no State is an exception.Law prevents killing animals such as tigers, elephants etc. and whereas the people are at thereceiving end.
The major reason for the increasing man-animal conflicts is the ever decreasing forest
areas due to which the wild animals are forced to enter into human settlements in the searchof water and food. Wild animals are being crowded out of their natural habitat due toencroachment or due to deforestation, and the animals are forced to look for food and waterwherever they get. The people have seen tigers roaming on the streets.
Together with the increase in the human population, we are also witnessing increase
in the population of wild animals. The State of Kerala in particular has been facing thisproblem enormously, especially the elephants and wild boar and tigers coming out of forest,destroying crops and attacking humans. The State Government of Kerala has demanded todeclare wild boar as vermin due to their increasing nuisance.
Therefore, it is the need of the hour that we need to take some strict enforcement to
prevent man-animal conflict.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; V .K. SREEKANDAN
July 06, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 385
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for constitution of the Man-Animal Conflict Prevention
Board. Clause 4 provides for appointment of secretary, offices and employees of the Board.Clause 5 provides for the constitution of a Advisory Committee by the Board. Clause 9provides for grants and loans by the Central Government for the Board. Clause 10 providesfor constitution of Man-Animal Conflict Prevention Care Fund. The Bill, therefore, if enacted,would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a recurringexpenditure of about one hundred crore per annum from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clauses 20 of the Bill empower the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of this Bill. Clause 21 provides for the Board to make regulations for carryingout the purpose of this Act. As the rules and regulations will relate to matters of detail only,the delegation of legislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 387
BILL NO. 35 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Hindu Succession Act, 1956.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 15 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 (hereinafter referred to as the
principal Act),—
(a) for sub-section (1), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(1) The property of a female Hindu dying intestate shall devolve according to
the rules set out in section 16,—
(a) firstly, upon the sons and daughters (including the children of any
predeceased sons or daughters or non-remarried daughters-in-law) and thehusband;
(b) secondly, upon the mother and father;
(c) thirdly, upon the heirs of the mother;
(d) fourthly, upon the heirs of the father; and
(e) lastly, upon the heirs of the husband.”.
(b) “in sub-section (2),—
(i) in clause (a), for the words “including the children of any predeceased
son or daughter”, the words “including the children of any predeceased sons ordaughters or non-remarried daughters-in-law or the husband” shall besubstituted; and
(ii) in clause (b), for the words “including the children of any predeceased
son or daughter”, the words “including the children of any predeceased sons ordaughters or non-remarried daughters-in-law” shall be substituted.”
3. In section 16 of the principal Act, Rule 3 shall be omitted.30 of 1956.Short title and
commencement.
Amendment
of section 15.
Amendment of
section 16.
STA TEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
As on date many litigations pertaining to successions are pending in various courts in
the country for many decades. In many cases, it has come to the notice that mothers arebeing neglected and even are not taken care of by their own sons and daughters. Aconsiderable number of such mothers are on the roads or housed in old age homes due to nomeans for their livelihood. These non-remarried daughters-in-law after the demise of theirhusbands are deprived of their rights on the moveable and immovable properties left by theirmothers-in-law.
According to section 15 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 only sons and daughters
(including the children of any predeceased sons or daughters) are eligible for the successionof the property of a female Hindu dying intestate. However non-remarried daughters-in-laware deprived of such rights. In many cases, these non-remarried mothers after the death oftheir husbands were required to clear off the liabilities created by their husbands during theirlift time for many reasons whatsoever. The question arises how they will do it, if they are notearning and their hope is on whatever the share they get from the said movable and immovableproperties left by their mothers-in-law which is being deprived.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to amend section 15 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 with
a view to provide rights to daughters-in-law at par with sons and daughters (including thechildren of any predeceased sons or daughters) and the husband and reorder the successionrights on the property of a female Hindu dying intestate.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; V.K. SREEKANDAN
February 6, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 389
BILL NO. 36 OF 2023
A BILL further to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 18 of the Citizenship Act, 1955, after sub-section ( 2), the following
sub-section shall be inserted, namely:—
“(2A) The Central Government shall, within six months from coming into force of
this Act, frame rules under clause ( eei) of sub-section ( 2):
Provided that if the Central Government fails to frame rules within the said period of six
months, the Central Government shall cause it to be laid a written statement before eachHouses of Parliament the reasons for not framing the rules within the said period.”.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 18.57 of 1955.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The intention of giving assent after hours of debate in both the Houses of Parliament
on any Bill(s) is to implement or promulgate the contents thereon. Therefore, no Bill has to bekept in abeyance merely due to not being able to frame rules and such action amounts todisrespect to our temple of democracy.
The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 was passed in Lok Sabha on 10.12.2019 and in
Rajya Sabha on 11.12.2019. The President gave his assent to the Bill on 12.12.2019 and hasbecome an Act. However, the Act could not be implemented as rules under section 6B(1)relating to conditions, restrictions and manner for granting certificate of registration orcertificate of naturalisation to a person belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi orChristian community from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan who entered India on orbefore 31.12.2014 are yet to be framed, despite giving 7(seven) extensions in all these threeyears. This indicates there needs to be more study and debates before any such bills arepassed and becoming Acts.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 with a view to provide that
the Central Government shall frame rules relating to conditions, restrictions and manner forgranting certificate of registration or certificate of naturalisation to a person belonging toHindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian community from Afghanistan, Bangladesh orPakistan who entered India on or before 31.12.2014 as envisaged under section 18 within sixmonths.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; V .K. SREEKANDAN
January 19, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 391
BILL NO. 13 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and the Code of Criminal Procedure
Code, 1973.2
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
CHAPTER I
PRILIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be called the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
CHAPTER II
AMENDMENT TO THE INDIAN PENAL CODE, 1860
2. In section 124A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, for the words "shall be punished
with imprisonment for life, to which fine may be added, or with imprisonment which mayextend to three years, to which fine may be added, or with fine", the words "shall be punishedwith imprisonment which may extend to three years, or with fine which may extend uptorupees fifty thousand, or with both" shall be substituted.
CHAPTER III
A
MENDMENT TO THE CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE ,1973
3. In the First Schedule to the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, under the heading
"I - OFFENCES UNDER THE INDIAN PENAL CODE", for the entries relating to section124A, thefollowing entries shall be substituted, namely:—
12 3 4 5 6
124A Sedition Imprisonment Non- Bailable Court
which may Cognizable of Session.
extend to3 years or withfine which mayextend uptorupees fiftythousand or
with both.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section124A.
Amendment
of the firstschedule.45 of 1860.
2 of 1974.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
In India, the first reference to sedition was made by Macaulay in the Draft Penal Code,
1837. Through an error of omission, the section on sedition was omitted from the IndianPenal Code, 1860. The error, however, was rectified through a Special Act XVII, 1870 andsedition was added as an offence under section 124A of IPC, 1860. Thereafter, sedition hasremained an offence on the Indian statute books.
Post-independence, the Constituent Assembly vehemently opposed the inclusion of
sedition under the list of reasonable restrictions to the"Right to Freedom" (Article 13 underthe draft Constitution) and succeeded. Further our first Prime Minister, Shri Jawaharlal Nehru,when introducing the first amendment to the Constitution, referred to sedition and stated:
"Now so far as I am concerned that particular section is highly objectionable and
obnoxious and it should have no place both for practical and historical reasons, if you like,in any body of laws that we might pass. The sooner we get rid of it the better. We might dealwith that matter in other ways, in more limited ways, as every other country does but thatparticular thing, as it is, should have no place, because all of us have had enough experienceof it in a variety of ways and apart from the logic of the situation, our urges are against it."
The Indian Penal Code, 1860, apart from sedition under section 124A, has provisions
enlisted in chapters VI, VII, VIII and others to check activities inciting war against India orcausing disruption of public order. The objective of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act(UAPA), 1967 had been to enable the State authorities to deal with "activities directedagainst the integrity and sovereignty of India". In the light of this, sedition loses its relevancein the present day and context. Even the British abolished it from their statute books in 2009.
Presently in India, the use of sedition has been on the rise. According to the Crime in
India report, incidents of sedition have increased from 35 in 2016 to 73 in 2020. However, theconviction rate under sedition is a meagre four per cent in 2020. The increasing trend ofcases, as well as the negligible conviction rate, is a grave sign of misuse of the provision ofsedition to curtail disapprobation and dissent against the Government. Given such a scenario,the end objective would be the abolition of sedition itself. Though abolition of sedition isdesirable, it may not be currently feasible to achieve this. So, in the view of protecting theinterests of a stable and healthy democracy, it is felt necessary to dilute the stringency ofsection 124A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 by making sedition a bailable and non-cognizableoffence. Moreover, through this bill, it is also proposed to omit the provision of imprisonmentfor life under sedition.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SRINIV AS KESINENI
November 26, 2021.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 393
BILL NO. 94 OF 2022
A Bill to bring about accountability and Parliamentary oversight to the legislative and
policy-making process in the country and to improve the quality of expendituremade by the Union Government.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be called the Government Legislative Proposals and Schemes
(Impact Analysis and Post Implementation Assessment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “Bill’’ means a Government Bill but does not include Finance Bill, Appropriation
Bill and Bills of trivial or technical nature;
(b) “Government’’ means the Central Government;
(c) “major Scheme” means a Scheme that is likely to result in a recurring expenditure of
rupees one thousand crores or above from the Consolidated Fund of India or a cumulativeShort title andcommencement.
Definitions.
expenditure of rupees one thousand crores or above within three years from the day of its
implementation;
(d) “major Bill” means a Bill which on enactment will—
(i) involve an expenditure of rupees one thousand crores or above from
the Consolidated Fund of India; or
(ii) result in major increase in costs for consumers, individual industries,
Union, State or local government, or geographic regions; or
(iii) have significant adverse effects on competition, employment,
investment, productivity, innovation or on the ability of India-based enterprisesto compete with foreign-based enterprises in domestic or export markets; or
(iv) regulate any item either under the Union or the Concurrent List of the
Seventh Schedule to the Constitution or any item in the State List that theUnion Government seeks to regulate,
and the expression “major Act’’ shall be construed accordingly;
(e) “market failure” means the following situations which result in markets not
allocating resources efficiently:—
(i) market power where one party in the negotiation or a contract has little
power and experiences a loss of choice including monopolies and oligopolies;
(ii) asymmetric information where the process of negotiation works poorly
as one party involved lacks information relative to the other;
(iii) externalities where the consequences of the action of two negotiating
parties are not negotiated which may lead to an effect on a third party;
(iv) provision of public goods where goods that are being provided are
non-rivalrous in that consumption of that good or service by one person doesn’t
lead to lesser availability for another; and non-excludable in that consumptionof a good or service by one person doesn’t exclude another person from
consuming that good or service;
(f) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act; and
(g) “Scheme” means a Government or Government sponsored Scheme.
CHAPTER II
P
RE-LEGISLATIVE REQUIREMENTS
3. For every Bill proposed to be introduced in either House of Parliament and Scheme,
that is to be implemented either by Central Government or by a State Government or jointly,the Ministry of the Government responsible for initiating the Bill or formulating the Schemeshall comply with the following conditions:
(a) the Bill or the Scheme shall disclose the need for and consequences of the
proposed Government action;
(b) the Bill or the scheme shall not be undertaken unless its potential benefits
outweigh its potential costs to the society;
(c) objectives of the Bill or the scheme shall be clearly delineated and chosen so
as to maximize the net benefits to society;
(d) among alternative approaches to any objective being sought by the Bill or
the scheme, the alternative involving the least net cost to society shall be chosen; and
(e) Ministry responsible shall set regulatory priorities with the aim of maximizing
the aggregate net benefits to society, taking into account the condition of the particularConditions tobe fulfilled forBills andSchemes.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 395
industries affected by regulations, the condition of the national economy and other
regulatory actions contemplated for the future.
4. (1) It shall be the duty of the Ministry of the Government, responsible for initiating
a Bill or formulating or implementing a major scheme, to prepare and publish a document tobe called the Legislation Impact Analysis or Scheme Impact Analysis.
(2) Every Legislation Impact Analysis or Scheme Impact Analysis shall contain the
following information—
(a) the objectives and goals of the Bill or major Scheme to be achieved along
with clear measurable or quantifiable outcomes that may be monitored:
Provided that the requirement to list out clear measurable or quantifiable outcomes
that may be monitored shall be applicable only to major Bills or to such Bills only forwhich it is possible to list out clear measurable or quantifiable outcomes;
(b) the potential market failure(s) to be addressed by the Bill or the scheme;
(c) studies that have examined the efficacy of the intervention of the Bill or the
scheme to be undertaken, including international experiences in the implementation ofa similar intervention;
(d) a description of the potential benefits of the Bill or the scheme, including any
beneficial effects that may not be quantified in monetary terms, and the identificationof those likely to receive the benefits;
(e) a description of the potential costs of the Bill or the scheme, including any
adverse effects that cannot be quantified in monetary terms, and the identification ofthose likely to bear the costs;
(f) a comprehensive analysis of all the stakeholders who are likely to be affected
by the proposed intervention;
(g) a determination of the potential net benefits of the Bill or the scheme including
an evaluation of effects that may not be quantified in monetary terms;
(h) a description of alternative approaches that may substantially achieve the
objectives and goals as laid down in clause ( a) at lower cost, together with an analysis
of potential benefit and costs and a brief explanation, wherever required, of the legalreasons why such alternatives, if proposed, may not be adopted.
5. (1) The Central Government shall, within sixty days from the date of commencement
of thisAct, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute a National ConsultativeCommittee.
(2) The National Consultative Committee shall consist of—
(a) the Union Minister of Finance who shall be the Chairperson, ex-officio ;
(b) three members from the House of the People, to be nominated by the Speaker,
Lok Sabha—members ex-officio ;
(c) two members from the Council of the State, to be nominated by the Chairman,
Rajya Sabha—members ex-officio ;
(d) six experts, two from the field of economics, two from the field of law, one
from the field of public policy and one fromthe field of statistics, being an expert insurvey design, to be nominated by the Governmentin such manner, as may beprescribed—members; and
(e) the Chief Economic Adviser to the Government and one Officer from the
Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation not below the rank of JointSecretary to the Government or equivalent— ex-officio members.Impact
analysis of theproposed Billor scheme.
Constitution
of NationalConsultativeCommittee.
(3) The term of the National Consultative Committee shall be three years.
(4) The salary and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of services
of members nominated under clause ( d) of sub-section ( 1) shall be such, as may be prescribed.
6. The National Consultative Committee shall—
(a) specify the procedure and methodology, especially drawing upon
international practices and emerging studies in the field of Cost-Benefit Analysis,which may serve as a guide for the preparation of the Legislation Impact Analysis orthe Scheme Impact Analysis;
(b) within eight months of the commencement of this Act, in consultation with
experts, both national and international, publish a document, detailing the procedureand methodology to serve as a guide in preparation of the Legislation Impact Analysisor the Scheme Impact Analysis;
(c) develop the methodology, procedure and guidelines for Post- Implementation
Assessment Report referred to in section 11 and release a document detailing thesame within two years of the commencement of this Act;
(d) from time-to-time, publish relevant documents and research papers in
collaboration with higher educational institutions, highlighting the advances in thefield which may serve as a guide to the ministries;
(e) provide consultation to the ministry concerned for preparation of the
Legislation Impact Analysis or the Scheme Impact Analysis or Post-ImplementationAssessment Report, as the case may be; and
(f) review such Legislation Impact Analysis or the Scheme Impact Analysis or
the Post-Implementation Assessment Report, as it deems fit, and recommendappropriate changes that may need to be brought about.
7. (1) The National Consultative Committee shall meet at least thrice in a year at such
time and place and shall observe such rules of procedure in regard to the transaction of itsbusiness, as may be prescribed.
(2) The National Consultative Committee may invite such other experts as it may
consider appropriate for the discharge of its functions.
8. (1) The Legislation Impact Analysis shall be laid before both the Houses of Parliament
on the day the related Bill is proposed for introduction in the Parliament and shall be examinedby the concerned Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee to recommend suchchanges to the Legislation Impact Analysis, as it deems appropriate.
(2) The Scheme Impact Analysis shall be laid before both Houses of the Parliament in
a session immediately following the date of release of the Scheme document.
9. (1) Every Bill and scheme shall provide for a sunset provision declaring that the Act
or the scheme shall cease to be operative after completion of the period specified in thatsunset provision.
(2) where the period specified in sunset provision is more than twenty years in case of
an Act, and ten years in case of a scheme, the Bill or scheme shall provide for an explanationfor exceeding the aforesaid time period:
Provided that if any Bill or scheme is to be exempted from the sunset clause, the
President shall after examining the explanation to that effect by the Government, recommendthe introduction of the Bill or implementation of the scheme without sunset clause.Functions ofthe NationalConsultativeCommittee.
Meetings of
the NationalConsultativeCommittee.
Laying of the
legislationImpactAnalysis andthe SchemeImpactAnalysis.
Sunsetting
provision forlegislationsand schemes.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 397
CHAPTER III
REVIEW COMMITTEE
10. (1) The Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute a
Review Committee for every Ministry for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) The Review Committee shall consist of :—
(a) the Minister responsible for the legislation or scheme, Chairperson ex-officio ;
(b) the Secretary of the Ministry responsible for the legislation or scheme,
member ex-officio ;
(c) a representative from the Union Finance Ministry not below the rank of Joint
Secretary, member ex-officio ;
(d) a representative from the Home Ministry not below the rank of Joint Secretary
member ex-officio ;
(e) the Chief Economic Advisor to the Government, member ex-officio ; and
(f) two legal experts, two environmentalists or sustainability experts, two
economists or statisticians or economy experts, two domain experts and one memberfrom the civil society, to be appointed by the Government in such manner as may beprescribed, members.
(3) The Review Committee may invite such other experts (including international
experts) as it may consider appropriate for the discharge of its functions.
(4) The members of the Review Committee, other than ex-officio members, shall have
a term of three years and be eligible for re-nomination only for two consecutive terms.
CHAPTER IV
E
X-POST REVIEW
11. (1) The Review Committee shall undertake Post-Implementation Assessment of
every major Act and major scheme.
(2) The Post-Implementation Assessment shall be conducted every three years after
taking into consideration:—
(i) Legislation Impact Analysis and Scheme Impact Analysis;
(ii) Performance Measurement to assess the results against measurable outcomes
entailed in the Legislative Impact Analysis or Scheme Impact Analysis;
(iii) Impact Assessment Identify the ex-post impact of a major act or scheme,
including the social, economic, environmental, legal and administrative impacts toevaluate the combined costs and benefits of a major act or scheme including the wholerange of social, economic, environmental, legal and administrative considerations;and
(iv) Perception Surveys Involve stakeholder consultation of the perceived impact,
both benefits and costs, of the major acts and schemes under review.
(3) The Review Committee shall complete the Post-Implementation Assessment Report
within one hundred and twenty days from the start of the review process.
(4) The Post-Implementation Assessment Report shall be laid before both the Houses
of the Parliament in a session immediately following the date of its completion.Constitutionof ReviewCommittees.
Post
ImplementationAssessment.
CHAPTER V
MISCELLANEOUS
12. (1) For major schemes already in existence on the day this Act comes into force:—
(a) the concerned ministry shall prepare a Scheme Impact Analysis within
eighteen months from the day this Act comes into force; and
(b) the Review Committee shall conduct a Post-Implementation Assessment
after a period of three years from the day this Act comes into force.
13. (1) The Government may, by notification, make rules to carry out the provisions of
this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.SchemeImpactAnalysis andPost-ImplementationAssessmentof the MajorSchemesalready inexistence.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 399
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
In a Presidential form of Government, the Legislature has ample freedom to initiate a
legislative proposal and the Executive has a very limited role in this regard. Legislaturetherefore, in a Presidential System exercise a corresponding amount of check on the Executivewhich delivers a large degree of stability to the system. The Parliamentary form, on similargrounds, seeks more accountability from the Executive which is an integral part of theLegislature. Laws are a primary means by which the Executive runs about its agenda. However,many a time Bills are passed without adequate deliberation in the Houses. The Bill, firstly,seeks to devise a legislative check on the actions of the Government irrespective of whethera party holds a majority.
Any expenditure incurred by the Government imposes a cost on the economy. Also
known as marginal cost of public funds, it is an opportunity cost that could have beeneffectively utilized elsewhere by other agents in the economy. Empirical estimates put thisfigure to be around 3, implying that for every rupee spent by the Government, there is a costof about three rupees to the economy. When multiplied by the volume of governmentspending in the economy, the impact is gigantic. Therefore, it is necessary to keep anaccountability on such large expenditure – any spending which is not meeting its statedobjectives must be discontinued. The field of cost-benefit analysis has been revolutionaryin this regard. Such a system was kept in place as early as the 1980s in the USA. Similarly, theOECD countries like Australia have a robust mechanism in place to assess the impact ofevery legislation once in place.
The pace of change in today’s world is blinding. This fast-moving world demands an
evolving and agile legislation landscape that caters to the everchanging needs of our societyand economy. The nation cannot have an overhang of outdated legislations that do notimprove governance outcomes, but instead contribute to increasing the legal and socialcosts to society. In this context, we require our laws and schemes to have expiry date (sunsetclause). Such provision will ensure an opportunity re-make laws and schemes that will helpour nation stay up to date on evolving situations of the world.
The present Bill, inter-alia , provides for—
(a) a pre-legislative mechanism to clearly set out objectives of the stated government
intervention, careful consideration of costs and benefits to the society from the proposedlegislation or scheme, all of which must be documented in an Impact Analysis report, and theinsertion of sunset clauses in every scheme and legislation;
(b) a post-implementation mechanism to check whether the government has met its
stated objectives and measurable targets, and the impact the intervention has had on thesociety. Should the government fail to do so in the post-implementation assessment, the actor scheme shall stand repealed or revoked, respectively;
(c) establishment of a National Consultative Committee which will guide the government
in the technical details pertaining to the studies to be conducted for every legislation andscheme and the establishment of a Review Committee under every ministry to carry out thepost-implementation assessment of the legislation and scheme.
The Bill seeks to achieve the above objectives.
N
EW DELHI; SRINIVAS KESINENI
February 23, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 5 of the Bill provides for constitution of a National Consultative Committee to
assist the Government in the pre-legislative process of any legislation or scheme and inpreparation of a guide for the Post-Implementation Assessment Report. It also provides forappointment of experts to the Committee. Clause 10 provides for the constitution of a ReviewCommittee under each ministry to scrutinise the working of major legislations and schemes.The Bill, therefore, if enacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India.It is estimated that a recurring expenditure of about rupees twenty-one crore per annumwould be involved from Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees two crore is likely to be involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Sub-clause ( 1) of clause 13 empowers the Central Government to make rules regarding
the times and places of the meetings of the National Consultative Committee and theprocedure to be followed at such meetings under sub-section ( 1) of section 7 and the
expenditure incurred on the meetings of the National Committee under sub-section ( 3) of
section 7.
The matters in respect of which rules may be made by the Central Government are
matters of procedure and administrative details and it is not practicable to provide for themin the Bill itself. The delegation of legislative power is, therefore, of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 401
BILL NO. 259 OF 2022
A Bill to further amend the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force with immediate effect.
2. In the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, in section 125, after clause (2), the following
clauses shall be inserted, namely:—
“(2A) Notwithstanding anything contained in sections 24 and 25 of the Hindu Marriage
Act, 1955, section 19 of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956, The MuslimWomen (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986, the Indian Divorce Act, 1869:—
(a) the Magistrate may award a lump sum amount for the maintenance as a one-
time settlement in an order after due verification of the assets held by the husband,including the ascertainment of any immovable or movable property possessed by thehusband;
(b) in case the award is in the form of a monthly allowance, the order shall be
duly notified to the employer of the person liable to pay the monthly allowance if theperson is employed and the employers shall be directed to deduct from the salary ofsuch person a sum equivalent to the amount of maintenance ordered by the court;
Explanation.— The employer shall include Government entities under article 12
of the Constitution and the private entities.
(c) the retirement funds of the husband working in an organisation to which the
preceding clause applies shall be used for the purposes of fulfilling the maintenanceaward and the employer after receipt of the order under sub-section (2) shall deposit incourt the details regarding the retirement funds of the employee in question; and
(d) any property, whether movable or immovable, built, bought, or constructed
during the course of marriage shall be equally divided between the two parties to thedivorce.
(2B) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), an aggrieved woman
living in a shared household shall be entitled to interim maintenance without proof ofmarriage.
Explanation.— For the purposes of this sub-section,—
(a) “aggrieved woman” and “shared household” shall have the same meaning
as assigned to them in the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005;and
(b) “interim maintenance” shall be calculated for the aggrieved woman and the
minor children, if any with the help of maintenance professionals appointed on acontractual basis by the court from a pool of eligible professionals, experts in familylaw and finance in accordance with cost of living index:
Provided that if the applicant has moved a petition to seek maintenance under different
laws, the same information shall be communicated by the applicant to the relevant courtsthrough an affidavit, within thirty days of the institution of the petition: Provided furtherthat the Court shall adjust or setoff the amount awarded in the previous proceedings, whiledetermining whether any further amount is to be awarded in the subsequent proceeding:
Provided also that the order passed in the previous proceedings requires any
modification or variation, such modification or variation shall be made in the sameproceeding.”.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of Section125.2 of 1974.
43 of 2005.25 of 1955.
78 of 1956.25 of 1986.4 of 1869.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Constitution makers had incorporated Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP)
with the vision to guide the law-making process in the country. Dr. B.R Ambedkar went on tostate that the DPSP are the heart and soul of the Constitution. Article 39 states that “the stateshall, in particular, direct its policies towards securing that the citizens, men and womenequally, have the right to an adequate means of livelihood, that children are given opportunitiesand facilities to develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity andthat childhood and youth are protected against exploitation and against moral and materialabandonment.”
Further Article 39 reinforces Article 15(3) of the Constitution of India which provides
that: “Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any special provision forwomen and children.” Together the two Articles uphold the rights and subsequent duties ofthe state towards the vulnerable sections of the society.
Presently, a women can claim maintenance under various laws ranging from
Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) and various sections of different personallaws. It is an established and widely acknowledged fact that economic prosperity and womenempowerment go hand-in-hand. Moreover, a nation’s progress is judged as per its ability toenforce contracts. However, seven decades since independence, the women of our countrystill run from pillar to post to seek enforcement of their maintenance contracts.
Across the globe, developed countries have formulated stringent guidelines to ensure
the enforcement of maintenance contracts. For instance, in Australia, the contracts areregistered with the child support register and the amount is automatically deducted from theincome tax installment of the payer. Further in Finland, the maintenance amount is revisedevery year depending on the shift in the cost-of-living index. In India, this can be adopted inrelation to a purchasing index in consonance with the trend of inflation. Therefore, ensuringthat the maintenance contracts are enforced and ensure a sustainable amount to the aggrievedwomen.
By virtue of judicial pronouncements and other steps, rights of women have been
restored but it will become fruitful only when under lying thinking is changed and only ifmaintenance orders are properly enforced. It is imperative that the laws are framed to ensurethe effective enforcement of the contracts, reduce burden of pending cases and ensuresmooth procedure. Only when women, who are the first teachers of a child, get their due, thenation can realise the dream envisioned by the constitution makers, of a just and equitablesociety.
Hence this Bill.
New Delhi; SRINIVAS KESINENI
November 21, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 403
BILL NO. 30 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic substances
(Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force at once.
2. In section 31A of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985,—
(a) in the marginal heading the word “death’’ shall be omitted; and
(b) in sub-section ( 1), the words “or with death” shall be omitted.Short title,
andcommencement.
Amendment
of section31A.61 of 1985.
STA TEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Section 31A was inserted into the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances
Act, 1985 to provide for capital punishment or 30 years of jail for repeat offenders on thediscretion of the judge.
This section of the NDPS Act, 1985 has been of intense inquiry. It places judicial
discretion as the highest form of authority in determining the extent of crimes of repeatedoffenders of drug trafficking. Drug trafficking does not fall into the narrow category ofheinous crimes as stated in Bachan Singh vs. State of Punjab when juxtaposed against
murderers, and thus, capital punishment is constitutionally impermissible and againstArticle 21 of the Constitution of India.
It positions India against the United Nation’s Convention on Psychotropic Substances
of 1971, and United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs andPsychotropic Substances of 1988.
Research pertaining of implications of death penalty show no significant deterrence
of crime/convicts. India has recorded 3,172 cases of drug trafficking in 2014-2022 as against1,257 cases from 2006-2013, thus the insertion of Section 31A(1) has been unable to achievethe goal which it aimed to, deterring repeat offenders.
This section is unconstitutional and against the Right to Life and Liberty, it adds
unnecessary attention to India’s judicial system.
Hence, this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; VISHNU DAYAL RAM
January 16, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 405
BILL NO. 59 OF 2023
A Bill to lay down judicial standards and provide for accountability of Judges of the
Supreme Court or a High Court or a District Court and, establish credible andexpedient mechanism for investigating into individual complaints for misbehaviouror incapacity of a Judge of the Supreme Court or of a High Court and to regulate theprocedure for such investigation, and for the peresentation of an address byParliament to the President for removal of a Judge and for matters connectedtherewith or incidental thereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of Indiaas
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Judicial Accountability Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint:
Provided that different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act and
any reference in any such provision to the commencement of this Act shall be construed asa reference to the coming into force of that provision.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “Assets” includes immovable and movable property;
Explanation .— For the purposes of this clause,—
(i) “immovable property” includes the land and any building or otherShort title and
commencement.
Definitions.
structure attached to the land, and tenancies, lease holds or any other interest
in immovable property;
(ii) “movable property” includes any other property which is not
immovable property as also corporeal and incorporeal property of everydescription and household goods and personal effects of the value of eachitem of more than fifty thousand rupees;
(b) “Chairman” means the Chairman of the Council of States;(c) “Competent Authority” means in relation to,—
(i) a Metropolitan Magistrate, the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate of that
Court;
(ii) a Judges of the District Court, the District Judge of that District Court;
(iii) a District Judge of District Court, the Chief Justice of that High Court;
(iv) a Judge of the High Court, the Chief Justice of that High Court;
(v) the Chief Justice of the High Court, the Chief Justice of India;
(vi) a Judge of the Supreme Court, the Chief Justice of India;
(vii) the Chief Justice of India, the President of India;
(d) “Incapacity” means physical or mental incapacity which is, or is likely to be,
or a permanent character;
(e) “investigation committee” means the investigation committee constituted
under section 22;
(f) “inquiry” means an inquiry for proof of misbehaviour or incapacity;
(g) “Judge” means a Judge of the Supreme Court or of a High Court or a judge of
the District Court and includes the Chief Justice of India and the Chief Justice of a HighCourt;
(h) “judicial standards” means the values of judicial life specified in section 3,
and the Schedule;
(i) “liabilities” includes financial guarantees given and all loans raised from any
bank, financial institution or any other source;
(j) “misbehaviour” means,—
(i) conduct which brings dishonour or disrepute to the judiciary; or
(ii) wilful or persistent failure to perform the duties of a Judge; or
(iii) wilful abuse of judicial office; or
(iv) corruption or lack of integrity which includes delivering judgments for
collateral or extraneous reasons, making demands for consideration in cash orkind for giving judgments or any other action on the part of the Judge which hasthe effect of subverting the administration of justice; or
(v) committing an offence involving moral turpitude; or
(vi)failure to furnish the declaration of assets and liabilities in accordance
with the provisions of this Act; or
(vii) wilfully giving false information in the declaration of assets and
liabilities under this Act; or
(viii) wilful suppression of any material fact, whether such fact relates to
a period before assumption of office, which would have bearing on hisintegrity; or
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 407
(ix) wilful breach of judicial standards;
(k) “notification” means a notification published in the Official Gazette;
(l) “Oversight Committee” means the National Judicial Oversight Committee
established under section 17;
(m) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(n) “Scrutiny Panel” means a panel constituted under sub-section ( 1) or
sub-section (2) of section 11 for the scrutiny of complaints;
(o) “Speaker” means the Speaker of the House of the People.
3. (1) Every Judge shall continue to practice universally accepted values of judicial
life as specified in the Schedule to this Act.
(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provision, no
Judge shall—
(a) contest the election to any office of a club, society or other association or
hold such elective office except in a society or association connected with the law orany court;
(b) have close association or close social interaction with individual members
of the Bar, particularly with those who practice in the same court in which he is aJudge;
(c) permit any member of his immediate family (including spouse, son, daughter,
30son-in-law or daughter-in-law or any other close relative), who is a member of theBar, to appear before him or associated in any manner with a cause to be dealt with byhim;
(d) permit any member of his family, who is a member of the Bar, to use the
residence in which the Judge actually resides or use other facilities provided to theJudge, for professional work of such member;
(e) hear and decide a matter in which a member of his family, or his close relative
or a friend is concerned;
(f) enter into public debate or express his views in public on political matters or
on matters which are pending or are likely to arise for judicial determination by him:
Provided that nothing contained in this clause shall apply to,—
(i) the views expressed by a Judge in his individual capacity on issues of
public interest (other than as a Judge) during discussion in private forum oracademic forum so as not to affect his functioning as a Judge;
(ii) the views expressed by a Judge relating to administration of court or
its efficient functioning;
(g) make unwarranted comments against conduct of any Constitutional or
statutory authority or statutory bodies or statutory institutions or any chairperson ormember or officer thereof, in general, or at the time of hearing matters pending or likelyto arise for judicial determinations;
(h) give interview, to the media in relation to any of his judgment delivered, or
order made, or direction issued, by him, in any case adjudicated by him;
(i) accept gifts or hospitality except from his relatives;
(j) hear and decide a matter in which a company or society or trust in which he
holds or any member of his family holds shares or interest, unless he has disclosed hisJudicialstandards.
such holding or interest, and no objection to his hearing and deciding the matter is
raised;
(k) speculate in securities or indulge in insider trading in securities;
(l) engage, directly or indirectly, in trade or business, either by himself or in
association with any other person:
Provided that the publication of a legal treatise or any activity in the nature of a
hobby shall not be construed as trade or business for the purpose of this clause;
(m) seek any financial benefit in the form of a perquisite or privilege attached to
his office unless it is clearly available or admissible;
(n) hold membership in any organisation that practices invidious discrimination
on the basis of religion or race or caste or sex or place of birth;
(o) have bias in his judicial work or judgments on the basis of religion or race or
caste or sex or place of birth.
Explanation. —For the purposes of this sub-section, “relative” means—
(i) spouse of the Judge;
(ii) brother or sister of the Judge;
(iii) brother or sister of the spouse of the Judge;
(iv) brother or sister of either of the parents of the Judge;
(v) any lineal ascendant or descendant of the Judge;
(vi) any lineal ascendant or descendant of the spouse of the Judge;
spouse of the person referred to in clauses ( ii) to ( vi).
4. (1) Every Judge shall make a declaration of his assets and liabilities in the manner as
provided by or under this Act.
(2) A Judge shall, within thirty days from the date on which he makes and subscribes
an oath or affirmation to enter upon his office, furnish to the competent authority theinformation relating to—
(a) the assets of which he, his spouse, his blood relatives and dependent children
are, jointly or severally, owners or beneficiaries;
(b) his liabilities and that of his spouse, his blood relatives and dependent
children.
(3) A Judge holding his office as such, at the time of the commencement of this
Act, shall furnish information relating to such assets and liabilities, as referred to insub-section ( 2) to the competent authority within thirty days of the coming into force of this
Act.
(4) Every Judge shall file with the competent authority, on or before the 31st July of
every year, an annual return of his assets and liabilities, as on the 31st March of that year asreferred to in sub-section (2).
(5) The information under sub-section (2) or sub-section (3) and annual return under
sub-section (4) shall be furnished in such form and in such manner, as may be prescribed.
Explanation. — For the purposes of this section,
(a) “dependent children” means sons and daughters who have no separate
means of earning and are wholly dependent on the Judge for their livelihood.
(b) “blood relation” means all relatives which are related by full blood or half
blood irrespective of the fact whether he or she have separate means of earning andare wholly independent on the Judge for their livelihood.Declaration ofassets andliabilities.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 409
5. The competent authority shall exhibit the document or information in relation to a
declaration of assets and liabilities of Judges,—
(a) in the case of Metropolitan Magistrates and Judges of the District Courts, on
the website of the District Court in which such Metropolitan Magistrates and Judgesare serving;
(b) in the case of Judges and Chief Justices of the High Courts, on the website
of the High Court in which such Judges and Chief Justices are serving;
(c) in the case of Judges of the Supreme Court and Chief Justice of India, on the
website of the Supreme Court.
6. The competent authority shall keep the documents or information forms containing
the details of the assets and liabilities and other particulars in relation thereto filed by theJudges in its safe custody for such period as may be decided by the Oversight Committee.
7. Any person making an allegation of misbehaviour or incapacity in respect of a Judge
may file a complaint in this regard to the Oversight Committee.
8. The complaint under section 7 shall—
(a) be in such form and filed in such manner as may be prescribed;
(b) set forth particulars of the misbehaviour or incapacity which is the subject
matter of allegation;
(c) be verified at the foot of the complaint by the complainant and shall specify,
by reference to the numbered paragraphs of the complaint, what he verifies of his ownknowledge and what he verifies upon information and shall refer to the source of theinformation.
9. Save as otherwise provided under this Act, the Oversight Committee shall refer all
such complaints to the appropriate Scrutiny Panel constituted under relevant sections ofthis act for scrutiny.
10. There shall be constituted a panel to be called “Complaints Scrutiny Panel” in the
Supreme Court and in every High Court to scrutinise the complaints received against a Judgeunder this Act.
11. (1) The Scrutiny Panel in the Supreme Court shall consist of a former Chief Justice
of India and two Judges of the Supreme Court to be nominated by the Chief Justice of India.
(2) The Scrutiny Panel in every High Court shall consist of a former Chief Justice of
that High Court and two Judges of that High Court to be nominated by the Chief Justice ofthat High Court.
12. (1) If the Scrutiny Panel, after scrutiny of the complaint referred to it for scrutiny
under section 9, and after making scrutiny of the complaint, as it deems appropriate, issatisfied that—
(a) there are sufficient grounds for proceeding against the Judge, it shall, after
recording reasons therefore, submit a report on its findings to the Oversight Committeefor making inquiry against the Judge in accordance with the provisions15 of this Act;
(b) the complaint is frivolous or vexatious, or, is not made in good faith, or there
are not sufficient grounds for inquiring into the complaint, or the complaint relatesonly to the merits of the judgment or a procedural order, and, then, it shall after recordingreasons therefore submit a report on its findings to the Oversight Committee for notproceeding with the complaint and treating the matter as closed.
(2) The scrutiny of complaints under this section by the Scrutiny Panel shall be held in
camera.Makingavailabledocument orinformation inrelation to adeclaration ofassets andliabilities ofJudges onwebsite.
Maintenance
of records.
Complaints.
Manner of
making ofcomplaint.
Reference to
ScrutinyPanel.
Constitution
of Scrutinypanel.
Composition
of Scrutinypanel.
Functions of
Scrutinypanel.
(3) The Scrutiny Panel shall submit its report under clause ( a) or clause ( b) of
sub- section (1), to the Oversight Committee in this behalf within a maximum period of threemonths from the date of receipt of the complaint from the Oversight Committee.
13. Save as otherwise provided in this Act, the Scrutiny Panel shall have power to
regulate its own procedure in scrutinising the complaints referred to it for scrutiny undersection 9.
14. The Scrutiny Panel shall, while scrutinising the complaints forwarded to it for
scrutiny under section 9, have all the powers of a civil court trying a suit under the Code ofCivil Procedure, 1908 and in particular, in respect of the following matters, namely:—
(a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person from any part of
India and examining him on oath;
(b) requiring the discovery and production of any document;
(c) receiving evidence on affidavits;
(d) requisitioning any public record or copy thereof from any court or office;
(e) issuing commissions for the examination of witnesses or other documents;
and
(f) any other matter which may be prescribed.
15. (1) The Chief Justice of India shall, determine the nature and categories
of the officers and other employees required to assist the Scrutiny Panel referred to insub-section ( 1) of section 11 in the discharge of its functions andprovide the Scrutiny Panel
with such officers and other employees as he may think fit.
(2) The Chief Justice of the High Court shall, determine the nature and categories of
the officers and other employees required to assist the Scrutiny Panel referred to insub-section ( 2) of section 11 in the discharge of its functions and provide the Scrutiny Panel
with such officers and other employees as he may think fit.
16. If the Scrutiny Panel is of the opinion that a complaint was filed frivolously or
vexatiously or only with a view to scandalise or intimidate a Judge, it may refer the case tothe Oversight Committee for further action.
17. With effect from such date as the Central Government may, by notification, appoint,
there shall be established a National Judicial Oversight Committee.
18. (1) The National Judicial Oversight Committee shall consist of the following,
namely:—
(a) a retired Chief Justice of India appointed by the President after ascertaining
the views of the Chief Justice of India—Chairperson
(b) a Judge of the Supreme Court nominated by the Chief Justice of India—
Member;
(c) the Chief Justice of a High Court nominated by the Chief Justice of India—
Member;
(d) the Attorney-General for India — ex officio Member;
(e) an eminent jurist nominated by the President—Member.
Provided that—
(i) where the allegations are against a Judge of the Supreme Court, who is
a member of the Oversight Committee, then, the Chief Justice of India shallnominate another Judge of the Supreme Court in his place as a member of thatcommittee; orProcedure ofScrutinypanel.
Power relating
to scrutiny ofcomplaints.
Provision for
officers andotheremployees forScrutinypanel.
Provision
regardingfrivolous andvexatiouscomplaints.
Establishment
of OversightCommittee.
Composition
of OversightCommittee.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 411
(ii) where the allegations are against the Chief Justice of a High Court,
who is a member of the Oversight Committee, then, the Chief Justice of Indiashall nominate a Chief Justice of another High Court in his place as a member ofthat committee.
(2) After the commencement of the proceedings relating to a complaint against a
Judge,—
(a) if any change in the composition of the Oversight Committee arises due to
elevation of a member of the Oversight Committee, as the Chief Justice of India or aJudge of the Supreme Court, as the case may be; or
(b) if any change arises in the composition of the Oversight Committee due to
refusal or retirement or resignation or any other reason, the proceedings of the OversightCommittee shall continue from the stage from which it was pending before such changeand the Chairperson of the Oversight Committee shall make such incidental changes,as he deems necessary, to continue the proceedings.
19. The Oversight Committee shall, within three months of the receipt of a complaint
relating to misbehaviour of —
(a) an individual Judge of the Supreme Court or Chief Justice of a High Court,
refer the complaint, to the Scrutiny Panel of the Supreme Court to scrutinise and reportthereon;
(b) an individual Judge of a High Court, refer the complaint, to the Scrutiny
Panel of the High Court in which such Judge is acting as such, to scrutinise and reportthereon.
20. The Oversight Committee shall maintain a record of the complaints referred to the
Scrutiny Panel.
21. A complaint against the Chief Justice of India shall not be referred to the Scrutiny
Panel for scrutiny but shall be scrutinised by the Oversight Committee.
22. (1) The Oversight Committee, shall for the purpose of inquiry for misbehaviour by
a Judge, constitute an investigation committee (by whatever name called) to investigate intothe complaint in respect of which the Scrutiny Panel has recommended in its report underclause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 12 for making inquiry against the Judge in accordancewith the provisions of this Act.
(2) The composition and tenure of the investigation committee shall be such as may
be decided by the Oversight Committee:
Provided that the number of the investigation committees, in no case, at a time, shall
exceed three:
Provided further that the Oversight Committee may, having regard to the nature of
misbehaviour of a Judge, may constitute different investigation committees for inquiry intodifferent complaints.
23. The Oversight Committee, shall, for the purpose of proceedings under this Act and
the investigation committee, while conducting any investigation under this Chapter, have allthe powers of a civil court while trying a suit under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 and inparticular, in respect of the following matters, namely:—Forwarding ofcomplaintrelating tomisbehaviourto ScrutinyPanel.
Records of
complaintsforwarded toScrutinyPanel.
Certain
complaintsnot to beforwarded toScrutinyPanel.
Investigation
byinvestigationcommittee.
Powers of
OversightCommitteeandinvestigationcommittee.
(a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person from any part of
India and examining him on oath;
(b) requiring the discovery and production of any document;
(c) receiving evidence on affidavits;
(d) requisitioning any public record or copy thereof from any court or office;
(e) issuing commissions for the examination of witnesses or other documents;
and
(f) any other matter which may be prescribed.
24. (1) If the investigation committee has reason to believe that any documents which,
in its opinion, will be useful for, or relevant to, any preliminary investigation or inquiry, aresecreted in any place, it may request the oversight committee to authorise any officersubordinate to it, or any officer of an agency referred as provided in section 25, to search forand to seize such documents.
(2) If the investigation committee is satisfied that any document seized under
sub-section ( 1) would be evidence for the purpose of any investigation and that it would be
necessary to retain the original document in its custody, it may so retain the said documenttill the completion of such investigation or retain a copy of such document, as it may deem fit.
The provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, relating to searches shall, so
far as may be, apply to searches under this section subject to the modification thatsub-section ( 5) of section 165 of the said Code shall have effect as if, for the word “Magistrate”,
wherever it occurs, the words “investigation”.
25. The investigation committee shall be entitled to make a request to the Oversight
Committee for assistance to it and the Oversight Committee may invoke its powers in this
behalf under section 38 of this Act.
26. If a Judge, to whom notice is issued by the investigation committee, referred to in
section 22, refuses to appear before it or does not co-operate with it in conductinginvestigation, then, the investigation committee may proceed ex parte.
27. The investigation committee may cause investigation into any act or conduct of
any person, other than the Judge concerned, in so far as it considers necessary so to do forthe purpose of its investigation into any allegations made against a Judge and shall givesuch person a reasonable opportunity of being heard and to produce evidence in his defence.
28. The investigation committee, after completion of the inquiry in respect of a
complaint, shall submit its findings to the Oversight Committee.
29. (1) The investigation committee shall frame definite charges against the Judge on
the basis of which the inquiry is proposed to be held.
(2) Every such inquiry shall be conducted in camera by the investigation committee.
(3) Charges framed under sub-section (1) together with the statement of grounds on
which each such charge is based shall be communicated to the Judge and he shall be givena reasonable opportunity of presenting a written statement of defence within such time asmay be specified by the investigation committee.
(4) The investigation committee shall hold every such inquiry as expeditiously as
possible and in any case complete the inquiry within a period of six months from the date ofreceipt of the complaint:Search andseizure byinvestigationcommittee.
Assistance to
investigationcommittee byGovernmentagencies.
Ex-parte
Investigationin certaincases.
Investigation
into act orconduct ofcertain otherpersons incertain cases.
Submission of
report byinvestigationcommittee.
Procedure in
inquiries byinvestigationcommittee.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 413
Provided that the Oversight Committee, for reasons to be recorded in writing, may
extend the period for completion of the inquiry by a further period of six months.
30. Save as otherwise provided, the investigation committee shall have power to
regulate its own procedure in making the inquiry and shall give reasonable opportunity tothe Judge of cross examining witnesses, adducing evidence and of being heard in his defence.
31. The Central Government may, if requested by the investigation committee, appoint
an advocate to conduct the cases against the Judge.
32. (1) The Oversight Committee shall, forthe purpose of performing its functions
underthis Act, appoint a Secretary and such other officers and employees possessing suchqualifications, as the Presidentmay determine, fromtime to time, in consultation with theOversight Committee.
(2) The terms and conditions of service of the Secretary, officers and employees
referred to in sub-section (1) shall be such as the President may determine, from time to time,in consultation with the Oversight Committee.
(3) In the discharge of their functions under this Act, the Secretary, the officers and
employees referred to in sub-section (1) shall be subject to the administrative control anddirection of the Oversight Committee.
(4) The Oversight Committee shall provide such number of its officers and other
employees to assist the investigation committee as the Oversight Committee considersappropriate having regard to the nature of investigation in a case.
33. During the pendency of the inquiry by the investigation committee, the Oversight
Committee may recommend stoppage of assigning judicial work including cases assigned tothe Judge concerned if it appears to the Oversight Committee that it is necessary in theinterest of fair and impartial scrutiny of complaints or investigation or inquiry.
34. (1) If the Oversight Committee on receipt of the report from the investigation
committee is satisfied that—
(a) no charges have been proved, it shall dismiss the complaint and matter be
closed and no further action shall be taken against the Judge and the complainantshall be informed accordingly;
(b) all or any of the charges have been proved but the Oversight Committee is
of the opinion that the charges proved do not warrant removal of the Judge, it may, byorder, issue advisories or warnings.
(2) Without prejudice to the provisions contained in sub-section (1), if the Oversight
Committee, on receipt of the report from the investigation committee is satisfied that therehas been a prima facie commission of any offence under any law for the time being in forceby a Judge, it may recommend to the Central Government for prosecution of the Judge inaccordance with the law for the time being in force.
(3) In a case where an inquiry or investigation against the Judge has been initiated
and such Judge has demitted office during such inquiry or investigation, such inquiry orinvestigation may be continued if the Oversight Committee is of the opinion that themisbehaviour is serious in nature and requires to be inquired into or investigated and theOversight Committee may after conclusion of inquiry forward its findings to the CentralGovernment to take further action in the matter under relevant law for the time being in force.Investigationcommittee tohave power toregulate itsownprocedure.
Central
Governmentto appoint anadvocate toconduct casesagainst Judge.
Staff of
OversightCommittee.
Stoppage of
assigningjudicial workin certaincases.
Procedure on
receipt ofreport ofinvestigationcommittee.
35. If the Oversight Committee is satisfied that all or any of the charges of misbehaviour
or incapacity of a Judge have been proved and that they are of serious nature warranting hisremoval, it shall request the judge to voluntarily resign.
36. If the Scrutiny Panel refers a case to the Oversight Committee under section 16,
the Oversight Committee shall consider the matter further and if it concurs with the conclusionof the Scrutiny Panel, it may authorise the filing of a criminal complaint against the originalcomplainant before a competent court.
37. All proceedings under this Act shall be deemed to be judicial proceedings within
the meaningof sections 193 and 228 of the Indian Penal Code, and the Oversight Committeeshall be deemed to be a civil court for the purposes of section 195 and Chapter XXVI of theCode of Criminal Procedure Act, 1973.
38. The Oversight Committee shall be entitled to take assistance of such officers of
the Central Government or State Government or any agency thereof or authority as it deemsfit.
39. Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force,
the complainant and every person who participates in the scrutiny or investigation orinquiry as a witness or as a legal practitioner or in any other capacity, whether or not heseeks confidentiality about his name, shall undertake to the Oversight Committee or ScrutinyPanel or investigation committee that he shall not reveal his own name, the name of theJudge complained against, the contents of the complaint or any of the documents orproceedings to anybody else including the media without the prior written approval of theOversight Committee:
Provided that the Oversight Committee may, if it considers appropriate, authorise any
person to apprise the media or press in respect of matters relating to complaint, scrutiny orinvestigation or inquiry, as the case may be.
40. The Oversight Committee or the Scrutiny Panel or investigation committee may, at
the request of a complainant, direct that the complainant be accorded such protection, as itdeems appropriate, including keeping his identity confidential, from every body and alsothe Judge against whom the complaint is made.
41. After the commencement of scrutiny of complaints under this Act, no action for
contempt of court shall lie or shall be proceeded with in respect of the allegations, which arethe subject matter of the investigation or inquiry.
42. Any scrutiny, investigation or inquiry pending before the Scrutiny Panel or
investigation committee or Oversight Committee shall not affect the criminal liability inrespect of such allegations which are the subject matter of the investigation or inquiry.
43. Notwithstanding anything contained in the Right to Information Act, 2005 or any
other law for the time being in force, all papers, documents and records of proceedingsrelated to a complaint, preliminary investigation and inquiry shall be confidential and shallnot be disclosed by any person in any proceeding except as directed by the OversightCommittee:
Provided that the findings of the investigation committee and the orders passed by
the Oversight Committee under clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 34 shall be madepublic.Advice toPresident forremoval ofJudge.
Filing of
complaintagainstcomplainantin certaincases.
Proceedings
beforeOversightCommittee tobe judicialproceedings.
Power to call
for assistance.
Confidentiality
in complaintprocedure.2 of 1974.
Keeping
identity ofcomplainantconfidential.
No action for
contempt tolie in certaincases.
Investigation
and Inquiry byOversightCommitteenot to affectcriminalliability.
All records,
documents,etc., relatedto complaint,scrutiny,investigationand inquiry tobeconfidential.22 of 2005.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 415
44. No suit, prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie against the Chairperson or
any member of the Oversight Committee, Scrutiny Panel, investigation committee or againstany officer or employee, agency or person engaged by such committees or panel for thepurpose of conducting scrutiny or investigation or inquiry in respect of anything which isin good faith done or intended to be done under this Act or the rules made thereunder.
45. The President, on receipt of advice under section 35, shall cause the findings of
the Oversight Committee along with the accompanying materials to be laid before bothHouses of Parliament.
46. On laying of the advice of the Oversight Committee along with the accompanying
material, the Central Government may move a motion in either House of Parliament for takingup the said advice for consideration by the House.
47. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in section 45 or section 46, if notice is
given of a motion for presenting an address to the President praying for the removal of aJudge signed,—
(a) in the case of a notice given in the House of the People, by not less than one
hundred members of that House;
(b) in the case of a notice given in the Council of States, by not less than fifty
members of that Council, then, the Speaker or, as the case maybe, the Chairman may,after consulting such persons, if any, as he thinks fit and after considering suchmaterials, if any, as may be available to him, either admit the motion or refuse to admitthe same.
(2) If the motion referred to in sub-section (1) is admitted, the Speaker or, as the case
may be, the Chairman shall keep the motion pending and the matter shall be referred to theOversight Committee for constitution of an investigation committee under section 22.
(3) The Oversight Committee, after receipt of reference under sub-section ( 2), constitute
an investigation committee under section 22 and the investigation committee shall conductan inquiry in accordance with the provisions contained under Chapter VI and submit itsreport to the Oversight Committee for being submitted to the Speaker or Chairman, as thecase may be, for consideration.
(4) Where it is alleged that a Judge is unable to discharge the duties of his office
efficiently due to any physical or mental incapacity and the allegation is denied, theinvestigation committee may arrange for the medical examination of the Judge by suchMedical Board as may be appointed for the purpose by the Speaker or, as the case may be,the Chairman.
(5) The Medical Board shall undertake such medical examination of the Judge as may
be considered necessary and submit a report to the investigation committee stating thereinwhether the incapacity is such as to render the Judge unfit to continue in office.
(6) If the Judge refuses to undergo medical examination considered necessary by the
Medical Board, the Board shall submit a report to the investigation committee statingtherein the examination which the Judge has refused to undergo, and the investigationcommittee may, on receipt of such report, presume that the Judge suffers from such physicalor mental incapacity as is alleged in the motion referred to in sub-section (1).
48. (1) If the report of the investigation committee contains a finding that the Judge is
not guilty of any misbehaviour or does not suffer from any incapacity, then, no further stepsshall be taken in either House of Parliament in relation to the report and the motion pendingin the House or the Houses of Parliament shall not be proceeded with.
(2) If the report of the investigation committee contains a finding that the Judge is
guilty of any misbehaviour or suffers from any incapacity, then, the motion referred to inProtection ofaction takenin good faith.
Laying of
advice ofOversightCommitteebeforeParliament.
Motion for
removal of aJudge.
Investigation
intomisbehaviouror incapacityof Judge byinvestigationcommittee forremoval ofJudges.
Consideration
of report andprocedure forpresentationof an addressfor removalof Judge.
section 46 shall together with the report of the investigation committee, be taken up for
consideration by the House or the Houses of Parliament in which it is pending.
49. If the motion is adopted by each House of Parliament in accordance with the
provisions of clause (4) of article 124 or, as the case may be, in accordance with that clauseread with article 218 of the Constitution, then, the misbehaviour or incapacity of the Judgeshall be deemed to have been proved and an address praying for the removal of the Judgeshall be presented in the prescribed manner to the President by each House of Parliament inthe same session in which the motion has been adopted.
50. (1) There shall be constituted a Joint Committee of both Houses of Parliament in
accordance with the provisions hereinafter contained for the purpose of making rules tocarry out the purposes of this Act.
(2) The Joint Committee shall consist of fifteen members of whom ten shall be
nominated by the Speaker and five shall be nominated by the Chairman.
(3) The Joint Committee shall elect its own Chairman and shall have power to regulate
its own procedure.
(4) Without prejudice to the generality of the provisions of sub-section (1), the Joint
Committee may make rules to provide for the following, among other matters, namely:—
(a) the manner of presentation of an address to the President for the removal of
a Judge;
(b) the manner of transmission of a motion adopted in one House to the other
House of Parliament;
(c) the travelling and other allowances payable to the members of the Joint
Committee and the witnesses who may be required to attend such Committee;
(d) the facilities which may be accorded to the Judge for defending himself;
(e) any other matter which has to be, or may be, provided for by rules or in
respect of which provision is, in the opinion of the Joint Committee, necessary.
Any rules made under this section shall not take effect until they are approved by
each House of Parliament and are published in the Official Gazette, and such publication ofthe rules shall be conclusive proof that they have been duly made.
51. (1) Whoever intentionally insults, or causes any interruption, to the Scrutiny
Panel or investigation committee or Oversight Committee while the Oversight Committee orScrutiny Panel or investigation committee or any of their members is doing scrutiny orconducting any investigation or inquiry under this Act, shall be punished with simpleimprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine, or with both.
(2) The provisions of sub-section (2) of section 199 of the Code of Criminal
Procedure, 1973 shall apply in relation to an offence referred to in sub-section ( 1) as they
apply in relation to an offence referred to in sub-section (2) of the said section 199, subjectto the modification that no complaint in respect of such offence shall be made by the PublicProsecutor except with the previous sanction of the Oversight Committee.
52. If any complainant or other person, who participates in the scrutiny or investigation
or inquiry as a witness or as a lawyer or in any other capacity, contravenes the provisions ofsection 39 or section 40 or section 43, shall be liable for punishment with simpleimprisonmentfor a term which may extend to one month, or with fine which may extend tofive hundred rupees, or with both.
53. When any such offence as is describedin sub-section (1) of section 51 is committed,
in the view, or, in the presence, of the Oversight Committee, then the said OversightCommittee, may cause the offender to be detained in custody and may at any time on thesame day take cognizance of the offence and after giving the offender a reasonableMotion ofremoval of aJudge.
Power of
JointCommittee tomake rules.
Intentional
insult orinterruption toOver-sightCommittee.
Penalty for
violation ofconfidentialityin complaintprocedure.
Power of
OversightCommittee totry certaincases.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 417
opportunity of showing cause as to why he should not be punished under this section, try
such offender summarily so far as may be in accordance with the procedure specified forsummary trials under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, and sentence him to simpleimprisonment for a term which may extend to one month, or with fine which may extend tofive hundred rupees, or with both.
54. (1) Any person who makes a complaint which is found, after following the
procedure under this Act to be frivolous or vexatious or made with an intent to scandalise orintimidate the Judge against whom such complaint is filed, shall be punishable with simpleimprisonment which may extend to one year and also with fine which may extend to fiftythousand rupees.
(2) The provisions of this section shall have effect notwithstanding anything contained
in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.
(a) No suit, prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie against the complaint
under this section in respect of anything which is done in good faith or intended to bedone under this Act.
55. (1) Where an offence under this Act has been committed by a company, every
person who at the time the offence was committed was in charge of, and was responsible to,the company for the conduct of the business of the company, as well as the company, shallbe deemed to be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against andpunished accordingly:
Provided that where a company has different establishments or branches or different
units in any establishment or branch, the concerned Head or the person in-charge of suchestablishment, branch or unit nominated by the company as responsible shall be liable forcontravention in respect of such establishment, branch or unit:
Provided further that nothing contained in this sub-section shall render any such
person liable to any punishment provided in this Act, if he proves that the offence wascommitted without his knowledge or that he exercised all due diligence to prevent thecommission of such offence.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), where an offence under
this Act has been committed by a company and it is proved that the offence has beencommitted with the consent or connivance of or is attributable to any neglect on the part of,any director, manager, secretary or other officer of the company, such director, manager,secretary or other officer shall also be deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall be liableto be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
Explanation .— For the purpose of this section,—
(a) ‘‘company” means any body corporate and includes a firm or other association of
individuals; and
(b) “director”, in relation to a firm, means a partner in the firm.
56. (1) Where an offence under this Act has been committed by a society or trust,
every person who at the time the offence was committed was in charge of, and was responsibleto, the society or trust for the conduct of the business of the society or the trust, as well asthe society or trust, shall be deemed to be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to beproceeded against and punished accordingly:
Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section shall render any such person
liable to any punishment provided in this Act, if he proves that the offence was committedwithout his knowledge or that he exercised all due diligence to prevent the commission ofsuch offence.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section ( 1), where any offence under
this Act has been committed by a society or trust and it is proved that the offence has beenPunishmentfor frivolousand vexatiouscomplaints.
Offences by
companies.
Offences by
societies ortrusts.
committed with the consent or connivance of, or is attributable to, any neglect on the part of
any director, manager, secretary, trustee or other officer of the society or trust, such director,manager, secretary, trustee or other officer shall also be deemed to be guilty of that offenceand shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
Explanation .— For the purpose of this section,—
(a) “society” means any body corporate registered under the Societies
Registration Act, 1860 and, “trust” means any body registered under the Indian TrustsAct, 1882;
(b) “director”, in relation to a society or trust, means a member of its governing
board other than an ex officio member representing the interests of the Central or StateGovernment or the appropriate statutory authority.
57. Any person convicted on a trial held under sub-section ( 1) of section 54 may,
notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, appeal,within sixty days of order of such conviction, to the Supreme Court.
58. The Central Government may make rules, in consultation with the Chief Justice of
India, to carry out the provisions of this Act.
(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, rules
made under this section may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:—
(a) the form and manner in which, information is to be furnished or, annual
return to be filed, under section 4;
(b) the form and manner in which complaint shall be filed under section 8;
(c) other matters in respect of which the Scrutiny Panel shall, for the purpose of
scrutiny of complaint, have powers of a civil court under section 14;
(d) other matters in respect of which the Oversight Committee shall, for the
purpose of inquiry or investigation of complaint have powers of a civil court underclause ( f) of section 23;
(e) any other matter which is required to be, or may be, specified by rules or in
respect of which provision is to be made by rules.
(3) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament while it is in session, for a total period of thirty dayswhich may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, beforethe expiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessionsaforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both Houses agreethat the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modifiedform or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification orannulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under thatrule.
59. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, after consultation with the Chief Justice of India, by an order published inthe Official Gazette, make such provisions, not inconsistent with the provisions of this Actas appear to it to be necessary or expedient for removing the difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made after the expiry of a period of three years
from the date of commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall, as soon as may be after it is made, be
laid before each House of Parliament.
60. (1) The Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968 is hereby repealed.Appeal to
SupremeCourt.
Power of
CentralGovernmentto make rules.
Power to
removedifficulties.
Repeal and
saving.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 419
(2) Notwithstanding the repeal of the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968 (hereinafter referred
to as the repealed Act) the rules made by the Joint Committee under section 7 of the repealedAct shall continue to be in force until rules are framed under section 49 of this Act.
(3) Notwithstanding such repeal, anything done or any action taken or purported to
have been done or taken including any order or notice made or issued or any inquiryinitiated under the repealed Act shall, in so far as it is not inconsistent with the provisions ofthis Act, be deemed to have been done or taken or initiated under the correspondingprovisions of this Act.
(4) The mention of particular matters in sub-sections (2) and (3) shall not be held to
prejudice or affect the general application of section 6 of the General Clauses Act, 1897 withregard to the effect of repeal.
THE SCHEDULE
[See section 3(1)]
JUDICIAL STANDARDS
1. Norms, including punctualityand commitment to work, guidelines and conventions
essential for the conduct and behaviour of Judges, being pre-requisite for anindependent, strong and respected judiciary, having integrity and detachment andimpartial administration of justice as reflected in the Restatement of Values alreadyadopted by the Conference of Chief Justices held in 1999 shall be practised byevery Judge.
2. All times be conscious that he is under the public gaze and not do any act or
omission which is unbecoming of the high office he occupies and the public esteemin which that office is held.
3. A degree of aloofness consistent with the dignity of his office shall be practised by
every Judge.
4. Judgments should speak for themselves.5. A judge shall refer to all the points raised by counsel in the arguments.6. The judge shall correctly record on the docket what transpires in a proceeding on
any given day.
7. If anyone attempts to communicate with a judge regarding the merits of any matter
that is pending before him when the court is not in session, the judge shall report itto the Competent Authority.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 421
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The judicial system in any country is an independent and impartial set up in any
nation to remedy injustice. Justice is declared to be blind and therefore, it is on the judges todecide how to provide justice, keeping in mind that justice should be rendered to each andevery citizen of the nation. Therefore, there comes the need to hold these judges to beaccountable for their verdicts as it is the decision taken by the judges that decide the fate ofthe parties involved in a case being heard by the court.
The Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968 was enacted with a view to lay down a procedure for
removal, for proved misbehaviour or incapacity, of Judges of the High Courts and theSupreme Court by way of address of the Houses of Parliament to the President. There is,however, no legal provision at present for dealing with complaints filed by the public against
Judges of the High Courts and the Supreme Court. The need for a statutory mechanism toaddress complaints of the public in this regard has been felt to bring greater transparency inthe judiciary.
The Full Court meeting of Supreme Court of India on 7 May, 1997 had adopted “the
Restatement of Values of Judicial Life”. The above Restatement lays down certain judicialstandards which are to be followed by the Judges of the Supreme Court and the HighCourts. However, this Restatement of V alues of Judicial Life does not have any legal authorityand cannot be enforced. There is also no legal provision at present that requires Judges ofthe Supreme Court and High Courts to declare their assets and liabilities.
In the year 2012, a Government Bill, namely, “The Judicial Standards and Accountability
Bill, 2010” as passed by Lok Sabha, sought to lay judicial standards and provide foraccountability of judges, and establish credible and expedient mechanism for investigatinginto individual complaints for misbehaviour or incapacity of a Judge of the Supreme Courtor of a High Court. However, the Bill could not be taken up for discussion in the Rajya Sabhaand the bill was lapsed.
Accountability is declared to be the sine qua non of any democratic nation as it
secures the rights provided to the citizens and delivers justice that is meant to be equal forall. It is true that the judiciary is an independent body and it does have the authority todecide on its own way over a case. But the decisions that are made subsequently affect thepublic at large and therefore the judges should be held accountable for the decisions theymake. Therefore, in order to regulate its function and promote impartiality among the judgeswhile making a decision, the judiciary must strike a balance.
It is, therefore, necessary that the Central Government should enact the Judicial
Accountability Bill and the proposed Bill would strengthen the institution of judiciary inIndia by making it more accountable thereby increasing the confidence of the public in theinstitution.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SUDHEER GUPTA
December 23, 2023.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 17 of the Bill provides for establishment of National Judicial Oversight Committee
comprising of a retired Chief Justice of India as the Chairperson, a Judge of the SupremeCourt and the Chief Justice of a High Court to be nominated by the Chief Justice of India andthe Attorney-General of India and an eminent person to be nominated by the President asmembers.
Clause 31 of the Bill empowers the Central Government, if requested by the investigation
committee, to appoint an advocate to conduct the cases against the Judge.
Clause 32 of the Bill provides for appointment of a Secretary and such other officers
and employees as the President may determine, from time to time, in consultation with theOversight Committee.
The expenditure on account of the aforesaid provisions would be negligible. At this
stage, it is not practicable to make an estimate of expenditure likely to be involved in theupcoming financial years, both recurring and non-recurring. However, the expenditure wouldbe met from the Consolidated Fund of India.
——————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Sub-clause (1) of clause 58 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules,
in consultation with the Chief Justice of India, to carry out the provisions of the proposedlegislation.
Sub-clause (2) of clause 58 specifies the matters in respect of which such rules may be
made. These matters, inter alia, include:
(i) the form in which the information relating to assets and liabilities is to be furnished
by Judges and the form for filing annual return by Judges regarding their assets andliabilities;
(ii) the form and manner in which a complaint is to be filed;
(iii) other matters in respect of which the Scrutiny Panel and the Oversight Committee
shall have powers of a civil court; and
(iv) any other matter which is required to be or may be prescribed for the purposes of
the proposed legislation.
The rules made by the Central Government are to be laid before each House of
Parliament.
The matters in respect of which rules may be made in accordance with the aforesaid
provisions of the Bill are matters of procedure and detail and it is not practicable to providefor them in the Bill itself. The delegation of legislative power is, therefore, of a normalcharacter.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 423
BILL NO. 76 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Prevention and Control of Infectious and Contagious Diseases
in Animals Act, 2009.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Prevention and Control of Infectious and Contagious
Diseases in Animals (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. After section 19 of the Prevention and Control of Infectious and Contagious Diseases
in Animals Act, 2009, the following sections shall be inserted, namely,—
“19A. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, establish
a National Board for Prevention and Control of Lumpy Skin Diseases in such manner as maybe prescribed.Short titleandcommencement.
Insertion of
new sections19A and 19B.27 of 2009.
(2) The composition of the National Board for Prevention and Control of Lumpy Skin
Diseases and salary and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of service ofmembers of the National Board for Prevention and Control of Lumpy Skin Disease shall besuch as may be prescribed.
19B. The National Board for Prevention and Control of Lumpy Skin Diseases established
under sub-section ( 1) shall recommend the measures to be taken by the State Government
for the prevention and control of lumpy skin disease.”.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 425
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The problem of Lumpy Skin Disease in the cattle rearing witnessed in various States of
the country. This Lumpy Skin Disease is an infectious disease which is spreading at a rapidpace due to which various animals have died in the States of Rajasthan, Gujarat and otherStates. Out of the animals who have died majority are cows. Lumpy Skin Disease is aninfectious disease which communicates rapidly in form of virus and affects the immunity ofanimals against the disease.
Lumpy Skin Disease is a serious health hazard for the cattle in India. It is the collective
responsibility of the Government and all other agencies to prevent and control such infectiousdiseases.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; MANOJ RAJORIA
February 28, 2023.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 2 of the Bill vide proposed section 19A provides for the establishment of a
National Board for Prevention and Control of Lumpy Skin Disease. It also provides forappointment of members to the National Board for Prevention and Control of Lumpy SkinDisease. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fundof India. It is estimated that a sum of rupees five hundred crore per annum may involve asrecurring expenditure per annum from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 427
BILL NO. 84 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for compulsory teaching of lifestyle environment education in all
educational institutions and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
Whereas India has made significant commitment in the UN Climate Change Conference
(UNFCCC COP26) in Glasgow on 1st November 2021 regarding the concept of Lifestyle forthe Environment (Life) calling upon the global community of individuals and institutions todrive Life as an international mass movement towards “mindful and deliberate utilisation,instead of mindless and destructive consumption” to protect and preserve the environment.
A
ND Whereas need is to encourage a lifestyle that focuses on mindful and deliberate
utilization of resources and aims to change the present 'use and dispose of consumptionhabits and encourage individuals to adopt simple changes in their daily life that may contributeto climate change.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the the Compulsory Teaching of Lifestyle for Environment
Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “National Centre” means the National Research Centre for Promotion and
Teaching of Lifestyle Environment Education constituted under section 6;
(b) “appropriate Government” means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(c) “educational institution” means a primary or a middle or a secondary or a
senior secondary level school or a University or College imparting education tochildren, by whatever name such institution is called but does not include a minorityeducational institution;
(d) “environment” includes water, both surface and underground, air and land
including the surface of the earth, subsoil and the forests (the flora and the fauna) andthe inter-relationship which exists amongst and between water, air and land, and humanbeings, other living creatures and plants;
(e) “lifestyle” means way of living;
(f) “lifestyle environment education” means education creating awareness of
environment and to encourage a lifestyle that focuses on mindful utilization of resourcesand to nudge individual and community to preserve the environment; and
(g) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
3. From such date, as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official
Gazette specify, the lifestyle environment education shall be taught as a compulsory subjectin all educational institutions from such class onwards as may be determined by the CentralGovernment on the recommendation of the National Centre.
4. The appropriate Government shall, immediately after issuance of the notification
under section 3, issue directions for compulsory teaching of lifestyle environment educationin educational institutions from such class onwards as it may determine, within its jurisdiction.
5. Subject to such rules, as may be prescribed, the appropriate Government shall
ensure appointment of such number of teachers with such qualifications, as may be specified,for teaching lifestyle environment education in all educational institutions.
6. (1) The Central Government shall, within six months of the coming into force of the
Compulsory Teaching of Lifestyle for Environment Act, 2023, by notification in the OfficialGazette, constitute a National Centre to be known as the National Centre for Promotion andTeaching of Lifestyle Environment Education.
(2) The National Centre shall consist of such number of persons, having special
knowledge or experience in the teaching of lifestyle environment education, as the CentralGovernment may deem fit.
7. The National Centre shall perform the following functions, namely:—
(a) recommend to the Central Government the class from which onwards the
lifestyle environment education shall be taught in educational institutions;
(b) recommend to the appropriate Government the qualifications of teachers to
be appointed in educational institutions for teaching lifestyle environment education;Definitions.
Compulsory
teching oflifestyleenvironmenteducation ineducationalinstitutions.
Appropriate
Governmentto issuedirections forcompulsoryteaching oflifestyleenvironmenteducation ineducationalinstitutions.
Appointment
of teachers.
Constitutions
of NationalCentre forPromotionand Teachingof LifestyleEnvironmentEducation.
Functions of
NationalCentre forPromotionand Teachingof LifestyleEnvironmentEducation.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 429
(c) recommend to the appropriate Government the institutions which may be
given recognition for training teachers in lifestyle environment education for the purposeof their appointment in educational institutions;
(d) co-ordinate with the appropriate Government and the school authorities
with a view to ensuring effective implementation of the provisions of this Act.
8. The appropriate Government shall derecognize educational institutions, which does
not comply with the provisions of section 4, after giving such institution a reasonableopportunity of being heard.
9. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by law by Parliament in
this behalf, provide adequate funds to the State Governments for carrying out the purposesof this Act.
10. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent
therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force.
11. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,
both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that the
rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Derecognitionof educationalinstitutionsfor non-compliance ofthe provisionsof the Act.
Central
Governmentto providefund.
Overriding
effect of theAct.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Environmental degradation and climate change are global phenomena where actions
in one part of the world impact ecosystems and populations across the globe. Estimatessuggest that if requisite action is not taken against the changing environment, approximatelythree billion people globally could experience chronic water scarcity. The global economycould lose up to eighteen per cent. of GDP by the year 2050.
Over the last two decades, several macro measures have been implemented globally to
address environmental degradation and climate change, including policy reforms, economicincentives and regulations. Despite their enormous potential, actions required at the level ofindividuals, communities and institutions have received limited attention.
Changing individual and community behaviour alone can make a significant dent in
the environmental and climate crises. According to the United Nations EnvironmentProgramme (UNEP), if one billion people out of the global population of eight billion adoptenvironment-friendly behaviours in their daily lives, global carbon emissions could drop byapproximately twenty per cent.
In this context, the concept of 'Lifestyle for the Environment (LiFE)' was introduced by
Hon'ble Prime Minister at COP26 in Glasgow on 1st November 2021, calling upon the globalcommunity of individuals and institutions to drive LiFE as an international mass movementtowards “mindful and deliberate utilisation, instead of mindless and destructive consumption”to protect and preserve the environment.
The idea behind the LiFE intiative is to put individual and collective duty on everyone
to live a life that is in tune with Earth and does not harm it. This initiative encourages alifestyle that focuses on mindful and deliberate utilization of resources and aims to changethe present 'use and dispose of' consumption habits. The idea behind is to encourage
individuals to adopt simple changes in their daily life that can contribute to climate change.
Another part of the LiFE mission is to use the strength of social networks to bring a
change in the climate landscape. The mission also plans to create a global army of environmententhusiasts who shall be known as 'Pro-Planet People', committed to adopting and promotingenvironment-friendly lifestyles.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to provide for compulsory teaching of lifestyle environment
education in all educational institutions statutory on the lines of the LiFE Mission toencourage individuals to adopt simple changes in their daily life that may contribute toclimate change.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; MANOJ RAJORIA
March 28, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 431
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 5 of the Bill provides for appointment of teachers for teaching lifestyle
environment education in all educational institutions. Clause 6 provides for constitution ofNational Centre for Promotion and Teaching of Lifestyle Environment Education by theCentral Government. Clause 9 provides for payment of adequate funds to the States forcarrying out the purposes of the Act. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditurefrom the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a recurring expenditure of aboutrupees one thousand crore will be involved per annum from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees two hundred and fifty crore is also likely
to be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 11 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 433
BILL NO. 296 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In article 15 of the Constitution, in clause 6, in sub-clause ( b), for the words “such
special provisions related to”, the words “Such special provisions including age relaxationas is being provided for the socially and educationally backward classes of citizen regarding”shall be substituted.
3. In article 16 of the Constitution, in clause (6), for the words “any provision for the
reservation of” the words “any provision for reservation, including age relaxation as isbeing provided for the socially and educationally backward class of citizens, in” shall besubstituted.Amendmentof article 15.
Amendment
of article 16.Short title and
commencement.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
In pursuance of the Constitution (One Hundred and Third Amendment) Act, 2019,
special provisions were made for the reservation in appointments or posts in favour ofEconomically Weaker Sections (EWS) of citizens. The said reservation has been given to thepersons other than the backward class, mentioned in clauses (4) and (5) of article 15 andclause (4) of article 16, in addition to the existing reservation, and subject to a maximum of tenper cent. of the posts in each category. In past, the EWS citizens had largely remainedexcluded from attending the higher educational institutions and public employment on accountof their financial incapacity to compete with the persons who are economically more privileged.
In recent times, it has also been observed that certain States like Telangana, Uttar
Pradesh, Rajasthan etc., have made suitable provisions to extend the desirable benefits ofage relaxation to the candidates from EWS category at par with Other Backward Classescandidates. However, the said age relaxation related benefits are not extended by most of theStates and Central Government, till date. Therefore, such an anomalous state of affairs andhalf measures existing about reservation to EWS warrants not only an expeditious reviewbut an amendment to Constitution itself so that Economically Weaker Sections of citizenscould get a fair chance of receiving higher education as well as appropriate participation inemployment in the services of the State across India. To achieve this objective, it would behighly essential to grant them the ‘Age Relaxation’ akin to their counterparts from OtherBackward Classes category by means of carrying out an amendment in the Constitution ofIndia.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SANJAY BHATIA
July 11, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 435
Bill No. 287 of 2022
A Bill further to amend the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 41 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, in sub-section (1), after second
proviso, the following provisos shall be inserted, namely:—
"Provided also that no registration of new motor vehicle shall be made unless
the applicant possess the requisite and valid driving license:
Provided also that if the applicant does not possess requisite and valid driving
license, he may apply jointly either with his spouse or a family member possessing therequisite and valid driving license and such applicant shall be deemed to be jointowner of the said motor vehicle:
Provided also that an applicant whose license has been suspended may also be
permitted to apply for registration of a new motor vehicle if the State in which theapplicant intends to register permits the same:
Provided also that if the dealer registers the new motor vehicle without the
requisite and valid driving license of the applicant, such dealer shall be liable toimprisonment for three months and fine as may be prescribed:
Provided also that an applicant possessing a learners license may apply for
registration of a motor vehicle of upto 50 cc capacity.".Short title andcommencement.
59 of 1988. Amendment
of section 41.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
As per section 18 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 a driving license can be issued to
such persons who clear the driving test. License is required to drive a vehicle, which meansno person can take a vehicle for a drive without a valid license. Therefore, under section 181of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, it is a punishable offence to drive a vehicle without alicense.
The Bill proposes that every vehicle dealer shall check every prospective buyer for a
valid driving license for registration of new car and those dealers who violate this rule andregister vehicles in the name of those persons without a valid driving license, they shall bepunished with an imprisonment of three months or fine shall be imposed on them.
The Bill also seeks to include an amendment making it possible for a person not
having driving license, to register a motor vehicle in co-ownership with spouse, close relative,or family member etc. Such vehicles which are registered in co- ownership, cannot be sold ortransferred without the agreement of both the parties and it means it would be illegal to salethe vehicle without consent of other partner.
Insurance companies follow the guidelines of Insurance Regulatory and Development
Authority of India (IRDAI). According to the guidelines a valid driving license is mandatoryfor the vehicle driver. Therefore, if a driver does not have the driving license at the time ofaccident, the Insurance Company can reject the claim.
Valid driving license is necessary for the registration and without it one may face
problem at the time of insurance and registration. A valid driving license is mandatory toavail the full coverage of insurance. Hence having a valid driving license is a necessity.
The Bill also provides for registration of vehicle with a suspended license but it
depends on the policy of concerned State in this regard.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SANJAY BHATIA
November 21, 2022
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 437
BILL NO. 285 OF 2019
A Bill to provide for a framework to enable India to ban plastic manufacturing to safeguard
the environment
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventieth Year of the Republic of India as follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Plastic Manufacturing (Regulation) Act, 2019.
(2) It extends to whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(b) "fund" means the Extended Producer Responsibility Fund constituted under
section 6;
(c) "plastic" means material which contains as an essential ingredient a high
polymer such as polyethylene terephthalate, high density polyethylene, Vinyl, lowdensity polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene resins or multimaterials likeacrylonitrile butadiene styrene, polyphenylene oxide, polycarbonate or polybutyleneterephthalate;Short title,extent andcommencement.
Definitions.
(d) "plastic packaging" means all products which are—
(i) used for the containment, protection, handling, delivery and
presentation of goods; and
(ii) partly or wholly composed of plastic;
(e) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(f) "single-use plastic" means any disposable plastic item which is designed to
be used only once before it is thrown out or recycled and includes plastic forks andknives, plastic shopping bags, plastic coffee cup, lids, plastic water bottles, styrofoam,plastic take out containers and plastic straws.
3. The Central Government shall, within three months from the commencement of this
Act,—
(a) prescribe a target of complete elimination of plastic waste by the year 2050 in
accordance with international obligations, if any, agreed to by India:
(b) specify the year 2022 as target year to implement a complete ban on single-
use plastic and the proportion of reduction of single-use plastic during each yearfollowing the date of fixing of target year 2022; and
(c) formulate and implement a National Plastic Control Strategy for carrying out
the purposes of this Act.
4. The appropriate Government shall take measures to ensure—
(a) elimination of the production and use of plastics including plastic packaging
single-use plastic.
(b) increase in recycling, reuse and other forms of waste recovery in relation to
plastics; and
(c) removing plastics already in the environment for the purpose of recycling,
reusing or applying another form of waste recovery to the plastics.
5. Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, no
person shall, after the target year 2022, use, stock, distribute, manufacture, sell or trade in anysingle-use plastic item.
6. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute
a Fund to be called the Extended Producer Responsibility Fund for improving the plasticwaste treatment system.
(2) There shall be credited to the fund—
(a) any grants and loans made by the Central Government or any State
Government;
(b) any voluntary donations or contributions, whether or not for any specific
purpose as may be decided upon by the Central Government;
(c) any fine recovered as penalty for the commission of an offence punishable
under this Act;
(d) portion of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) fund received from any
company as notified by the Central Government in the Official Gazette; and
(e) such other sums as may be received.
(3) The Extended Producer Responsibility Fund shall be utilized under this Act by the
Central Government for—
(i) funding of any national or State level research study or project for development
of innovative and efficient methods of treatment of plastic waste;Plastic targetsetting.
Phasing out of
existentplastic.
Ban on single
use plasticitems.
Constitution
of ExtendedProducerResponsibilityFund.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 439
(ii) raising awareness regarding the impact of plastic waste and the benefits of
recycling plastic waste and its substitution with bio-degradable alternatives;
(iii) funding of small scale recyling or waste to energy plants on a district level;
and
(iv) any other activity that may be required for effective implementation of this
Act.
7. (1) The Central Government may appoint such number of officers with such
designation as it deems fit for the purpose of this Act and may entrust to them such powersand functions under this Act as may be prescribed.
(2) Any person who is appointed as an officer under sub-section (1) and is empowered
by the Central Government in this behalf, if he has reason to believe that plastic packagingor plastic items as stated under section are being manufactured, stored, transported ordistributed in any premises contrary to section 4, may enter into and search such place,premise or vehicle.
(3) Where, as a result of the search made under sub-section (2), any plastic packaging
item in contravention of section 4 are found, the authorized officer may seize such item andany other item which he may consider necessary under the provisions of this Act.
(4) The provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, relating to searches and
seizures shall, so far as may be, apply to every search or seizure made under this section.
8. Whoever violates the provision of this Act shall be punished with a fine which shall
not be less than rupees one lakh but which may extend upto rupees five lakhs.
9. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide requisite funds for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
10. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.CentralGovernmentto appointOfficer andStaff.
Penalty.
Central
Government
to provide
requisite funds.
Power to
make rules.4 of 1974.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Plastic waste is not managed effectively in the world and especially in India. Further
only nine per cent of nine billion metric tons of plastic ever produced has been recycled andthat most plastic ends its life in landfills, dumps and the environment. If current patterns ofconsumption and waste management practices are not altered, by 2050 there will approximately12 billion metric ton of plastic litter in the environment. India's 1.3 billion population currentlyproduces 25,940 metric tonnes of plastic waste per day.
While plastic plays an important role in the economy, plastic packaging accounts for
about half the plastic waste in the world, and that the poor management of that waste affectsthe environment. The serious environmental, social and economic impact of plastic wasteand pollution including the clogging of sewers and blocking of waterways, leading to breedingof mosquitoes and other pests and the blocking of airways and stomachs of animals. Thismakes plastic waste management absolutely essential.
India thus needs to develop and implement national or regional actions, as appropriate,
to address the environmental impacts of single-use plastic products. We also need to promotethe identification and development of environmentally friendly alternatives to single-useplastic products, after taking into account the full life-cycle implications of those alternatives.It is essential to promote improved waste management that will contribute to reducing thedischarge of plastic waste into the environment. We also need to work together with industriesto encourage the private sector to innovate and find affordable and environmentally friendlyalternatives to single-use plastic products and to promote business models that take intoaccount the full environmental impact of their products. The Government and the privatesector together must promote the more resource-efficient design, production, and use andsound management of plastic across their life cycle.
Hence this Bill.
New Delhi; JASBIR SINGH GILL
October 31, 2019.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 441
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill provides that the appropriate Government shall take measures to
increase in recycling, reuse and other forms of waste recovery in relation to plastics. Clause6 provides for constitution of an Extended Producer Responsibility Fund for improving theplastic waste treatment system in the country. Clause 8 provides that the Central Governmentshall provide requisite funds for carrying out the purposes of the Bill. The Bill, therefore, ifenacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that anannual recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred and fifty crores would involvefrom the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees sixty crores is also likely to be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 10 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 443
BILL NO. 34 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for compulsory teaching of moral ethics in all educational institutions
and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows :—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Compulsory Teaching of Moral Ethics in Educational
Institutions Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “Advisory Council” means the Advisory Council for Teaching Moral Ethics
constituted under section 6;
(b) “appropriate Government” means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases, the Central Government;Short title andcommencement.
Definitions.
(c) “educational institution” means a primary or a middle or a secondary or a
senior secondary level school or an University or College imparting education tochildren, by whatever name such institution is called but does not include a minorityeducational institution;
(d) “moral ethics” means philosophy based on teaching of good principles and
values cherished for years including regard and respect for elders, parents, teachersand guardians and setting reasonable standards of virtues and reinforcing disciplineamong students with a view to enable them to distinguish between right and wrong;and
(e) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
3. From such date, as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official
Gazette specify, moral ethics shall be taught as a compulsory subject in all educationalinstitutions from such class onwards as may be determined by the Central Government onthe recommendation of the Advisory Council.
4. The appropriate Government shall, immediately after issuance of the notification
under section 3, issue directions for compulsory teaching of moral ethics in educationalinstitutions within its jurisdiction.
5. Subject to such rules, as may be prescribed, the appropriate Government shall
ensure appointment of such number of teachers with such qualifications, as may be specified,for teaching moral ethics in all educational institutions.
6. (1) The Central Government shall, within six months of the coming into force of the
Compulsory Teaching Moral Ethics in Educational Institutions Act, 2023, by notification inthe Official Gazette, constitute an Advisory Council for Teaching Moral Ethics.
(2) The Advisory Council shall consist of such number of persons, having special
knowledge or experience in the teaching of moral ethics, as the Central Government maydeem fit.
7. The Advisory Council shall perform the following functions, namely:—
(a) recommend to the Central Government the class from which moral ethics
shall be taught in educational institutions;
(b) recommend to the appropriate Government the qualifications of teachers to
be appointed in educational institutions for teaching moral ethics;
(c) recommend to the appropriate Government the institutions which may be
given recognition for training teachers in moral ethics for the purpose of theirappointment in educational institutions;
(d) co-ordinate with the appropriate Government and the school authorities
with a view to ensuring effective implementation of the provisions of this Act.
8. The appropriate Government shall derecognize educational institutions, which does
not comply with the provisions of section 4, after giving such institution a reasonableopportunity of being heard.Compulsoryteaching ofmoral ethicsin educationalinstitutions.
Appropriate
Governmentto issuedirections forcompulsoryteaching ofmoral ethicsin educationalinstituions.
Appointment
of teachers.
Constitution
of AdvisoryCouncil forTeachingMoral Ethics.
Functions of
AdvisoryCouncil forTeachingMoral Ethics.
Derecognition
of educationalinstitutionsfor non-compliance ofthe provisionsof the Act.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 445
9. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by law by Parliament in
this behalf, provide adequate funds to the State Governments for carrying out the purposesof this Act.
10. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent
therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force.
11. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.CentralGovernmentto providefund.
Overriding
effect of theAct.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
A child learns from whatever he observes around and, therefore, society, parents and
the State owe a duty to create an atmosphere in which children may have all rounddevelopment. It has been generally believed among different sections of the society thatmorality and respect to moral values is the fulcrum of any society.
Morality plays a vital role in our daily life. It is very necessary for every person to have
certain basic knowledge of moral values and ethics.
It has been said that “Knowledge is the Power”, and indeed it is not wrong. It is
responsibility of our education system to make a common man morally sound. Currenteducation system in educational institutions lays emphasis on imparting quality education.However, it is missing out on imparting teaching of the moral ethics and values and is,
therefore, incomplete without it.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to provide for teaching moral ethics compulsory in all
educational institutions to make every students who are the future of the country to growmature and easily distinguish between the right and the wrong.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; RAVI KISHAN
January 24, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 447
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 5 of the Bill provides for appointment of teachers for teaching moral ethics in all
educational institutions. Clause 6 provides for constitution of Advisory Council for TeachingMoral Ethics by the Central Government. Clause 9 provides for payment of adequate fundsto the States for carrying out the purposes of the Act. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, wouldinvolve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a recurringexpenditure of about rupees two hundred crore will be involved per annum from theConsolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 11 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purpose of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 449
BILL NO. 48 OF 2023
A Bill to amend the Central Sanskrit Universities Act, 2020.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Central Sanskrit Universities (Amendment)
Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,andcommencement.
2. In the First Schedule to the Central Sanskrit Universities Act, 2020, in entry 2,
under the heading “Name of the Campus”, after item (b), the followinig item shall be inserted,namely:—
“(c) Gorakhpur Campus”.Amendment
of the FirstSchedule.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 451
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Sanskrit language represents the soul of India. It has been the vehicle of Indian
thoughts for millions. Sanskrit contains literature of exemplary value and the finest Indianminds found the expression in it. Sanskrit is not only mother of different Indian languagesbut also of some foreign languages.
In a situation where the new generation is running away from its own roots and has
developed contempt for the cultural traditions of our country, the importance of teachingSanskrit becomes crucial. The time has come when we must make sincere efforts to make thenew generation aware of the great traditions and thoughts of India. It is important to highlighthere that relation between Sanskrit language and Indian scheduled and non-scheduledlanguages are symbiotic in nature and as a result, development of Sanskrit means developmentof other languages also.
The Government has enacted the Central Sanskrit Universities Act, 2020 to establish
and incorporate Universities for teaching and research in Sanskrit and develop all-inclusiveSanskrit promotional activities. Under the said Act, the Lucknow Campus and the GanganathJha campus of the Central Sanskrit University has been established in respect of the State ofUttar Pradesh. However, the need has been felt to establish the campus in Gorakhpur districtto enable the propagation and teaching of Sanskrit in the Gorakhpur and nearby districts ofthe State of Uttar Pradesh.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to amend the Central Sanskrit Universities Act, 2020 with a
view to establish a campus of the Central Sanskrit University at Gorakhpur in the State ofUttar Pradesh.
Hence this Bill.
New Delhi; RA VI KISHAN
January 24, 2023.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 2 of the Bill seeks to establish a campus of the Central Sanskrit University at
Gorakhpur in the State of Uttar Pradesh. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involveexpenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a recurring expenditureof about rupees two hundred crore will be involved per annum from the Consolidated Fundof India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees fifty crore is also likely to be involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 453
BILL NO. 28 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for protection of traditional fishermen in the country and for welfare
measures including life insurance coverage, healthcare, educational facilities tothe children of traditional fishermen and for matters connected therewith or incidentalthereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Traditional Fishermen (Protection and Welfare)
Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by
notificatioinn the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:—
(a) "accident" means an accident caused during the course of fishing activity
including drowning;Short title, andcommencement.
Definitions.
(b) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(c) "Authority" means the National Traditional Fishermen Welfare Authority
constituted under section 4;
(d) "traditional fisherman" means a person who generation by generation earns
his livelihood by catching fish from the fisheries and whose only source of income isthe money he earns from selling such fish;
(e) “fisheries” which includes the management, catching, processing and
marketing of fish; and
(f) "Fund" means the Traditional Fishermen Welfare Fund constituted under
section 6; and
(g) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
3. The Central Government shall, as soon as may be, but within one year from the
commencement of this Act, formulate, in consultation with the Government of the Stateshaving substantial population of fishermen, a national policy for the welfare of traditionalfishermen and their families and protect their fishing rights and interests.
4. (1) The Central Government shall, as soon as may be, by notification in Official
Gazette, constitute an Authority to be known as the National Traditional Fishermen WelfareAuthority for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) The Authority shall be a body corporate by the name aforesaid, having perpetual
succession and common seal, with power to acquire, hold and dispose of property bothmovable and immovable and to contract and shall, by the said name, sue or be sued.
(3) The Authority shall consist of—
(a) a Chairperson having adequate knowledge and professional experience in
fisheries sector to be appointed by the Central Government in such manner as may beprescribed;
(b) a Deputy Chairperson with such qualification, to be appointed by the Central
Government in such manner as may be prescribed;
(c) three members to represent traditional fishermen to be appointed by the
Central Government in such manner as may be prescribed;
(d) four members to represent the Union Ministries of Ministry of Fisheries,
Animal Husbandry & Dairying (Department of Fisheries), Finance, Planning andLabour and Employment, to be appointed by the Central Government in such manneras may be prescribed;
(e) five members of Parliament, of whom three shall be from the House of the
People and two shall be from the Council of States, to be nominated by the PresidingOfficers of the respective Houses; and
(f) four members to be nominated by the Government of the States on rotation
basis in alphabetical order.
(4) The term of Office of the Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson and members of the
Authority and the procedure to be followed in the discharge of the functions of the Authorityshall be such as may be prescribed.
(5) The salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of the
service of the Chairperson and members of the Authority shall be such as may be prescribed.
(6) The headquarter of the Authority shall be at Gorakhpur in the State of
Uttar Pradesh.
(7) The Authority may establish its offices at such other places, as it may deem
necessary for carrying out the purposes of this Act.NationalPolicy for thewelfare oftraditionalfishermen.
Constitution
of theNationalTraditionalFishermenWelfareAuthority.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 455
(8) The Authority shall have a secretariat with such Officers and members of staff and
with such terms and conditions of services as may be prescribed.
5. (1) The Authority shall, subject to guidelines issued by the Central Government in
this regard, in coordination with the State Governments take, steps for the overall welfare oftraditional fishermen including, removal of poverty and indebtedness, raising the standardof living and making easy availability of market for selling fish.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provisions, the Authority
shall,—
(a) implement the national policy for the traditional fishermen formulated under
section 3;
(b) maintain records of traditional fishermen in all villages and districts
throughout the country;
(c) maintain a district-wise register of traditional fishermen with such particulars
and in such manner as may be prescribed;
(d) provide modern tools and techniques for fishing to the traditional fishermen;
(e) encourage and provide all necessary assistance to traditional fishermen
cooperatives;
(f) organize exhibitions, melas and such other activities to promote fisheries in
different parts of the country;
(g) make suitable arrangements for purchase of fishes by Government agencies
on cash and carry basis;
(h) encourage export of fish; and
(i) perform such other functions as may be assigned to it by the Central
Government from time to time.
6. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute
a Fund to be known as the Traditional Fishermen Welfare Fund with a corpus of rupees fivethousand crore.
(2) The Central Government and the State Governments shall contribute to the Fund
in such ratio as may be prescribed.
(3) There shall also be credited to the Fund such other sums as may be received by
way of donations, contributions, assistance or otherwise from individuals, body corporates,financial institutions, firms and partnerships.
(4) The Fund shall be administered by a Board of Trustees, which shall be constituted
by the Central Government in such manner as may be prescribed.
(5) The Fund shall be utilized for:—
(a) interest free loans to traditional fishermen for purchasing of boats, nets and
life boat;
(b) making ex-gratia payments at prescribed rates to each of the bereaved
families of traditional fishermen who die in accident;
(c) life insurance cover to the traditional fishermen and their families;
(d) healthcare facilities to the traditional fishermen and their dependent family
members;
(e) financial assistance to the traditional fishermen for the purchase and repair
of fishing nets, boats and other equipments required for fishing;
(f) unemployment allowance during illness or financial crisis during lean periods;Functions of
the Authority.
Constitution
of theTraditionalFishermenWelfare Fund.
(g) providing educational facilities and vocational training to the wards of
traditional fishermen; and
(h) such other welfare measures as may be prescribed.
7. The appropriate Government shall,—
(a) establish adequate number of schools and vocational training institutes and
healthcare centres in and around the areas inhabitated by traditional fishermen fortheir benefit including their families and children;
(b) protect the fishing rights and interests of the traditional fishermen; and
(c) take such other measures as it may deem necessary for the protection and
welfare of traditional fishermen.
8. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide to the Authority such sums as may consider necessary for the efficientfunctioning of the Authority.
9. (1) The Authority shall prepare, in such form and manner, as may be prescribed, an
annual report giving a true and full account of its activities during the previous year andsubmit it to the Central Government.
(2) The Central Government shall cause the report submitted to it under
sub-section ( 1) to be laid before each House of Parliament.
10. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions, notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as appear to it to be necessary or expedient forremoving the difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made after the expiry of the period of two years
from the date of the commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall, as soon as may be, after it is made, be
laid before each House of Parliament.
11. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any other
law for the time being in force regulating any of the matters dealt with in this Act.
12. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified orannulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under thatrule.CentralGovernmentto provideFunds.Miscellaneous
Provisions.
Annual
Report.
Power to
removedifficulties.
Act not in
derogation ofany other lawfor time beingin force.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 457
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
There are millions of traditional fishermen spread across various parts of our country.
In the State of Uttar Pradesh the traditional fishermen are termed as ‘ nishad ’ or ‘ mallah ’.
Their main occupation and means of livelihood is catching fish and selling it in the marketand they are doing this for generations. However, the fishermen and their families live inabject poverty nearly hand to mouth. There are many problems experienced by traditionalfishermen, including a lack of skills, limited facilities, and extreme competition.
For most of the traditional fishermen, it is their family profession which passes on from
one generation to other and their entire families are involved in this profession. For them,fishing is the only source of their livelihood and prosperity.
Since the poor fishermen are part and parcel of our society and ours being a welfare
State, it is necessary that the fishermen too are provided with adequate insurance coveragainst accidents, healthcare, financial assistance in case of need, educational, vocationalfacilities for their children, etc.
Urgent remedial measures have to be taken for the welfare and protection of traditional
fishermen. It has, therefore, been proposed to establish the National Traditional FishermenAuthority and also the Traditional Fishermen Welfare Fund to improve the lot of traditionalfishermen and save them from starvation in various parts of our nation.
Hence this Bill.
New Delhi; RA VI KISHAN
January 23, 2023.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill seeks to constitute the National Traditional Fishermen Welfare
Authority. Clause 5 provides for certain steps to be taken by the Authority for welfare oftraditional fishermen. Clause 6 provides for the constitution of the Traditional FishermenWelfare Fund. Clause 7 provides for the appropriate Government to establish adequatenumber of schools and vocational training institutes and healthcare centres in and aroundthe areas inhabitated by traditional fishermen for their benefit including their families. Clause8 provides that the Central Government shall provide Funds to the Authority. The Bill,therefore, if enacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It isestimated that a sum of rupees five hundred crore may involve as recurring expenditure perannum.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees two hundred crore is also likely to be incurred.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 12 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 459
BILL NO. 22 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In Part IV of the Constitution, after article 48A, the following article shall be inserted,
namely:—
"48B. The State shall endeavour to reduce emissions and eventually realize the goal of
net zero emission for a clean sustainable and habitable environment which shall provide fora inclusive posterity, for all citizens."Short title andcommencement.
Insertion of
new article48B.
Achieving net
zero emissionsfor asustainablefuture.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Climate change and its allied issues are a pressing contemporary concern which
transcend political borders and impact people across nationalities. The challenge to mitigate,sustain and adapt climate change though enormous, also brings up a historic and unparalleledopportunity for the human race to collectively work for the future of its existence. In such ascenario, India joined other responsible nations with the declaration of its pledge of net zeroemissions by 2070 and further released its long-term strategy of achieving net zero emissionsby 2070 at the recent 27th Conference of Parties (COP-27) in Egypt’s Sharm el-Sheikh.
In such a state of affairs, it is imperative that federal polity of the country should work
cohesively to contrive a path of national development which is distinctive yet at the sametime serves balance between economic growth and climate sustainability. The state policyconsiderations demand inclusion of net zero emission targets to make long-term low emissiondevelopment strategy a success, for the world to witness.
Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP) under Part IV of the Constitution have
played a pivotal role in guiding the policies in India. They have been amended periodicallyas per the dynamic situations. Therefore in the light of contemporary exigencies, insertion ofthis new article is imperative.
This amendment will provide a mandate which has also become necessary to fulfil and
implement other existing elements of DPSP such as in articles 38, 47, 48A, 49 and 51. It alsoincludes the expression “inclusive” to ensure participation, balancing livelihood and growthof all the citizens of our nation in this new phase of developmental journey.
Hence this Bill.
New Delhi; SUNITA DUGGAL
November 24, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 461
Bill No. 59 of 2020
A Bill to prevent wasteful expenditure on special occasions such as weddings and festivals
with a view to bring positive changes in the lives of the underprivileged and thedestitute and for matter connected therewith.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-first year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Prevention of Wasteful Expenditure on Special
Occasions Act, 2020.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State, and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(b) "designated Authority" means an authority or an officer designated for the
purpose of registration of marriages under this Act;
(c) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(d) "special occasion" means any event worth celebrating and includes
weddings, festivals, and such other occasions; and
(e) "supporting organization" means the any organisation engaged in creating
awareness among public for prevention of wasteful expenditure on special occasionsand encouraging people to donate for charity on such occasions.Short title,extent andcommencement.
Definitions.
3. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force
or of any custom or ritual, all special occasions shall be conducted in a simple mannerwithout incurring extravagant or wasteful expenditure, show of wealth or lavish spending.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the provision contained in sub-section ( 1),
on the occasion of solemnization of marriage—
(a) not more than one hundred guests shall be invited;
(b) not more than ten number of dishes shall be served;
(c) the value of gifts given during invitation card distribution shall not exceed
rupees twenty-five hundred; and
(d) practice of donation to poor, needy, orphans or weaker sections of the
society or to non-Governmental organisations working for charity shall be encouragedinstead of extravagant gifts:
Provided that donations and gifts may be combined if amount of gift is less than the
prescribed limit as specified in clause( c).
(3) The appropriate Government shall prescribe necessary guidelines to be followed
for effective implementation of the provisions of this Act.
4. Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force or
in any custom or usage to the contrary,—
(a) supporting organizations shall be encouraged to create awareness among
public about the importance of practice of minimum expenditure on special occasionsand disseminate the provisions of this Act, and
(b) practice of donating for charity purpose on special occasions shall be
encouraged.
5. Whoever contravenes the provisions of section 3 shall be punishable with simple
imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months and also with fine which may extendto fifty thousand rupees;
6. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions notinconsistent with the provisions of this act, as it appears to be necessary or expedient forremoving the difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made after the expiry of the period of three years
from the date of commencement of this Act.
7. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent
therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force.
8. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any other
law for the time being applicable to marriages.
9. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session, or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Prevention ofwastageduringmarriagefunctions.
Encouragement
to SupportingOrganizations.
Penalty.
Power to
removedifficulties.
Act to have
overridingeffect.
Act not in
derogationof otherlaw.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 463
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
These days, it has become fashionable to spend like feudals on special occasions
such as marriages and festivals. The guest list is very long and the food menu layout is vastwhich leads to lot of wastage. Not only this, a lot of wastage occurs at the time of distributionof marriage cards or post-wedding gifts. Similarly, a lot of wastage occurs on festivals due topractices of exchanging gifts. That also deserves significant attention.
On weddings, practice of a vast food layout, decoration, bands, music and number of
guests invited has become a status symbol and a symbol of show-off. Analogously, onfestivals thoughtless exchange of gifts is very wasteful. Festivals must be a time to rememberthe almighty and do good to society. But often, the core concept of festivals get lost in theshow-off that many do, by exchanging fancy gifts. That money could instead be donatedand smaller gifts distributed.
In fact, on special occasions, food waste and loss has been rapidly increasing in India.
According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), every yeararound 1.7 billion tonnes, or almost one third of food produced for human consumption, islost or wasted globally.
As per the Global Hunger Index, 2019 India has a rank of 102 out of 117 countries. The
NFHS4 (2015 &16) estimated 46.8 million under five children in India are stunted and thisrepresents one-third of total stunted children across the globe. Food loss or waste alsoamount to a major squandering of resources, including water, land, energy, labour and capitaland it also needlessly produce greenhouse gas emissions, contributing to global warmingand climate change.
It is high time for our country to stand up against this unmeaningful and wasteful
expenditure. So we should decide that not more than one hundred guests and not more thanten dishes should be allowed.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; JASBIR SINGH GILL
January 22, 2020.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 9 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only the delegation oflegislative power is of normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 465
BILL NO. 190 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy—third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Food Safety and Standards (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 3 of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (hereinafter referred to as
the principal Act), in sub-section (1),—
"(a) after clause (c), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(ca) "child" means a boy or a girl who has not attained the age of sixteen
years;";
(b) after clause (h), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(ha) "diabetes" means a non-communicable disease that occurs either
when pancreas does not produce sufficient insulin or when the body becomesresistant to insulin and leads to serious damage to the heart, blood vessels,eyes, kidneys and nerves;"; andShort title andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 3.34 of 2006.
(c) after clause (zs), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:—
"(zsa) "soft drink" means water based flavored drink usually with added
carbon dioxide and natural or synthetic sweeteners used interchangeably withcarbonated drinks or aerated drinks or sweetened beverages and includes,—
(i) soda;
(ii) cola;
(iii) carbonated water;
(iv) juice;
(v) nectar;
(vi) syrup;
(vii) still drinks;
(viii) ready to drink caffeine containing beverages;
(ix) sports drinks; and
(x) energy drinks;
3. After Chapter II of the principal Act, the following Chapter and sections thereunder
shall be inserted, namely:—
" CHAPTER IIA
R
EGULATION OF SALE OF SOFT DRINKS CAUSING DIABETES AMONGST CHILDREN
17A. The soft drink containing high sugar, calories, saturated fat or any other ingredient
beyond limits stipulated and detrimental to health and causing diabetes of children shall bearlabel warning about the presence of excess ingredient in black bold letters.
17B. The sale of soft drinks as labelled under 17A to any child shall be prohibited.
17C. All soft drink labelled under section 17A shall not be advertised in print, television
or any other form targetting children below the age of sixteen years.
17D. Whoever sells a labelled soft drink in contravention of the provisions of this
Chapter shall be imposed such rate of sugar tax as the Central Government may, in consultationwith State Governments specify.
17E. Whoever advertises a labelled soft drink in contravention of provisions of this
Chapter shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend upto Six monthsand fine which may extend upto rupees twenty-five thousand .".Insertion ofnew ChapterIIA.
Labelling of
soft drinks.
Prohibition of
sale of softdrinks tochild.
Prohibition on
advertising oflabelled softdrink.
Imposition of
sugar tax forsale of labelledsoft drink.
Punishment for
advertisementof labelled softdrink.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 467
STA TEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
In the recent past Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) an United States
based health advocacy group in its report titled "Carbonating the World" says "producersof sugar—sweetened beverages are investing heavily in low and middle income countries inthe wake of declining sales in wealth and developed countries". As various laws of the landensures freedom to conduct business and trade but it has to come up with reasonablerestriction. The point which pricks the conscience is that always developing countries hasbeen seen as dumping yard for goods which did not sell properly in those countries and shiftto low and middle income countries. The same happened when cigarette sales sagged in theUnited States where companies were swiftly shifting to developing countries. Specificallythe multinational companies spend several billion dollars in the country such as Brazil,China, India and Mexico in the entire process of soft drinks making and advertize theirproduct to maximize the sales. Indian soft drinks industry has an annual sale of more than US$ 10 billion and about to grow six to seven per cent. annually.
India is experiencing increased consumption of sugar-sweetened carbonated drinks
as recent statistics released by International Diabetes Federation (IDF) shows that 77 millionadults living with diabetes. In past edition of same IDF has estimated that 1,28,500 childrenand adolescents with diabetes in India. According to a study published in the Indian Journalof Endocrinology and Metabolism it has estimated that India is home to about 97,700 childrenwith Type-1 diabetes mellitus. If we consider under-reporting or not reporting the actual
figures may be higher. Type-1 diabetes in the children means is that their body no longerproduces insulin which needed to regulate blood sugar. Usually Type-1 diabetes occur atadolescence age precisely at 14-16 years of age.
Consuming sugar-sweetened carbonated drinks is major reason for Type-2 diabetes
among overweight or obese children. Quoting from WHO e-LENA by Director of Policy,
World Obesity Federation, London UK "… consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages hasbeen suggested as a contributory factor to the rising levels of childhood obesity oroverweight…" which in turn result in cause of Type-2 diabetes a case where body producesinsulin but not able to use it or often called as insulin resistance. Drinking sugar-sweetenedbeverages contribute to increase weight gain. WHO recommends 6 teaspoon of sugar a daywhich is approximately 25 g of sugar. A half litre of sugary carbonated drinks contributesabout 80% of recommended added sugars to be consumed in a day. Consumption rapidlyincreases blood sugar levels and this can lead to tiredness and increased hunger even inpeople without diabetes, so it has to be looked in a comprehensive way that restrict the salesof soft drinks for reducing the risk of Type-1 diabetes of all type.
The proposed Bill foresees two pronged approach in restricting the sales of soft
drinks. Firstly, applying sugary tax in India as is being followed in more than fifty countries.As India also has high tax on aerated beverages as high as twenty-eight per cent. GST butthe need is to tax all type of soft drinks and spend the amount received from tax on health andnutritional aspect. Secondly, restricting the advertisement of soft drinks targeting childrenand adolescence, who may not be aware of persuasive intent. There is evidence that restrictionof child—focused advertisement on sugary sweetened beverages improved child dietaryhabits and decrease soft drink consumption. The consumption of soft drinks or sugar-sweetened beverages or carbonated or aerated drinks among children who may not havethe awareness to know the persuading intent is often resulting in regular consumption ofsoft drinks among children below sixteen years has to be restricted by keeping their healthpotential and reduce the risk of diabetes among them.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; DNV SENTHIL KUMAR S.
November 26, 2021.
PRESIDENT'S RECOMMENDATION UNDER ARTICLES 117( 1) AND 274( 1) OF THE
CONSTITUTION
[Copy of letter No. P.15025/159/2021—FR dated 22 September, 2022 from
Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, Minister of Health and Family Welfare and Chemicals and Fertilizersto the Secretary General, Lok Sabha].
The President, having been informed of the subject matter of the Food Safety
and Standards (Amendment) Bill, 2022 (Amendment of Section 3, etc.) by Dr. DNVSenthilkumar S., Member of Parliament, has recommended for introduction of the Bill underarticles 117( 1) and 274( 1) of the Constitution in Lok Sabha.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 469
BILL NO. 195 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for equal compensation to victims of accidents by the Government and
for matters connected therewith and incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Victims of Accident (Equal Compensation) Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force with immediate effect.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "accident" means an unexpected and undesirable incident resulting in injury
or death of a person during travel by road, railway or air or due to natural disasters, orterrorist or extremists activities or stampede;Short title,extent andcommencement.
Definitions.
(b) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases the Central Government;
(c) "compensation" means financial assistance provided by the Central
Government to the victim or his dependent;
(d) "dependent" means the parents, spouse, children or siblings of the victim;
(e) "Fund" means the Victims of Accident Compensation Fund constituted under
section 4;
(f) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(g) "qualified medical practitioner" means any person declared by the appropriate
Government, by notification in the Official Gazette, to be a qualified medical practitionerfor the purposes of this Act; and
(h) "victim'' means a person killed or injured in any accident.
3. (1) The Central Government shall after taking into consideration the loss or injury
sustained, pay equal amount of compensation to every victimin such manner as may beprescribed.
(2) The amount of compensation shall be as follows:—
(i) where death results from the accident, the dependents of the victim shall be
paid rupees twenty lakhs;
(ii) where permanent disability results from the accident, the victim shall be
paid rupees ten lakh;
(iii) where temporary disability results from the accident, the victim shall be
paid rupees four lakh; and
(iv) where ordinary injury results from the accident, the victim shall be paid
rupees one lakh.
(3) The nature of injury suffered by a victim shall be examined and reported by a
qualified medical practitioner, in such manner as may be prescribed.
(4) The compensation amount shall be disbursed to the victimor to his dependent
within one week from the date of receipt of report of the qualified medical practitioner undersub-section (3).
4. (1) The Central Government shall constitute a Fund to be known as the Victims of
Accident Compensation Fund for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) The State Governments shall contribute to the Fund in such proportion as may be
prescribed.
(3) Such other sums as may be received by way of donation or contribution both from
domestic and international institutions shall also be credited to the Fund.
(4) The Fund shall be administered by a Board to be known as the Victims of Accident
Compensation Board, consisting of:—
(i) the Prime Minister— ex-officio Chairperson;
(ii) the Chief Ministers of every State and Lieutenant Governor or Chief
Administrators of Union territories— ex-officio ; and
(iii) ten retired judges of High Court to be appointed by the Central Government
in such manner as may be prescribed as members.
5. The Central Government may require a State Government to furnish such statistical
and other information as may be necessary for implementation of the provisions of this Act,in such form and within such period as may be prescribed.Equal
compensationto victimsof accidents.
Constitution
of Victims ofAccidentCompensationFund.
State
Government
to furnish
statistical
information.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 471
6. (1) The appropriate Government shall constitute a Special Team to effectively
implement the provisions of this Act within their jurisdiction.
(2) The Special Team shall consist of ten members of which five shall be appointed by
the Central Government and five by the State Government in such manner as may be prescribed.
(3) The Special Team shall—
(i) visit the accident site and collect information relating to the victims;
(ii) submit the accident related information to the Victims of Accident
Compensation Board;
(iii) ensure that the victims receive the compensation within the time limit
prescribed under this Act; and
(iv) undertake any other work that may be assigned by the Board.
(v) The salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of
service of members of the special Team appointed under sub-section (2) shall be suchas may be prescribed.
7. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide adequate funds to the State Governments for carrying out the purposesof this Act.
8. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any other
law for the time being in force regulating any of the matters dealt within this Act.
9. (1) The Central Government may, be notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Constitutionofa special teamby theappropriateGovernment.
Central
Governmentto provideadequatefunds.
Savings.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Constitution provides right to equality to every citizen as a Fundamental Right.
There is a provision for equality and non-discrimination before law under articles 14 to 16and for social equality under articles 17 and 18 of the Constitution. The right to equalityprovided by the Constitution provides that all persons within the territories of India shouldget equal protection under the law and should be treated equally in similar situations. In caseof accident financial assistance is provided as compensation to affected persons. Howeverin case of death of the accident affected person the relatives of the deceased have to go tocourt for justice which is unfortunate. Thousands of suits are filed in courts for similarcompensation in similar situations. In many cases, courts have also given decisions toprovide for equal amounts. Despite this, there is no clear policy of the Government. Everythingdepends on the administrative decision. Now, the time has come to formulate a law providingfor payment of fixed amounts as compensation to the next kin of deceased and to the injuredin accidents.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SUNIL KUMAR SINGH
March 7, 2022
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 473
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for equal compensation to accident affected persons.
Clause 4 provides for constitution of a Victims of Accident Compensation Fund. Clause 6provides for the appropriate Government to constitute Special Team to implement theprovisions of this Act. It also provides for appointment of five members to each special Teamby the Central Government. Clause 7 provides that the Central Government shall provideadequate funds to carry out provisions of this Act. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, will involveexpenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a recurring expenditureof rupees twenty five thousand crore per annum will be involved.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees five thousand crore is also likely to be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 9 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of details only, the delegation oflegislative power is, therefore, of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 475
BILL NO. 117 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for the use of official language in the proceedings of High Courts and
for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by the Parliament in the Seventy—third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the High Courts (Use of Official Languages) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall extend to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the official Gazette appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "appointed day" means the date as may be notified by the appropriate
Government for the purposes of this Act;
(b) "appropriate Government" means,—
(i) in relation to the High Court for a State, the Government of that State;
and
(ii) in relation to other High Courts, the Central Government;Short title,
extent andcommencement.
Definitions.
(c) "documents" means documents as defined in section 3 of the Indian Evidence
Act, 1872;
(d) "High Court" means any Court as defined in clause (14) of article 366, or
established under article 231 of the Constitution and includes its Benches;
(e) "official language" means the official language of the Union under article 343
of the Constitution and includes the language in use for official purposes in any Statein which the High Court for that State is located;
(f) "party" includes any person authorized by the party to the matter or an
advocate for the party; and
(g) "proceedings" includes pleadings, petition, application, appeal, reference,
revision, review, affidavit, counter affidavit, other documents filed or received duringcourse of conduct of the matter, appearance, leading of arguments, during hearing inany matter, judgement, decree or order and such other matters as may be prescribed bythe High Court.
3. (1) From the appointed day any party to the proceedings before a High Court shall
have the right to prefer the official language in conduct of such proceedings in that HighCourt.
(2) The party to the proceedings shall make an application to the High Court for the
conduct of the proceedings in the official language in such manner as may be laid down bythat High Court under section 4.
4. (1) Where any party to the proceedings has made preference for the conduct of
proceedings in official language, the High Court shall conduct proceedings before it in theofficial language.
(2) The High Court may lay down by rules the procedure for conduct of proceedings
in the official language:
Provided that such procedure shall not entail any additional expense on any party to
the case for conducting such proceedings in the official language.
5. The appropriate Government shall take such measures as may be necessary to
ensure availability of requisite infrastructure in the concerned High Court within itsjurisdiction for conduct of proceedings in the official language in that High Court from theappointed day.
Explanation. —For the purpose of this section, requisite infrastructure includes
appropriate translation and typing facility in the official language and such other facilities asmay be necessary for conduct of the proceedings in the official languages. 1 of 1872.
Right of the
party toprefer officiallanguage inconduct ofproceedings.
Conduct of
proceedings inHigh Court.
Measures by
appropriateGovernment.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 477
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Article 348 of the Constitution of India envisages law by Parliament that may prescribe
a language other than English for the proceedings of the High Courts. The right to fairhearing cannot be done until the litigant understands the language of the hearing. Thereis a legal maxim that justice should not only be done but the same should also appear tohave been done.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; SUNIL KUMAR SINGH
March 7, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 5 provides that the appropriate Government shall take such measures as may
be necessary to ensure availability of requisite infrastructure to the concerned High Courtwithin its jurisdiction for conduct of proceedings in the official language in that High Courtfrom the appointed day. The Bill, if enacted, will involve expenditure from the ConsolidatedFund of India. However, at this stage, it is not possible to quantify the exact amount ofrecurring and non-recurring expenditure to be involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 479
BILL NO. 129 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Railways Act, 1989 .
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Railways (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. After section 24 of the Railways Act, 1989, the following section shall be inserted,
namely:—
"24A. Notwithstanding anything contained in sections 22, 23 and 24 of the Act,
the Central Government may, by notification, sanction the running or extension ordiversion of super fast trains via Thawe junction in the State of Bihar by approvingthe proposal received from the Railway Division of the North-Eastern Region andextension of train No. 22411/22412 (Arunachal Express) via route Siwan-Thawe-Kaptanganj- Gorakhpur.".Short title andcommencement.
24 of l989. Insertion of
new section24A.
Special
Provisions ofrailway atThawejunction in theState of Bihar.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The section of Varanasi division of North-Eastern Railway which comprises Thawe-
Gopalganj junction is facing number of challenges and disadvantage due to non—availabilityof superfast trains for various metropolitan cities of the country. To overcome such difficultiesand to make railway connectivity from this neglected section by providing the train facilitieswould certainly provide ample revenue to railways.
At Thawe junction in the Thawe-Gopalganj section, there is one of the most
important and reverable religious peeth. Seeing the rush of pilgrims during normal days andhuge rush during auspicious days, and considering the fact that this area is the native tolakhs of migrant labours who are working in different parts of country, especially, NCRand the States of Haryana, Punjab, J&K. Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Karnataka,Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh etc., the train facilities to this
junction is must. Apart from the above, people of this area depends on bigger cities ofcountry for any specialized medical facilities and education too. This section/area does nothave any direct train for Delhi or any other metropolitan cities.
The Bill, therefore seeks to amend the Railways Act, l 989 with a view to implement the
proposal of North-Eastern Railway once received for approval without any further delay toaugment the train services to cater the need of the neglected Thawe Junction which is a longawaited demand of lakhs of people of the various districts of the State of Uttar Pradesh andBihar.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; ALOK KUMAR SUMAN
July 1, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 481
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 2 of the Bill vide proposed section 24A seeks to provide diversion or extension
of the superfast trains via Thawe junction by giving the approval of the proposal receivedfrom the railway division of the North-Eastern Region. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, willinvolve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is likely to involve an annualrecurring expenditure of about rupees two hundred crore from the Consolidated Fund ofindia.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees three hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
BILL NO. 157 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. This Act may be called the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Amendment)
Act, 2022.
2. In the Schedule to the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950, in Part
XIV,—Tamil Nadu, after entry 18, the following entry shall be substituted, namely:—
"18A. "Lambadi".Short title.
C.O. 22. Amendment
of theSchedule.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 483
STA TEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Tribal communities of this country have undergone many sufferings due to historical
reasons like socio-economic exploitation, deprivation, isolation, inequalities and discriminationwhich pushed them backward and vulnerable. Citing historical injustice, our forefathers ofthe Constitution incorporated several provisions which aspired to promote education andeconomic interest of weaker sections particularly the Scheduled Castes and the ScheduledTribes.
Article 366(25) of the Constitution defines Scheduled Tribes (ST) as those tribes or
tribal communities who are scheduled under article 342. To carry out social justicemeasures for the tribal communities, the list for the Scheduled Tribe was notified by thePresident vide the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950. Many communities aredemanding inclusion in the Scheduled Tribe list which mainly falls in three categories suchas (i) new entry, ( ii) sub-tribes/sections, synonyms and ( iii) phonetic variations.
The demand of "Lambadi Community" of Tamil Nadu, to be included in Scheduled
Tribe List, is long pending. Lambadis in Tamil Nadu are notified as Backward Class but theyare in Scheduled list in neighbouring States namely Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. InTamil Nadu their total population is about 2 lakhs. In Dharmapuri alone, about 50,000 Lambadisare living in Harur (Sittlingi Thanda, Sittlingi panchayat), Pennagaram and Dharmapuri taluksand in Mettur Taluk (Lakkampatti). The State Government of Tamil Nadu has recommendedfor inclusion of Lambadis in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) list and had forwarded the same toUnion Government in 2009. In 1994, a high level committee constituted by the NationalCommission for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes had recommended thesame.
In order to render the social justice and affirmative action without further loss of time,
the amendment in the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950 is much needed.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950
with a view to include "Lambadi community" in the list of Scheduled Tribes in respect of theState of Tamil Nadu.
N
EWE DELHI; DNV SENTHIL KUMAR S.
July 1, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
The Bill seeks to include Lambadi to the list of Scheduled Tribes with respect to the
State of Tamil Nadu by way of amending the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950.The Bill, if enacted, would involve recurring and non-recurring expenditure on account of thebenefits to be given under the schemes and programmes of the Government meant for social,educational and economic development of the scheduled tribes. At this stage, it is notpossible to mention the exact amount which may be incurred on this account. However, it isestimated that a sum of approximately rupees thirty-five crore is likely to be involved as arecurring expenditure per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees seventy crore is also likely to be involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 485
BILL NO. 199 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for regularisation of the services of nursing and conferring the status of
not less than those of Group 'C' employee of the Central Government on such nursingservices.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Nursing Services (Regularisation of Service and
Welfare) Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Office Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "National Health Mission" means National Rural Health Mission and National
Urban Health Mission started by the Central Government to implement the healthsystem at all levels;Short title,extent andcommencement.
Definitions.
(b) "nursing services" means any person working as a nursing staff including
Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA), Auxiliary Nursing Midwifery (ANM), GeneralNursing Midwifery (GNM) and others on regular or contract or daily wages basisunder the National Health Mission; and
(c) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
3. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, take all such
steps as may be necessary to regularize the services of nursing and confer the status of notless than those of Group 'C' employees of the Central Government on all such nursingservices.
(2) The Central Government shall also provide such wages and welfare facilities as are
available to, or not less than, Group 'C' employees of the Central Government.
4. The provision of this Act shall be in addition to, and not in derogation of the
provisions of any other law for the time being in force.
5. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out all purposes of this Act ensuring the service status and welfare of thenursing services.
(2) Every rule made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions aforesaid bothHouses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that the ruleshould not be made, the rules shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be ofno effect, as the case may be; so however, that any such modification or annulment shall bewithout prejudice to the validity or anything previously done under that rule.Regularisationof services ofNursingServices.
Savings.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 487
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
National Health Mission was started by the Central Government to implement the
decentralized model of health system at all levels in the country. It includes ambitious projectsto provide equitable, affordable and quality health care for rural areas under the 'NationalRural Health Mission' and for urban areas under the 'National Urban Health Mission'. Thecontribution of nursing services are remarkable and has become an integral and essentialpart of life for better health ecosystem in rural and urban areas. The nursing services undernational health mission are first promoters and on ground implement warriors of schemes ofthe Central and State Governments. The duties and service rendered by the nurses are veryimportant for the protection of the health and welfare of women, children, poor, disabled, oldage people and vulnerable sections. The nursing services do not have job security and thehonorarium given to them are not sufficient to meet their immediate basic requirements. Thismay adversely affect the working and motto of the National Health Mission.
The nursing services such as ASHA, ANMs, GNMs and others are the main links
between Government and general public. They are helping the Government for the effectiveimplementation of health scheme and due to their dedicated services popularly known as'Corona warriors' during the pandemic of COVID-19. Considering the importance of theirduties and service it is highly necessary to protect their service and welfare.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; RITESH PANDEY
July 6, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for regularization of the services of nursing and confer the
status not less than those of Group 'C' employees of the Central Government on all suchnursing services. It also provides for such wages and welfare measures as are available to ornot less than Group 'C' employees of the Central Government to nursing services. The Bill,therefore, if enacted would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India.A recurring expenditure of about rupees three thousand crore is likely to be involved perannum from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees three thousand crore is also likely to be
involved.
——————
MEMORANDUM OF DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 5 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purpose of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislation powers is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 489
BILL NO. 208 OF 2022
A Bill to ensure proper rehabilitation and relief to victims of acid attacks and for matters
connected therewith or incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
CHAPTER I
PERLIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be called the Prevention of Acid Attacks, Rehabilitation, Support
and Healthcare Act, 2022.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "acid attack" means the act of throwing acid, or causing to or using it in any
form on a person with the intent to cause grievous harm or with the knowledge thatsuch use may lead to permanent or partial disability or deformity or disfiguration ofany part of the body;Short title,extent andcommencement.
Definitions.
(b) "acid" means any substance with particular chemical properties and having
PH of less than 7 of corrosive character or burning nature that is capable of causingbodily injury leading to scars or disfigurement, or both or temporary or permanentdisability;
(c) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(d) "Authority" means the Central Victims of Acid Attack Rehabilitation Authority
constituted under sub-section ( 1) of section 3;
(e) "compensation" means compensation as provided for by this Act;
(f) "family" includes a person, spouse and dependent children and minor siblings:
Provided that surviving spouses, divorcees and persons deserted by families
shall be considered spate families.
Explanation .—An adult person with or without spouse or children or
dependents shall be considered as a separate family for the purposes of this Act;
(g) "Fund" means the Acid Attack Rehabilitation and Support Fund established
under section 14;
(h) "guardian" means a person who is responsible for the care of a minor or a
disabled person;
(i) "medical treatment" means medical, surgical or rehabilitative treatment
(including any corrective surgeries, psychological counselling or diet or other regimens);
(j) "notification" means a notification published in the official gazette by the
appropriate Government;
(k) "person" includes any company or association or body of persons, whether
incorporated or not;
(l) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this act;
(m) "rehabilitation" includes medical and psychological care as well as legal
and social services with the intent to enable victims to attain as well as maintainoptimalphysical, sensory, intellectual, psychological environmental and social functionlevels;
(n) "State Authority" means the State Victims of Acid Attack Rehabilitation
Authority established under sub-section ( 1) of section 9;
(o) "victim" means a person who has suffered any loss or injury caused by acid
attack and includes the guardian or legal heir; and
(p) Words and expressions used and not defined in this Act but defined in the
Indian Penal Code, 1860 or Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 shall have the meanings
respectively assigned to them in those Acts provided that they shall be applied in agender-neutral manner.
CHAPTER II
C
ENTRAL VICTIMS OF ACID ATTACK REHABILITA TION AUTHORITY
3. (1) With effect from such date as the Central Government may, by notification,
appoint, there shall be constituted, for the purposes of this Act, an Authority to be knownas the Central Victims of Acid Attack Rehabilitation Authority.
(2) The Authority shall consist of,—
(a) the Union Minister of State, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment as
the ex-officio Chairperson;Central
Victims ofAcid AttackRehabilitationAuthority.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 491
(b) the Union Minister of State, Ministry of Home Affairs as the ex-officio
Co-Chairperson;
(c) the Union Minister of State, Ministry of Women and Child Development as
the ex-officio Vice-Chairperson;
(d) the Union Minister of State, Ministry of Law and Justice as the ex-officio
Vice-Chairperson;
(e) the Chairperson of National Commission for Women, as the ex-officio
member;
(f) the Chairperson of National Human Rights Commission, as the ex-officio
member;
(g) the Director, National Legal Services Authority as the ex-officio member;
(h) two retired High Court judges to be appointed by the Central Government as
members;
(i) four members to be appointed by the Central Government from amongst
persons having knowledge of, or practical experience in, matters relating to providingassistance to victims of acid attack:
Provided that at least two of the members shall be women or non-binary persons;
and
(j) such other representatives of the Ministries or Departments of the Government
of India or experts representing different States or Union Territories, as may beprescribed as members.
(3) The Central Government shall appoint such number of officers and staff as it
considers necessary for the functioning of the Authority.
(4) The salary and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of services
of officers and staff of the Authority shall be such, as may be prescribed.
4. (1) The Authority shall take all such steps as it may think fit, to ensure planned and
coordinated rehabilitation of victims of acid attack and for the purposes of performing itsfunctions under this Act.
(2) Without prejudice to anything contained in sub-section ( 1), the Authority
shall:—
(a) facilitate and ensure full and proper implementation of all provisions of this
Act, including those pertaining to rehabilitation and relief services, including but notlimited to compensation, reintegration to the victims, safety, care, protection anddignity of victims including prevention of re-traumatisation of victims, or recurrenceof any acid attack against victims, in coordination with the concerned Ministries,Departments, prescribed authorities, statutory bodies;
(b) ensure effective coordination between the concerned authorities involved
in the process of rehabilitation and support;
(c) coordinate with the appropriate Governments and other concerned authorities
to maintain an updated national database of the victims under this Act for the solepurpose of providing relief and support;
(d)
oversee the disbursement of funds allocated for the assistance of the
victims;
(e) make recommendations to the appropriate Government regarding regulation
and control of import, production, transportation, hoarding, sale, distribution of acid;
(f) make recommendations to the appropriate Government for efficacious
implementation of various programmes for victim rehabilitation and also forpreventing acid attacks;
(g) make rules for disbursement of funds;
(h) enhance public awareness about the provisions of this Act and its rules and
regulations and also create a national toll-free helpline to aid the victims and or theirfamily;
(i) perform such other functions as may be prescribed as considered necessary
by the Authority for effective discharge of the provisions of this Act; and
(j) perform such other functions as may be entrusted to it by the Central
Government.
5. (1) The Chairperson, Co-chairperson and Vice-Chairperson of the Authority shall
hold office till the time they discharge the functions of their incumbent office;
(2) The conditions of service of the Chairperson, the Co-Chairperson, the
Vice-Chairperson, and the members of the Authority shall be such as may be prescribed;
(3) The term of office of the members appointed by the Central Government shall be
four years, or till they complete the age of sixty years or till fresh appointments are made,whichever is earlier, and other conditions of service of such members shall be such as may beprescribed;
(4) The Chairperson shall, in addition to presiding over the meetings of the Authority,
exercise and discharge such powers and duties of the Authority as may be delegated to themby the Authority and such other powers and duties as may be prescribed;
(5) The Vice-Chairpersons shall perform such functions as may be assigned to them by
the Chairperson from time to time.
6. A person shall be disqualified for being appointed as a member if he or she:—
(a) has been convicted and sentenced to imprisonment for an offence, which, in
the opinion of the Central Government, involves moral turpitude; or
(b) is an undischarged insolvent; or
(c) is of unsound mind and stands so declared by a competent court; or
(d) has been removed or dismissed from the service of the Government or a
body corporate owned or controlled by the Government; or
(e) has in the opinion of the Central Government such financial or other interest
in the Authority as is likely to prejudicially affect the discharge by them of theirfunctions as a member.
7. The Central Government shall remove a member if he:—
(a) becomes subject to any of the disqualifications mentioned in section 6;
(b) refuses to act or become incapable of acting; or
(c
) in the opinion of the Central Government, has so abused their position so as
to render his or her continuance in office detrimental to the public interest:
Provided that no member shall be removed under this clause unless he or she has been
given a reasonable opportunity of being heard in the matter.
8. (1) The Authority shall regulate its own business.
(2) The Authority shall meet at such time and place, and shall observe such rules of
procedure in regard to the transaction of business at its meetings, including the quorum atsuch meetings, as may be provided by regulations:Terms ofoffice andconditions ofservice.
Disqualification
for office ofmembers.
Vacation of
office ofmember.
Procedure of
business.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 493
Provided that the Authority shall meet at least once in three months.
(3) The Chairperson, and in the absence of the Chairperson, the Co-Chairperson shall
preside at the meetings of the Authority.
(4) If for any reason the Chairperson and the Co-Chairperson both are unable to attend
any meeting of the Authority, any one of the Vice-Chairperson present at the meeting shall
preside at that meeting.
CHAPTER III
STATE VICTIMS OF ACID-ATTACK REHABILITATION AUTHORITY
9. (1) Every State Government shall establish a State Authority to be known as the
State Victims of Acid Attack Rehabilitation Authority for ensuring overall effective
implementation of the provisions of this Act within the State.
(2) The State Authority shall consist of,—
(a) the Chief Secretary— ex-officio Chairperson;
(b) the Secretary, Social Justice Department— ex-officio member;
(c) the Principal Secretary, Home Department— ex-officio member;
(d) the Secretary, Department of Women and Child— ex-officio member;
(e) the Secretary, Labour Department— ex-officio member;
(f) the Secretary, Health Department— ex-officio member;
(g) the Secretary, State Legal Services Authority— ex-officio member;
(h) the Secretary, Law Department— ex-officio member;
(i) an officer of the State Police Department, not below the rank of Inspector
General of Police to be appointed by the appropriate Government—member;
(j) two social workers or representatives of civil society organisations or
non-governmental organisations working in the area of providing aid to the victims ofacid-attacks and related matters to be appointed by the appropriate Government, out
of which at least one shall be a woman or non-binary person—members; and
(k) such other persons to be appointed by the appropriate Government as may
be prescribed—members.
(3) The terms of office and condition of service of the Chairperson and other members
of the State Authority will be the same as that of the Authority as may be prescribed undersection 3.
10. The State Authority shall:—
(a) act as the nodal agency at State level for the compensation of victims of acid
attack and to create a single window for compensation of victims under all the
applicable schemes already in place;
(b)
facilitate and ensure full and proper implementation of all provisions of this
Act, including those pertaining to rehabilitation and relief services including
compensation, reintegration to the victims, safety, care, protection, and dignity of
victims including prevention of re-traumatisation of victims, or recurrence of any acidattack against victims, in coordination with the concerned ministries, departments,
prescribed authorities, statutory bodies;
(c) ensure effective coordination between the concerned authorities involved
in the process of rehabilitation and support;State Victims
of Acid AttackRehabilitationAuthority.
(d) inquire into and constitute fact-finding teams to inquire into incidents of
acid violence;
(e) monitor the allocation and utilization of the funds allocated by the
Authority;
(f) coordinate with District Legal Service Authority and State Legal Service
Authority to provide appropriate legal aid to the victims;
(g) recommend the appropriate Government to notify medical facilities and other
services including psychological help and other needs of the victims;
(h) make recommendations to the respective State Government regarding
strategies to regulate and control the import, production, transportation, hoarding,sale, distribution of acid;
(i) make recommendations to the State Governments for efficacious
implementation of various programmes for victim rehabilitation and also for
preventing acid-attacks;
(j) arrange for appropriate training and sensitisation of functionaries and
governmental and non-governmental personnel;
(k) develop effective networking and linkages with governmental and non-
governmental organisations for specialised services and technical assistance like
vocational training, education, healthcare, nutrition, mental health intervention,
and legal aid services;
(1) enhance public awareness about the provisions of this Act and its rules; and
(m) perform such other functions as may be prescribed as considered necessary
by the Authority.
CHAPTER IV
R
EHABILTATION AND SUPPORT OF VICTIMS
11. (1) Upon registration of a First Information Report of an offence of acid attack, the
Investigating Officer shall forward a copy of the same to the State Authority and the DistrictLegal Services Authority, which shall provide immediate relief to the victim and dependent,if any, including aid and assistance for medical and rehabilitation needs, as may berequired after due assessment, in such manner as may be prescribed, within seven days of
the receipt of the same, as the case may be.
(2) The State Authority shall award interim relief to a victim or any dependent within a
period of thirty days of an application submitted by or on behalf of them in this regard, afterdue assessment, in such manner as may be prescribed.
(3) The State Authority shall ensure that all measures have been taken for relief and
rehabilitation of the victim and dependent, if any, including for his safety and relocation, at
the earliest after registration of the first information report under this Act, and within thirty
days of an application having been made in this regard by or on behalf of the victim:
Provided that, in case appropriate relief is not awarded, or has not been awarded within
thirty days from the application, the victim shall approach the Central Victims of Acid AttackRehabilitation Authority as per the provisions of section 15.
(4) The relief and compensation, including those provided under sub-section ( 1), shall
be in addition to any other compensation including any amount or benefit payable by way of
any damages or under any scheme of the appropriate Government or pursuant to any orderof the court under any law for the time being in force.
(5) The Authority shall frame rules for the effective implementation of the provisions
of sub-section ( 1) and ( 2) and disbursement of monetary assistance within one month from
the commencement of this Act.Providingmonetaryassistance.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 495
(6) The designated court may order, where applicable, any back wages due to the
victim to be paid to them, in addition to any relief extended to the victim under this section.
(7) In case of the death of the victim caused by or as a consequence of the acid attack
the children or any other dependent of the victim may apply to the State Authority for reliefin accordance with the rules notified under this Act.
12. (1) The appropriate Government shall provide—
(a) free medical treatment including life-long care to the victim at all the private,
government and municipal corporation hospitals, as may be notified; and
(b) free psychological help to the victim and their family for such period as the
concerned psychologist deems fit.
(2) The Authority shall provide funds for any elective surgery opted for, by a victim, to
alleviate the harm caused by or as a consequence of the acid attack which may include skingrafting or plastic surgery as per the rules prescribed:
Provided that no fund shall be provided for elective surgery unless in the opinion of
the operating surgeon and one other surgeon, the procedure does not cause substantial riskto the victim.
(3) The treating doctor shall inform the nearest police station in case of an acid attack
and it shall be the duty of the police officer in charge of the station to inform the District LegalServices Authority as well as the State Authority in such manner as may be prescribed.
(4) On receipt of such information, the District Legal Services Authority, shall 5 along
with a representative send a mental trauma team to provide psychological and mental relief tothe victim and their family.
(5) The State Authority along with either District Legal Services Authority or State
Legal Services Authority shall ensure that the victim is provided free counseling at a medicalfacility or a doctor of their choice and under circumstances where the victim is unable tochoose, a psychologist may be appointed as may deem necessary.
(6) The State Authority shall mandate the creation of skin banks at the medical facilities
to be notified under the Act and ensure that there is at least one skin bank in every district.
(7) The State Authority shall, through either District Legal Services Authority or State
Legal Services Authority provide free legal aid and support through all the stages of the trial
and also in case if the victim wants to initiate civil action for claiming damages againstmaterial and non-material sufferings caused by any offence under this Act.
13. (a) The appropriate Government shall, by notification in the official gazette, set
up skill development institutes to provide skill training opportunities for those acid
attack victims seeking educational resources in order to re-integrate themselves into
society.
(b) The appropriate Governments shall contribute to the funding of the unit set up
under sub-section ( 1) in such manner as may be prescribed.
(c) The appropriate Government shall encourage private firms to set up
enterprise-based training institutes as a part of corporate social responsibility for impartinghigh-quality job-oriented training to youth and ensure sufficient opportunities for employmentto acid attack victims on completion of training.
14. (1) The Central Government shall, within one month of the commencement of
this Act, establish and maintain a Fund to be called the Acid Attack Rehabilitation andSupport Fund, for the relief and rehabilitation of acid attack victims.
(2) The Central Government, after receiving due reports from the Authority, shall
provide adequate funds, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in this behalf, for
the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this Act.Medical andlegalassistance.
Acid attack
Rehabilitationand SupportFund.Setting up of
skilldevelopmentinstitutes.
(3) All moneys belonging to the fund shall be deposited in such banks or invested
in such manner as may be decided by the Authority.
(4) The Authority may spend such sums as it thinks fit for performing its functions
under this Act, and such sums shall be treated as expenditure payable out of the fund of theAuthority.
CHAPTER V
M
ISCELLANEOUS
15. (1) In case the State Authority rejects or fails to provide compensation or relief,
either immediate or interim, or any further compensation within the prescribed period thensuch victim may apply to the Control Authority, for compensation or relief in such manner asmay be prescribed.
(2) In case of applications received under sub-section ( 1), the Central Authority shall
ensure disbursal of funds in a time-bound manner, not later than fifteen days after receivingthe application.
16. The Authority may, by general or special order in writing, delegate to the
Chairperson or any other member or any officer of the State Authority, subject to suchconditions and limitations, if any, as may be specified in the order, such of its powers andfunctions under this Act, as it may deem necessary.
17. No prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie against the Central Government,
the Authority or any State Authority, or any member of the authority or any officer oremployee of the Central Government or the Authority or any other person authorised bythat Government or the Authority, for anything which is in good faith done or intended to bedone under this Act or the rules or regulations made thereunder.
18. (1) The Authority shall, in the discharge of its functions and duties under this Act
be bound by such directions on questions of policy as the Central Government may give inwriting to it from time to time.
(2) The decision of the Central Government as to whether a question is one of policy
or not shall be final.
19. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order, published in the official gazette, make such provisions notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act as may appear to be necessary for removing the
difficulty:
Provided that no order shall be made under this section after the expiry of two years
from the commencement of this Act.
20. The provisions of this Act, shall be in addition to and not in derogation of the
provisions of any other law for the time being in force and, in case of any inconsistency, the
provisions of this Act shall have an overriding effect on the provisions of any such law tothe extent of the inconsistency.
21. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Gazette of India, make rules
and regulations for carrying out the purpose of this Act.
(2) Every rule and regulation made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after
it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty
days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if,before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions
aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule and regulation or both
the Houses agree that the rule and regulation should not be made, the rule and regulationshall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be;
so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to thevalidity of anything previously done under that rule and regulation.Delegation of
Powers andfunctions.
Power to
removedifficulties.Appellate
Authority.
Protection of
action takenin good faith.
Direction by
the CentralGovernment.
Provision not
in derogationof any otherlaw.
Power to
make rules andregulations.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 497
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The report of National Crime Records Bureau published in 2020 indicates that there
has been no decline in the number of acid attack victims even after amending the criminallaws to curtail such abhorring attacks. There is an impending need to support these victimsas they have suffered enough and alleviation of the suffering of victims of such horrendouscrimes is the duty of the state. International Human Rights law requires Governments to actaffirmatively and with due diligence to protect human rights and adequately respond tohuman rights violations. Due diligence imposes upon Governments the obligations to enactlegislation designed to combat acid attack violence, ensure effective implementation of laws,and provide redress to victims.
Although the Government has recognized the need for the formulation of a
compensation scheme for victims of acid attacks, it has come up with a scheme that is toocomplicated for a victim who has already suffered enough. Many victims have reported thatthey have not received the compensation in full or there have been arbitrary cuts. Although,
certain States have been efficaciously disbursing relief funds, there is a need to address theissue with a central legislation. This legislation aims to create a single window for compensationfor the victims of acid attack so as to alleviate their suffering. The legislation mandates thecreation of skin banks and also provides necessary measures to deal with psychologicaltrauma as well. Many acid attack survivors must undergo numerous complicated surgicalprocedures. These medical procedures are very costly and require specialized expertise andfacilities. Thus the Bill provides medical treatment and elective surgeries to be conductedfree of cost.
Further, as a result of disfigurement, victims are either temporarily or permanently
incapacitated and are forced to give up their lives, their livelihood, and their education. Inthis regard, compensation to cover vital surgeries for victims who can no longer supportthemselves becomes imperative. There is also a need to prevent the supply of such corrosiveacids in the ordinary consumer market. Hence, the Authority under this Bill shall also aid inthe creation of policy to prevent acid attacks and shall also formulate rules for the import orproduction of acid. There is a need for comprehensive legislation which provides holisticrelief to victims of acid attacks and does so in a gender-neutral manner. Under the currentlaws, there are barriers to access to relief and rehabilitation for male, transgender and non-binary persons.
N
EW DELHI; DILESHWAR KAMAIT
July 18, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for constitution of a Central Victims of Acid Attack
Rehabilitation Authority. Clause 9 provides for constitution of a State Victims of Acid AttackRehabilitation Authority. Clause 11 provides for monetary assistance.Clause 12 provides forfree medical and legal assistance for the victims. Clause 13 provides for setting up of skilldevelopment institutes for the victims and clause 14 provides for Acid Attack Rehabilitationand Support Fund to be established for the relief and rehabilitation of acid attack victims.The Bill, therefore, if enacted will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India.However, at this stage, it is not possible to give an estimate of recurring or non-recurring
expenditure involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 21 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules and regulations
for carrying out the purposes of the Bill. As the matters in respect of which rules may be madeare matters of procedure and details only and it is not practicable to provide for them in theBill itself the delegation of legislative power is, therefore, of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 499
BILL NO. 203 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for the welfare measures for the employees who have been terminated dy
the employers and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Terminated Employees (Welfare) Act, 2022.
(2) Save as otherwise provided in this Act, it shall not apply employee who has been
terminated for any of the following reasons:—
(a) proven misconduct;
(b) cheating;
(c) indulging in fraudulent means or misappropriation of money; or
(d) having been found guilty by a criminal court of justice.Short title and
application.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) 'employer' means the owner or the director of any establishment or any
organization which is not owned by the Central Government or a State Government orwhich is not the undertaking of or controlled by the Central Government or a StateGovernment or funded by the Central Government or a State Government butincludes the owner or director of a private establishment where not less than tenpersons are employed;
(b) "fund" means the Corpus Fund established under section 4;
(c) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act; and
(d) "terminated employee" means any employee who was employed by any
employer, whether regular or temporary or casual or on contract and whose serviceshave been terminated by the employer.
3. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force, every
employee whose employment has been terminated by the employer for the reasons of thewinding up of the organization or the establishment due to:—
(i) economic slowdown; or
(ii) change in technology in the respective field; or
(iii) the owner or director managing the affairs of the establishment becoming
insolvent; or
(iv) the orders of any court; or
(v) incurring losses making it unviable to carry on the business; or
(vi) the change in Government policy;
shall be entitled to such unemployment compensation, health insurance benefits or
any other benefits as may be prescribed if such benefits are not part of the employee-
employer agreement, for a period of nine months or till the time he gets employed elsewhere,
whichever is earlier.
Explanation I. —The period of nine months shall include the notice period to be
served by the employer before termination.
Explanation II. —The unemployment compensation shall be admissible if the employer
does not provide any severance package to the terminated employee or the severance
package is less than the compensation provided under this Act.
(2) The unemployment compensation under sub-section ( 1) shall not be less than
sixty per cent. of the gross salary of the terminated employee or as per the terms of the
employee-employer agreement, whichever is higher and it shall be borne by the employer.
(3) The health insurance benefit shall continue till the period as specified in sub-
section ( 1) with the same terms and conditions which prevailed during his employment.
(4) A terminated employee shall also be entitled to such terminal benefits which would
have been available to him on the cessation of employment including provident fund, gratuity
and leave encashment.
(5) The benefits notified under sub-section ( 1) shall be paid to the terminated employee
from the month following the month on which termination notice is communicated to theemployee or on completion of the notice period, if any:
Provided that if due to any reason, the employer is not able to pay the benefits within
one month from the date of the termination of the employment, the employer shall pay to theterminated employee an interest at the rate of twelve per cent. per month for such delay.Definitions.
Benefits to
terminatedemployees.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 501
(6) Nothing in this Act shall apply to any terminated employee if benefits admissible
under the employee-employer agreement, are higher than the benefits prescribed under thisAct.
4. (1) Every employer shall create a corpus fund to which at least five per cent. of the
net profit of the organization shall be credited, which shall be used for the welfare of terminatedemployees under this Act.
(2) Every employer shall be entitled to solicit contribution from any organization,
individual or trust for the purpose of maintaining the fund, in such manner as may be,prescribed.
(3) Without prejudice to the generality of the provision contained in sub-section ( 1)
the fund shall also be utilized for the following purposes, namely:—
(a) payment of expenditure in connection with the education of the children of
the terminated employees; and
(b) medical facilities, free of cost, in such a manner as may be prescribed.
5. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide adequate funds for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
6. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,Parliament agrees in making any modification in the rule or Parliament agrees that the ruleshould not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be ofno effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall bewithout prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Corpus fundfor welfare ofterminatedemployees.
Central
Governmentto providefunds.
Power to
make rules.
STA TEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
In an era, when the space for Public Sector has substantially shrunk and role of Private
Sector has expanded, many questions relating to the welfare of employees attached toPrivate Sector and employer-employee relations have become significant. It has been observedthat employees face undiminished threat of losing jobs and live in a climate of uncertainty.Things become worse when they are relieved from jobs without any substantivecompensation. Hundreds and thousands of people in their midage with family responsibilitiesand economic liabilities face unprecedented challenges to survive. It not only affect theirlives but also the social and cultural process too. Moreover, laying off due to change inmanagement policies or the Government policies or due to the losses incurred due to inefficientmanagement are all the events where the employee doesn't have much control but is the onewho suffers the most.
Neo liberalisation has increased the uncertainties in the lives of people. It also justifies
inequality to an extent on the one hand and indoctrinates the employers to become insensitiveto their employees. In fact, it has revived the rejected doctrine 'survival of the fittest'. Thisconcern needs to be essentially addressed. Any welfare State cannot give primacy to profitmaking. Indian Constitution aspires, idealizes and also inspires to make endeavour to achieveequality. This cannot be treated as dead ideal. The State has to strive for it. No economic
system can endure or can yield greater good of greater number and protect the interests ofworking people if it follows the blind path of development and allows the concentration ofwealth. The goal of New India is to maximise egalitarianism and to minimise inequality. In thiscontext protection of economic interests and dignity of employees of private sector is bothmoral and constitutional duty of the Indian State.
At present there is no law to ensure that the employers provide terminal benefits in
time and which makes provision for education, medical facilities etc., to the families of employeeswho have been terminated. The Bill provides for minimum nine months of assured incomeincluding medical benefits to the terminated employees which will give them enough time toreassign themselves to new employment without disturbing the existing set up of theirfamily. After employment a person often takes few loans to meet his need, gets their childrenadmitted at a certain level of school. All this cannot come to a halt without any of his fault.The family of the employee should not suffer because of such events. The Bill seeks toachieve the above objective.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; DILESHW AR KAMAIT
July 18, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 503
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 5 of the Bill provides that the Central Government shall provide funds for
carrying out the provisions of the Bill. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, will involveexpenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is likely to involve a recurring expenditureof about rupees ten thousand crore per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees five thousand crore is also likely to be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 6 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 505
Short title and
commencement.
Definitions.
23 of 2010.BILL NO. 280 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for the prevention of violence against healthcare professionals and
clinical establishments and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Prevention of Violence Against Healthcare Professionals
and Clinical Establishments Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "clinical establishment" means the clinical establishment as defined under
clause ( c) of section 2 of the Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation)
Act, 2010;
(b) "healthcare professionals" includes,—
(i) a registered medical practitioner, possessing a recognised medical
qualification under National Medical Commission Act, 2019;
(ii) a medical practictioner registered for practicing in any other system of
medicine which is recognised under any law for the time being in force;
(iii) a mental health professionals under the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017;
(iv) a registered dentist, registered dental hygienist and registered dental
mechanic as defined in the Dentist's Act, 1948;
(v) a registered nurse, midwife, auxiliary nurse-midwife and health visitor
who is registered under Indian Nursing Council Act, 1947;
(vi) occupational therapist, speech therapists, nutritionists, seeking or
imparting medical education, pharmacists and para—medical staff who providehealthcare service in clinical establishments;
(vii) a medical or a nursing student who is undergoing education or
training in any system of medicine recognised by any law for the time being inforce; and
(viii) a person who interacts with the families of patients to facilitate
treatment in hospitals such as social worker, bereavement counselors, transplantcoordinators and Arogya Mitra appointed under PM—JAY Scheme;
(c) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(d) "property" means any property movable or immovable, medical equipment or
machinery; owned by or in possession of or under the control of any healthcareprofessionals or clinical establishment; and
(e) "violence" means an act which causes or may cause any harm, injury or
endanger of the life of or intimidation, obstruction or hindrance to any healthcareprofessional in discharge of his duties or causes any damage or loss to the property orreputation of a healthcare professional or a clinical establishment.
3. Any act of violence and targeted violence based on caste, gender, religion, language,
place of birth against a healthcare professional or a clinical establishment shall be prohibitedand mitigated at all levels.
4. Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, any
offence committed under this Act shall be cognizable and non—bailable and triable by theCourt of Judicial Magistrate of the First Class.
5. (1) Whoever, commits or attempts to commit or abets or incites the commission of
any act of violence in infringement of the provisions of section 3, shall be punished withimprisonment which shall not be less than six months but which may extend up—to fiveyears and with fine which shall not be less than rupees five thousand but which may extendupto rupees five lakh.
(2) Whoever, while committing an act of violence cause grievous hurt as defined under
section 320 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 to any healthcare professionals, he shall uponconviction be punished with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than threeyears, but which may extend to ten years and with fine which shall not be less than two lakhrupees but which may extend to ten lakh.
6. Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, the
aggrieved healthcare professional inform the officer-in-charge of concerned police station ofthe commission of an offence under this act and if he so desires request the support of thehead of the clinical establishment for making complaints in such manner as may be prescribed.Prohibition ofviolence.
Cognizance of
offence.
Penalties.
Information
of offence.30 of 2019.
10 of 2017.
16 of 1948.
48 of 1947.
5 of 1974.
45 of 1860.
2 of 1974.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 507
7. Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, any
case registered under this Act shall be investigated by a police officer not below the rank ofDeputy Superintendent of Police.
8. (1) For acts of violence punishable under this Act, in addition to the punishment
provided for the offences under section 5, the convicted person shall be liable to pay by wayof compensation an amount equivalent to twice the amount of fair market value of the
damaged property or the loss caused as may be determined by the competent court.
(2) The compensation for causing hurt or grievous hurt to healthcare professionals
and damage cause to clinical establishments shall be as per degree of harm inflicted as maybe decided by competent court.
(3) If the convicted person fails to pay the compensation under sub-section ( 1) the
said sum shall be recovered as an arrear of land revenue under the Revenue Recovery Act,1890 in such manner as may be prescribed.
9. It shall be the responsibility of every healthcare professional or clinical establishment,
as the case may be to,—
(a) ensure that patients do not wait for long duration for their treatment or
consultation;
(b) ensure that all information about patients and their medical records are
available to the family members and the patient or their family members shall beentitled to obtain second opinion;
(c) ensure that there is no information asymmetry to patients;
(d) establish appropriate grievance redressal system in clinical establishments;
(e) strengthen hospital security including interlocking with nearby police station;
(f) ensure transparency on rates of consultation, investigations, rents and other
expenses of hospitals;
(g) ensure mandatory reporting of the violence against healthcare professionals
and the clinical establishment including creating a panel to investigate cases of violence
against healthcare professionals;
(h) display the constraints under which most healthcare professionals operate
and sensitise the public visiting clinical establishments; and
(i) change the curriculum of the medical education and include the concurrence
of cognitive skills, psychomotor skills and empathic skills.
10. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, establish
a District Committee or for such area as may be specified in such notification to hearappeals and grievances of the victims of medical negligence or mismanagement under thisAct and to aid and advice such victims for taking recourse to an appropriate forum for asuitable relief including dealing with issues in insurance claiming by the patients.
(2) The District Committee shall convene every month.
(3) The District Committee shall provide suitable relief to the parties within two sittings.
(4)
Notwithstanding anything prescribed in this Act, the deliberations made hereto
may be held by a court of law of competent jurisdiction within the territories of the country.
(5) The Committee established under sub-section ( 1) shall consist of—
(a) the Member of Parliament of the respective constituency who shall be the
Chairperson of the District Committee; andInvestigation
of offence.
Compensation.2 of 1974.
Establishment
of DistrictCommittee.
(b) one expert each from the field of medicine, law, consumer movement, health
management and human rights to be appointed by the Central Government in suchmanneras may be prescribed.
(6) Any appeals, arguments or rebuttals presented to this effect by either of the
parties shall be kept transparent and open for media and public scrutiny without anyprejudices.
(7) The salary and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of service of
experts mentioned in the sub-section (4), and the procedure to be followed by the committeeshall be such as may be prescribed.
11. The Central Government shall provide after due appropriation made by Parliament
by law in this behalf, necessary requisite funds, from time to time, for carrying out thepurposes of this Act.
12. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions, notinconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as appear to it to be necessary or expedient forremoving the difficulty:
Provided that no such orders shall be made after the expiry of the period of three years
from the date of commencement of this Act.
13. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make
rules for carrying out the purposes of the Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.CentralGovernmentto providerequisite funds.
Power to
removedifficulties.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 509
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The violence against healthcare service personnel is not only endemic to India but
also in western countries where over the years the violence against them has been reducedin western countries due to increase spending in healthcare and deterrent act which tends toprevent the violence against healthcare workers.
According to a study made by the Indian Medical Association, more than 75 per cent.
of the doctors have faced some form of violence while on duty. The violence is not justphysical they also face verbal abuse almost every day. Many states have enacted laws toprevent violence against healthcare professionals and damage to hospital property.
However, various lacuna exists in the State acts. The need is to focus on both positive
deterrence and negative deterrence.
As already mentioned there are acts to prevent the violence but excessive focus on
increasing punishment and penalties is simply not working unless the underlying cause ofviolence is addressed. The need is also to consider the most significant aspect which is theconduct or state of mind that specifically focus on targeted violence. The important dimensionwhich lead to violence against healthcare service workers in the government and privatehospitals is long waiting period, patients relatives feel that the doctors are not giving enoughattention, trust deficiency etc. The need is to provide a mechanism to act as positive deterrence,to state a few, optimizing the long waiting period, a good grievance addressal and redressalmechanism, displaying the constraints under which healthcare service personnel works, etc.which will sensitize the public visiting hospitals. The change in medical education curriculumis one such measure in this regard where Medical Council of India has proposed new teachinglearning approaches which includes structural longitudinal programme on "AETCOM". Thegrief counseling should be the essential part of medical training. The need is also to establisha committee chaired by the Member of Parliament which will hear the appeals and grievancesof the victims of medical negligence or mismanagement and to aid and advice such victims.It is also required that an investigation panel be created by the clinical establishment toinvestigate the case of violence against the healthcare workers. The mere increase ofpunishment does not serve the deterrence purposes whereas the same act has to betterenforced or which increase the likelihood of being caught and ensuring speedier consequences.The present Bill not only merely focuses on punishment but also address the other parameterswhich lead to violence. It will ensure that all the healthcare service personnel have the rightto work in a safe and secure work place which is free of violence and also secure the rights ofpatients.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; DNV SENTHILKUMAR S.
August 8, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 10 of the Bill provides for establishment of district-wise Committee to provide
timely assistance to the victims of medical negligence. It also provides for appointment ofexperts to the Committee. Clause 11 provides for the Central Government to provide adequatefunds for carrying out the purposes of this Act. The Bill, therefore, if enacted and broughtinto operation, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimatedthat a sum of rupees fifty crore of recurring expenditure per annum would involve from theConsolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 13 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of this Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 511
BILL NO. 269 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for the construction and management of a National Memorial to perpetuate
the memory of the farmers who died or were wounded on 28 January 1894 atPatharughat in the State of Assam.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Patharughat National Farmers Memorial Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "Memorial" means the National Memorial to perpetuate the memory of the farmers
who died or were injured on 28 January 1894 at Patharughat in Darrang District of the Stateof Assam;
(b) "Trust" means the Trust for the construction and management of the Memorial;
andShort title andcommencement.
Definitions.
(c) "Trustee" means the Trustee of the Martyr Farmers National Memorial,
Patharughat.
3. The objects of the Trust shall be—
(a) to construct and maintain suitable buildings, structures and parks at the site
or in the surrounding area in order to perpetuate the memory of the farmers who diedor were injured on the 28th day of January, 1894, at Patharughat in the State of Assam;
(b) to acquire land, buildings and other properties for the trust; and
(c) to raise and receive funds for the purposes of the Memorial.
4. (1) The trustees of the memorial shall be following, namely:—
(a) the Prime Minister—Chairperson,
(b) the Union Minister-in-charge of Culture;
(c) the Leader recognized as leader of opposition in the House of the People or
where there is no leader of opposition, then leader of the largest party in opposition in
the House;
(d) the Governor of the State of Assam;
(e) the Chief Minister of the State of Assam; and
(f) three eminent persons nominated by the Central Government.
(2) The trustees shall be body corporate by the name of "Trustee of the Martyr
Farmers National Memorial Patharughat" for the purposes of this Act shall have perpetual
succession and a common seal and shall by the said name sue and be sued and shall beentitled to contract for the acquisition and holding of property.
5. The trustees nominated under clause ( f) of sub-section ( 1) of section 4 shall continue
to be trustees for a period of five years and shall be eligible for re-nomination.
6. All funds and property, whether movable or immovable, which may go to it,
bequeathed or otherwise be transferred for the purpose of the Memorial or shall be acquiredfor the said purpose, shall vest with the Trust.
7. The Central Government may, after appropriation made by Parliament by law in this
behalf, grant to the Trust such sums of money as the Central Government may think fit forthe purposes of this Act.
8. (1) For the purposes of managing the affairs of the Trust, the Trustees may, by a
resolution passed in the meeting, appoint a Management Committee and assign to it suchpowers, duties and functions subject to such directions and limitations as may be defined in
such resolution.
(2) The trustees may appoint any persons, whether such persons are trustees or not,
as members of the management committee and may, from time to time, vary or rescind any
resolution passed by it under this section.
9. The Trust shall meet at least once in a year for approving the audited accounts of the
Trust and shall transact such other business as may be deemed necessary.
10. No act of the trustees shall be deemed to be invalid by reason of any vacancy in the
body of the trustees or any defect in its constitution.Objects of the
Trust.
Trustees of
the Memorial.
Term of office
of nominatedtrustees.
Property
vested withthe trustees.
Central
Governmentto providefunds.
Power of
trustees toappointmanagementcommittee.
Power to
approveauditedaccounts.
V alidity of the
acts of trusteesnot to bequestioned dueto vacancy etc.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 513
11. (1) The accounts of the trust shall be audited by the Comptroller and Auditor-
General of India at such intervals as may be specified by him and the expenses in connectionwith such audit shall be payable by the trust to the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India.
(2) The Comptroller and Auditor-General and any person appointed by him under this
act in connection with the audit of the accounts of the Trust shall have generally the usualrights, privileges and authority in connection with such audit as the Comptroller and Auditor-General has in case of audit of the Government accounts and shall have rights in particularfor demanding the presentation of books, accounts, related vouchers and other documentsand to inspect any of the offices of the trust.
(3) The audit report and account report of the trust as certified by the Comptroller and
Auditor-General or by any other person appointed by him in this matter shall be forwarded toCentral Government every year and the Central Government shall lay the reports as soon aspossible on the table of both houses of the Parliament.
12. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such
rules shall have power to make rules for—
(a) the manner in which the funds of the Memorial shall be kept, deposited or
invested;
(b) the manner of authentication of orders for the payment of money by the
Trustees;
(c) the form in which accounts shall be maintained by the trustees and the audit
of such accounts and their publication;
(d) the layout, construction, improvement, preservation and management of the
monument;
(e) the conditions on which the public shall have access to the monument or
particular parts thereof and the regulation of the conduct of persons entering themonument; and
(f) the preservation of any property vested in the Trustee, and the prevention of
damage to, or interference with, that property and restriction of persons trespassingon any particular part of the monument.
(3) A rule made under this section may provide that a breach of any rule made under
clauses ( e) and ( f) of sub-section ( 2) shall be punishable with fine which may extend to one
hundred rupees.
13. The Trustees may make such regulations as may be relevant to this Act for all or
any of the following purposes:
(a) the manner in which meetings of the Trustees shall be called, the quorum for
the transaction of business at such meetings and the procedure to be followed at suchmeetings;
(b)
the manner in which the decision of the majority of the Trustees, the matter in
respect of which the decision shall be obtained by circulation to the required Trustees,the power of the Trustees to make regulations;
(c) the term of office of the members of the management committee, their powers
and duties and the circumstances in which, and the conditions subject to which, suchpowers and duties may be exercised; and
(d) the appointment of such officers and servants as may be deemed necessary for the
purposes of the trust, and the terms and conditions of their service.Accounts andAudit.
Power to
make rules.
Power to
trustees tomakeregulations.
14. Every rule made by the Central Government under this Act shall be laid, as soon as
may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a totalperiod of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successivesessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or thesuccessive sessions aforesaid, both the Houses agree in making any modification in the ruleor regulation or both Houses agree that the rule or regulation should not be made, the rule orregulation shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as thecase may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudiceto the validity of anything previously done under that rule or regulation.Laying ofrules andregulationsbeforeParliament.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 515
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The pages of the history of independent India are full of incidents that unfold stories
of bravery, sacrifice and patriotism. In India's freedom struggle against the British hegemony,countless people from different parts of India fought for the freedom of their motherlandagainst the British rule and sacrificed their lives. The people of Assam had bravely participatedin the freedom movement against the exploitation, discrimination and tyranny of the British.One such incident is the historical revolt of the Patharughat farmers of Darrang district ofAssam against the increasing rate of land tax by the British. Patharughat is a small village inDarrang district of Assam, situated approximately 60 kilometers north-east of Guwahati.
25 years before the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, on January 28, 1894, more than 100
farmers were shot dead by the British. This incident took place in Patharughat, Assam. Afterthe occupation of Assam by the British in 1826, the survey of the vast land of this statestarted. On the basis of such surveys, the British started levying land tax, due to which thediscontent spread among the farmers. In 1893, the British Government decided to increasethe agricultural land tax to 80 percent. On this day the farmers were protesting against theBritish. British soldiers were ordered to shoot these farmers, due to which more than 100farmers had to lose their lives.
This incident gave a new direction to India's freedom movement. The deaths of many
innocent farmers further strengthened the freedom struggle against the British. The martyrsof Patharughat are always remembered in the golden pages of history for their bravery andsacrifice for their motherland.
Therefore, there is a need that a museum should be declared as a national memorial to
perpetuate the memory of farmers who died or were injured on January 28, 1894, at Patharughatin the State of Assam.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; DILIP SAIKIA
November 21, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for the construction and maintenance of suitable buildings,
structures and gardens around the National Memorial Patharughat by the trust and acquisitionof land, buildings and other properties for the purpose of the trust and raising and receivingfunds for the purpose of the memorial. Clause 7 provides for grants to be given to the Trustby the Central Government after due appropriation done by parliament by law in this behalffor the purposes of the Act.
Therefore, on enactment of this Bill, both recurring and non-recurring expenditure are
likely to be incurred from the Consolidated Fund of India. However, it is difficult to estimatethe amount required for this purpose as it will depend on the decisions of the Trust.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 12 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. Clause 13 provides for power of trustees to make such regulationsas may be relevant to this Act. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegationof legislative powers is of normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 517
Short title,
extent andcommencement.BILL NO. 9 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for the constitution of a Board for regulation of private coaching centres
and for matters connected therewith.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Private Coaching Centres Regulatory Board Act, 2023.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "Board" means the Private Coaching Centers Regulatory Board constituted
under section 3;
(b) "private coaching centre" means an institution imparting—
(i) pre-admission coaching to students for admission into any medical,
engineering or any other professional course; or
(ii) pre-examination coaching for securing Government or private job
through written or oral examination conducted by any agency of the Governmentor a private establishment; orDefinitions.
(iii) coaching of any subject taught at secondary or senior secondary
school examination level; and
(c) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
3. (1) The Central Government shall constitute a Board to be known as the Private
Coaching Centres Regulatory Board for the purpose of regulating the functioning of privatecoaching centres in such manner as may be prescribed.
(2) The Board shall have its office in every State and Union territory.
(3) The Central Government shall appoint such number of officers and employees as it
considers necessary for the efficient functioning of the Board.
(4) The salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of service of
the officers and employees of the Board shall be such as may be prescribed.
4. The Board shall—
(a) give recognition to private coaching centres on such conditions, as may be
prescribed;
(b) specify, from time to time, the fee to be charged by coaching centres from
students;
(c) formulate a refund policy for the students who leave coaching midway or
before completion;
(d) specify modes of payment of fee in lump sum and in installments by the
students;
(e) specify the number of holidays including weekly holiday on Sundays to be
observed by coaching centres per week;
(f) lay down the minimum qualifications for teachers to be appointed in coaching
centres;
(g) determine, in respect of coaching centres, the minimum number of teachers
and the student-teacher ratio in the classes;
(h) ensure the appointment of counselor, psychiatrist and physiologist in every
coaching centre for counseling of students;
(i) suggest steps to be taken by every coaching centre for reducing psychological
pressure on students;
(j) ensure that the yoga classes and sports activities are being provided by the
coaching centres;
(k) fix the timings of the coaching centres; and
(l) specify the level of basic facilities to be provided in every coaching centre.
5. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under the rule.Constitution
of Private
Coaching
CentresRegulatory
Board.
Functions of
the Board.
Power to make
rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 519
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The dependence on coaching for preparation of entrance exams for IIT and Medical is
growing very fast all over the country. These coaching institutes claim to improve the futureof the students of the country and give guarantee of their selection in IIT and medicalentrance exams. While lakhs of students appear in the exams in the country, the seats areonly in thousands. Classes in such institutes run seven days a week. Sometimes there aremore than 100 students per class in these coaching institutes.Too much pressure is put onthe students to score good marks and rank in the examination as a result of which thechildren become victim of depression. Excessive pressure on children for study in theseinstitutes is proving to be fatal. According to a data, 16 students commit suicide every day inthe country coming under pressure of examinations. According to crime record bureau,10335 students committed suicide in 2019, 12526 in 2020 and 13089 in 2021 which is almost63.3 percent more in comparison to the figures in 2013. According to the bureau, 40.17percent of those committing suicide are youths below 30 years out of which 17.2 percent aregirls below the age of 30 years. So, there is an urgent need to enact a legislation to regulatethe functioning of such private coaching centres in the country.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; DILIP SAIKIA
December 16, 2022
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill seeks to provide for the constitution of Private Coaching Centre
Regulatory Board for regulating the functioning of private coaching centres. The Bill, therefore,if enacted, would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimatedthat a recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore will be involved per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees fifty crore is also likely to be involved.
——————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 5 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Act. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation ofLegislative Power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 521
BILL NO. 46 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for compulsory teaching of ill-effects of drug addiction in schools
and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Compulsory Teaching of Ill-effects of Drug Addiction
in Schools Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "Advisory Council" means the Advisory Council for teaching ill-effects of
Drug Addiction constituted under section 6;
(b) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government
of State and in all other cases, the Central Government;(c) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
(d) "School" means a primary or a middle or a secondary or a senior secondary
level school imparting education to children, by whatever name such institution iscalled.
3. From such date, as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official
Gazette specify, that ill-effects of drug addiction shall be taught as a compulsory subject inall schools from such class onwards as may be determined by the Central Government on therecommendation of Advisory Council constituted under section 6.Short title andcommencement.
Definitions.
Compulsory
teaching ofill-effects ofDrugAddiction inschools.
4. The appropriate Government shall immediately after issuance of the notification
under section 3, issue directions for compulsory teaching about the ill-effects of drug addictionin schools within its jurisdiction.
5. Subject to such rules, as may be prescribed, the appropriate Government shall
ensure appointment of such number of teachers with such qualifications, as may be specified,for teaching about the ill-effects of drug addiction in schools.
6. (1) The Central Government shall, within three months of the coming into force of
this Act, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute an Advisory Council for teachingill-effects of drug addiction.
(2) The Advisory Council shall consist of such number of persons, having special
knowledge or practical experience in the field of dealing with drug addiction or narcotics, asthe Central Government may deem fit.
7. The Advisory Council shall perform the following functions, namely:—
(a) recommend to the Central Government the syllabus for teaching about the ill-
effects of drug addiction for each class;
(b) recommend to the Central Government the class from which the subject of
the ill-effects of drug addiction is to be taught in schools;
(c) recommend to the appropriate Government the qualifications of teachers
to be appointed in schools for teaching the subject of ill-effects of drug addiction;
(d) recommend to the appropriate Government the institutions which may be
given recognition for training of teachers teaching ill-effects of drug addiction for thepurpose of their appointment in schools; and
(e) co-ordinate with the appropriate Government and the school authorities with
a view to ensuring effective implementation of the provisions of this Act.
8. The appropriate Government shall derecognize such schools, which do not comply
with the provisions of section 4, after giving such institutions a reasonable opportunity ofbeing heard.
9. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by law by Parliament in
this behalf, provide adequate funds to the States for carrying out the purpose of this act.
10. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything
inconsistent therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force.
11. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree that therule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or beof no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shallbe without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under the rule.AppropriateGovernmentto issuedirections forcompulsoryteaching ofill-effects ofdrug addictionin schools.
Appointment
of Teachers.
Constitution
of AdvisoryCouncil.
Functions of
AdvisoryCouncilteaching ill-effects of drugaddiction.
Derecognition
of schools fornon-complianceof theprovisions ofthe Act.
Central
Governmentto providefunds.
Overriding
effects of theAct.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 523
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The increasing drug addiction among children has become a serious problem in the
country. These days even small children are falling in the trap of drugs. Till now it wasbelieved that the children of the poor sections who do not go to school, usually the childrenwho lead a nomadic life in railway stations, bus stops or other places get addicted to drugsbut now even the children of elite families are also vulnerable. Sometimes due to craze offashion and some other time on the instigation of friends, these innocent children gettrapped in the vortex of drug substances. According to a survey by the Government of India,about 1.8 crore children and adolescents in the age group of 10 to 17 years, consume avariety of intoxicants including alcohol, opium, cocaine, cannabis (bhang). Financiallyprosperous children are consuming heroin, opium, cocaine, brown sugar etc. On the otherhand, poor children starting from beedi, liquor, cigarette go on to consume charas, ganja,cannabis (bhang), opium, cough syrup etc.
No one in the society respects the person who is a drug-addict. Drug-addict person
quarrels with his family members after getting intoxicated, due to which the atmosphere ofthe house becomes vitiated. Its biggest impact is seen on the education of children.
Therefore, children should be specially taught in schools about the bad consequences
of drugs by including these in the curriculum so that they can keep themselves aloof from thebad addiction of drugs.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; DILIP SAIKIA
January 19, 2023
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 5 of the Bill provides for appointment of teachers in all schools. Clause 6
provides for constitution of Advisory Council for teaching ill-effects of drug addiction bythe Central Government. Clause 9 provides for payment of adequate funds to the State forcarrying out the purposes of the Act. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, would involve expenditurefrom the Consolidated Fund of India. However, it is estimated that a recurring expenditure ofabout rupees one hundred crore will be involved per annum from the Consolidated Fund ofIndia.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
——————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 11 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purpose of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 525
BILL NO. 223 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for compulsory teaching and practice of Bhagavad Gita in
educational institutions and for matters connected therewith.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Compulsory Teaching and Practice of Bhagavad Gita
in Educational Institutions Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in Official Gazette, appoint.Short title andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases, the Central Government; and
(b) "educational institution" means any school, by whatever name called,
imparting education up to senior secondary level.
3. Every educational institution shall compulsorily teach and practice the Bhagavad
Gita as a moral education text book.
4. The appropriate Government shall appoint such number of teachers, as it may deem
necessary with such qualifications, as may be specified by the Central Government, forteaching and practice of Bhagavad Gita as a moral education text book in every educationalinstitution.
5. The appropriated Government shall derecognise a school, which does not comply
with the provisions of section 3:
Provided that a school shall be given reasonable opportunity of being heard before
any decision on its derecognition is taken.
6. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide adequate funds to the States for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
7. Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the provisions of this Act, shall
apply to minority institutions only if the management of such institutions convey to theappropriate Governments their willingness to include the teaching and practice of BhagavadGita as a moral education text book in their school curriculum.
8. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent
therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force.Definitions.
Compulsory
Teaching andpractice ofBhagavad Gitain educationalinstitutions.
Appropriate
Governmentto appointteachers forteaching andpractice ofBhagavad Gitain educationalinstitutions.
Derecognition
of schoolsfor non-compliance ofthe provisionsof the Act.
Central
Governmentto providefund to theStateGovernments.
Application
of Act onminorityeducationalinstitutions incertainsituation.
Overriding
effect of theAct.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 527
STA TEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Shrimad Bhagavad Gita is a spiritual discourse delivered by Lord Krishna in the
middle of the battlefield. It contains 18 chapters, which deal with a variety of subjects suchas the nature of the self, the need to restrain the mind and the senses, withdrawing them fromthe sense objects through the practice of yoga, performing desireless actions, the vision ofthe Universal Self, the qualities of Nature, incarnation of God and reincarnation of individualsouls, devotion to God, liberation and so on.
Shrimad Bhagavad Gita is the greatest book on the moral and value education. It not
only holds holy significance to the people of India but also guides the moral and valuethinking in the time of depravity and chaos. It contains the teaching ranging from spiritualawakening to leadership and management. Teachings of Gita are teaching of humanity andbrotherhood. Many great thinkers from our time such as Swami Vivekananda, Sri Aurobindo,Albert Einstein, Mahatma Gandhi as well as Ramanuja, from bygone ages, have all deliberatedupon its timeless teachings.
Mahatma Gandhi has also said "When doubts haunt me, when disappointments stare
me in the face, and I see not one ray of hope on the horizon, I turn to Bhagavad Gita. Let theGita be to you a mine of diamonds, as it has been to me; let it be your constant guide andfriend on life's way".
It is highly deplorable that such vast literature containing infinite teachings for all age
groups is neglected by our educational institutions. It is high time to make sincere effort tospread the teachings to our children and grownups. Teaching and daily practice of BhagavadGita in educational institutions will enable the younger generation to enrich their knowledgeand skills and shine the personality in the light of noble traditions and thoughts ofBhagavad Gita, become sensible and responsible citizens.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; BHOLA SINGH
November 22, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill provides that the appropriate Government shall appoint teachers
for compulsory teaching and daily practice of Bhagavad Gita in every educational institution.Clause 6 provides that the Central Government shall provide adequate funds to the StateGovernments carrying out the purposes of this Act. The Bill, if enacted, would involveexpenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that an annual recurringexpenditure of about rupees five thousand crore will be involved from the ConsolidatedFund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 529
BILL NO. 277 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and the Code of Criminal Procedure,
1973.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be called the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
CHAPTER II
AMENDMENTS TO THE INDIAN PENAL CODE, 1860
2. In the Indian Penal Code (hereinafter this Chapter referred to as the Penal Code),
after section 304B, the following section shall be inserted, namely—
"304C. Whoever, being a registered medical practitioner, causes the death of any
person doing the cause of medical treatment due to any medical negligence shall bepunished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to twoyears, or with fine, or with both:Short title andcommencement.
Insertion of
new section304C.
Causing death
by medicalnegligence.
Provided that causing the death of a person during medical treatment or
intervention done with consent in accordance with the proviso to section 88 of thisCode shall not be considered as medical negligence, unless the contrary is provedsupported by a team of medical experts or a medical Board.
Explanation .—For the purpose of this section, registered medical practitioner
means a person who possesses recognised medical qualification and registered underthe provisions of the National Medical Commission Act, 2019 (30 of 2019).".
3. After section 327 of the Penal Code the following section shall be inserted, namely—
"327A. Whoever,—
(i) commits or abets the commission of an act of violence against an healthcare
service personnel; or
(ii) abets or causes damage or loss to any property of a healthcare service
personnel, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less thanthree months, but which may extend to five years, and with fine, which shall not be lessthan fifty thousand rupees, but which may extend to two lakh rupees:
Provided that while committing an act of violence against a healthcare service
personnel if a person causes grievous hurt as defined in section 320 to healthcareservice personnel, he shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which shall notbe less than six months, but which may extend to seven years and with fine, whichshall not be less than one lakh rupees, but which may extend to five lakh rupees.".
CHAPTER III
A
MENDMENT TO THE CODE ON CRIMINAL PROCEDURE , 1973
4. In the First Schedule to the Criminal Code, under the heading "I.- OFFENCES UNDER
THE INDIAN PENAL CODE",—
(a) after the entries relating to section 304B, the following entry shall be inserted,
namely:—
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
304C Causing Simple Non- Bailable Any
death by imprisonment cognizable Magistrate
medical of two years
negligence or fine or both
(b) after the entries relating to section 327, the following entry shall be inserted,
namely:—
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
327A V iolence Imprisonment cognizable Non- Court of
against which sh all bailable Session
Healthcare not be less
service than three
professionals months but
which may
extend upto
five years and
fine, which
shall not be
less than fifty
thousand but
which may
extend.Insertion ofnew section327A.
Violence
against healthcare servicepersonnel anddamage toproperty.
Amendment
of FirstSchedule.2 of 1974.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 531
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Our Constitution guarantees to all persons the right to life and personal liberty and the
equal protection of laws to all classes of citizens. It is deemed necessary and expedient toenact legislation for the protection of these rights guaranteed by the Constitution. In thisregard, the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Jacob Mathew vs. State of PunjabAIR2005SC3180; (2005)6SCC1 had afforded necessary guidelines and procedures, to beadopted by the Central and State Government for proceeding against a medical professionalto be held responsible under Section 304A of Indian Penal Code, 1973.
The Ethics and Medical Registration Board of the National Medical Commission [Letter
No. NMC/MCI/EMRB/C-12015/0023/2021/ETHICS/ 022426 dated-29/09/2021 in compliancewith the mandamus issued by the Apex Court (vide supra) has framed specific guidelinesneeded for prosecution of doctors for causing death of innocent patients due to 'gross'medical negligence. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the aforesaid judgment (vide supra) hadcoined a few terms to deal with the cases of death due to medical negligence. Since theprovisions available under section 304 AIPC is generic in nature and as such insufficient todeal with the professional medical negligence, which is more complex where the help ofmedical experts become necessary. The constitution bench of the Hon'ble Supreme Court inthe matter of Lalita Kumari vs. State of U.P. & OR's,[2 SCC 1 : (2014) 1 SCC (Cri) 524] videJudgment dated 12.11.2013 (and partially modified on 05.03.2014) held that while ensuringand protecting the rights of the accused and the complainant, a preliminary inquiry (in medicalnegligence cases) should be made time bound and in any case it should not exceed 7 days.The fact of such delay and the causes of it must be reflected in the General Diary entry.
The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Jacob Mathew vs. State of Punjab opined
that to prosecute a medical professional for negligence under criminal law it must be shownthat the accused did something or failed to do something which in the given facts andcircumstances no medical professional in his ordinary senses and prudence would havedone or failed to do. The hazard taken by the accused doctor should be of such a nature thatthe injury which resulted was most likely imminent. Negligence to be established byprosecution must be culpable or gross and not the negligence merely base upon an error ofjudgment. And death should have been the direct cause. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in thecase of Jacob Mathew vs. State of Punjab observed that the word 'gross' has not been usedin section 304A of Indian Penal Code, 1973, yet it is settled that in criminal law negligence orrecklessness, to be so held, must be of such a high degree as to be 'gross'. The expression'rash or negligent act' as occurring in Section 304A of the IPC has to be read as qualified bythe word 'grossly'.
To cope with the difficulty of unjust litigations against doctors, the Hon'ble Supreme
Court in the case of Jacob Mathew vs. State of Punjab issued some guidelines for properinvestigations. But almost sixteen years have passed by and in the absence of a clear cutsection in IPC, our police responsible to register an FIR , is still groping in the dark to find outa suitable Section of law to proceed with case of death due to medical negligence cases,resulting thereby, such cases are registered 'usually' under Section 304 IPC, 'occasionally'under Section 304 AIPC or 'sometimes even' under Section 302 IPC. This mix up has made thelife of both the complainant and the accused miserable. The accused is harassed by thepolice and invariably the FIR is quashed by the Hon'ble courts for want of properinvestigations and as such justice is eluded for both. This frustrates the general public andnow-a-days, the hapless people, in case of any eventuality, resort to violence to press forunjust compensation on the spot.
However, in the EPIDEMIC DISEASES (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2020, some specific
Sections to deal with the cases of violence have been added. Since the incidence of violenceis not limited to epidemic period only, the same provisions are required to be added incriminal laws to deal with the cases of violence during the time of peace. The Hon'bleSupreme Court in the case of Jacob Mathew vs. State of Punjab quoted that 'MedicalProfessionals in Criminal Law—The criminal law has invariably placed the medical
professionals on a pedestal different from ordinary mortals. The Indian Penal Code enacted
as far back as in the year 1860 sets out a few vocal examples. Section 88 in the Chapter onGeneral Exceptions provides exemption for acts not intended to cause death, done by consentin good faith for person's benefit. Section 92 provides for exemption for acts done in goodfaith for the benefit of a person without his consent though the acts cause harm to a personand that person has not consented to suffer such harm. There are four exceptions listed inthe Section which is not necessary in this context to deal with. Section 93 saves fromcriminality certain communications made in good faith. The present day scenario demandssome new sections in criminal law to deal with the prevailing situation properly.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; ALOK KUMAR SUMAN
November , 22, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 533
BILL NO. 224 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Companies Act, 2013.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Companies (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 135 of the Companies Act,—
(a) in sub-section ( 1), for the words "three or more directors'', the words "three
or more directors and a Corporate Social Responsibility professional'' shall besubstituted; and
(b) in sub-section ( 5), for the first proviso, the following proviso shall be
substituted, namely:—
"Provided that it shall be mandatory for the company to give preference
to the local area and areas around it where it operates, for spending the amountearmarked for Corporate Social Responsibility activities."Amendmentof section135.Short title and
commencement.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The last two decades have seen significant economic growth and integration into the
global economy, resulting in several changes in the business landscape. The role ofbusinesses within the larger society has come under intense scrutiny by several stakeholders.Governments across the world have been using different forms of regulation to shapecorporate behaviour with calls for increased accountability, disclosures and actions fromthem. India's progress on corporate governance and the Companies Act, 2013 (Act) needs tobe viewed within this larger discourse.
The primary objective of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) was not to mobilize
resources for Government to bridge resource gap in meeting Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs). The primary objective is to promote responsible and sustainable business philosophyat a broad level and encourage companies to come up with innovative ideas and robustmanagement systems to address social and environmental concerns of the local area andother needy areas in the country.
However, even after the mandatory provision in the act various companies failed to
perform their prescribed duty. The Government has sanctioned prosecution proceedingsagainst 284 companies and sent 5,382 notices to companies that have not fulfilled themandatory CSR expenditure norms. Thus in order to robust the mechanism a High LevelCommittee (HLC) was incorporated by the Government to suggest substantial changes toget rid of any lacuna under the act. In furtherance to that, the Committee has noted thatHLC-2015 suggested that CSR provisions also be made applicable to profit making entitiesnot incorporated under Company Law, but operating under other specific statutes onmutatis mutandis basis. The Guidelines on Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability
for Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) issued by the Department of Public Enterprises(DPE) in October 2014, also prescribed/advised that CPSEs which are statutory corporations
also comply with CSR provisions.
An analysis of the CSR data from FY 2014-15 to FY 2017-18, reveals an acute
concentration of CSR funds in a few geographical areas to the exclusion of the rest. There isa skew in favour of industrialised States such that the least developed States receive theleast funds. This skew may have been caused, inter alia , by the clause on local area preference.
Not only that, upon a bare perusal of Section 135, at the first blush it may seem that byincorporating the term "shall" before the terms, "preference" and "local areas", the Actintended that it is mandatory to comply with CSR obligations within a geographical/territorialarea limitation.
Further, the amendment also seek to the presence of a CSR professional in the CSR
committee because it is often seen that the committee are not at par with the practicality andnot at the centre-stage while planning and approving the CSR projects due to lack of technicalexpertise. Thus to get rid of this problem it is imperative to have a presence of professionalin the committee.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; KRISHNAPAL SINGH YADA V
November 23, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 535
BILL NO. 293 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. For article 343 of the Constitution, the following article shall be substituted, namely:—
"343. The National language of the Union shall be Hindi in Devanagari Script.The form of numerals to be used for the official purposes of the Union shall be
the international form of Indian numerals.''.Short title andcommencement.
Substitution
of new articlefor article343.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Hindi is the language that unites India into one fabric and the promotion of Hindi as
the national language shall help the Indian identity develop. Roughly forty-five per cent. ofIndians speak Hindi as their first language and fifty seven per cent. people are fluent in Hindias their second and third language. No other language in India has more speakers and mostregional language have less than 10 per cent. of the total population speaking it.
So, it must be our aim to be seen as a land of Hindi the same way China united its
population with a single dialect Mandarin. Use of Hindi as our national language would helpus move away from the clutches of colonial mind-set and also help establish Hindi as aninternational language by promoting it in forums like UN and other world bodies.
Currently Indians speak many languages unlike many other countries which speaks
only one language. India has many languages and every language has its importance. But itis absolutely necessary that the entire country should have one language that becomesIndia's identity globally. Further, it has been a dream of our forefathers to make Hindi inDevanagari as National language of India and for that the time period of fifteen year has beengiven to the Government of India to get rid of the colonizer's mind-set.
However, even after 75 years of Independence of this nation, the language which
acted as a channel of unity in the country is not declared as the national language of India.Moreover, recently the committee headed by the Hon'ble Home Minister in the report alsosuggest that the language used for communication in the administration should be Hindi andefforts should be made to teach the curriculum in Hindi. And all work must be done for theactive promotion of Hindi language. Various committees earlier have also recommendedpromotion of Hindi so that it gives a sense of unity. This bill is in furtherance to the dream ofour forefathers had enrich this through their blood. It is thus absolutely necessary to redeemthe pledge and to make Hindi as National Language of India.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; KRISHNAPAL SINGH YADAV
November 22, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 537
BILL NO. 248 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Code on Social Security Act, 2020.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Code on Social Security (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 2 of the Code on Social Security Act, 2020 (hereinafter referred as the
principal Act) Code,—
(i) in sub-section (20), the following proviso shall be inserted, namely-
"Provided that the contractor shall include the agencies engaged by any
establishment in the name of concessionaire or Licensee;";
(ii) for sub-section (78), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely—
"(78) "social security" means the measures of protection afforded to
employees, unorganised workers, gig workers and platform workers to ensureaccess to healthcare and to provide income security including sickness benefits,unemployment benefits, old age benefit, employment injury benefit, family benefit,maternity benefit, invalidity benefit, survivors' benefits and all other benefits asprovided under the relevant provisions of this Code or under any other law forthe time being in force;"; and
(iii) in sub-section (86) for the words "self-employed worker", the words, gig
workers, platform workers, freelance workers, agricultural workers, self-employedworkers shall be substituted.
3. In section 53 of the Code,—
(a) in sub-section ( 1), for the words "five years", the words "two years" shall be
substituted;
(b) in the first proviso for the words "three years", the words "two years" shall
be substituted; and
(c) in the second proviso, for the words "five years", the words "two years"
shall be substituted.Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of Section 2.36 of 2020.
Amendment
of Section 53.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Social Security Code, 2020 (the Code) has been enacted to amend and consolidate
the laws relating to social security with the goal to extend social security to all employeesand workers either in the organised or unorganised or any other sectors. The Code has vitalprovisions with respect to social security benefits to workers including gig workers. India'sobligation to provide a comprehensive social security cover for the workers may be traced toseveral provisions enshrined in the Constitution of India which include inter alia securing
equal pay for equal work for both men and women; directions pertaining to the State'sresponsibility for making effective provisions for assistance in cases of unemployment, oldage, sickness and disablement; for securing just and humane conditions of work.
Further, to make the Code more inclusive and inline to various conventions and treaties,
this amendment seeks to amend various provisions of the Code. Not only that, the standingcommittee also suggested some changes to the Code to make it more inclusive this amendmentis necessary. Thus, the definition of 'contractor' does not include terms like 'concessionaireor licensee' which are largely used in Railways, Airports and other Infrastructural Sectorsbecause the definition of 'contractor' is inline with the existing definition in the ContractLabour (Regulation & Abolition) Act, 1970 which had worked well over the years and retainedin the code to maintain uniformity and this had been done in consultation with stakeholders.Thus, a proviso has been added to include 'concessionaire or licensee' under the ambit of thecode.
In addition to it, the definition of 'Social Security' under the code is restrictive and do
not include the nine components contained in the International Labour Organisation (ILO)Convention on Social Security (Minimum Standards) 1952. Keeping in mind the objective ofthe code, as the whole fulcrum of the code revolves around the definition of 'socialsecurity'. It is thus absolutely necessary to make the definition inclusive and encompassesin it all the necessary requirements. Thus, this amendment seeks to make the definition moreinclusive and inline to the mandate of ILO.
Moreover, the definition is of 'unorganised worker' also require as it stated earlier in
'the unorganised workers social security act 2008' and the standing committee also recommendto make the definition more comprehensive and to include gig and platform worker in itsambit. Thus, this amendment encompass gig workers, platform workers, freelance workers,agricultural workers in the definition of unorganised worker.
Also, the code prescribe the minimum service of five years for the benefit of gratuity.
However, keeping in view the nature of India's Labour market where most employees are
employed for a short duration period only, it becomes difficult to avail any gratuity benefitsas five years of continuous employment is required as per the extant provisions. This hasbecome an incentive to employers to terminate employees before five years are over. Gratuityamount should therefore be made payable after completion of two years of service only.Thus, this amendment changes the five years mandate to two years.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; KRISHNAPAL SINGH YADA V
November 23, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 539
BILL NO. 105 OF 2021
A Bill to provide for proper management and disposal of millions of tonnes of
electronic waste being generated by discarded electronic devices like television,personal computer, floppies, audio-video CD, batteries, cell phones, refrigerators,air conditioners, electronic toys, telephones, washing machines, electric switches,etc. by prescribing norms and fixing responsibilities and duties on manufacturers,recyclers and consumers with regard to disposal of electronic waste andfor matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-second Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Electronic Waste (Management and Disposal) Act,
2021.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force at once.Short title,
extent andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(b) "consumer" means a person using products capable of generating electronic
waste;
(c) "disposal" means disposal of electronic-waste in terms of the prescribed
norm to prevent contamination of soil, ground water, surface water, ambient air qualityand harmful effect on human health;
(d) "electronic-waste" means waste generated from discarded television, personal
computer, floppy, audio-video CD, battery, cell phone, refrigerator, air conditioner,electronic toys, telephone, washing machine, electronic switch and such similarelectronic products;
(e) "operator" means a person or establishment who owns or operates a facility
for collection, transportation and disposal of electronic waste;
(f) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(g) "re-cycler" means the person who processes electronic-waste for transforming
it into raw material for producing new product which may or may not be similar tooriginal product;
(h) "storage" means the temporary containment of electronic waste in a manner
so as to prevent its littering and hazardous effects on human being;
(i) "transportation" means carrying of electronic waste from one place to other
place hygienically through specially designed transport vehicle so as to prevent litteringand harmful effect on human being.
3. (1) The appropriate Government shall ensure management and disposal of all the
electronic wastes generated within its territorial jurisdiction in accordance with compliancecriteria and procedure prescribed under sub-section ( 1) of section 4 in such manner as may
be prescribed.
(2) The appropriate Government shall provide requisite infrastructure for collection,
storage, transporation and disposal of electronic waste.
(3) The appropriate Government may after due authorization, authorize any operator
to collect, transport and dispose of the electronic waste in such manner as may be prescribed.
4. (1) The Central Government may, in consultation with the Central Pollution Control
Board, prescribe the compliance criteria and procedure for management and disposal ofelectronic waste.
(2) The Central Pollution Control Board shall monitor the implementation of the
compliance criteria and procedure for management and disposal of electronic waste prescribedunder sub-section ( 1).
5. It shall be the duty of every manufacturer:—
(i) to ensure that every product offered for sale being released in the market
which is capable of producing electronic waste contains:—
(a) the procedure for its handling and disposal; and
(b) the information about the parts which may or may not be recycled.
(ii) to make available collection centres for collection of the hazardous electronic
waste for their proper disposal depending upon the quantum of the product sold in themarket; andApplicationof the Act.
Appropriate
Governmentto ensuredisposal ofelectronicwaste.
Compliance
criteria andprocedure fordisposal ofelectronicwaste.
Duty of
Manufacturer.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 541
(iii) to create public awareness through advertisements, publications and other
electronic mediums with regard to hazardous substances in their product which maycause ill effect to human body.
6. It shall be the duty of the consumer to ensure that the electronic-waste is not
disposed of in any other manner except in the manner prescribed for the purpose.
7. (1) Every re-cycler of the electronic product shall be registered with the appropriate
Government in such manner as may be prescribed.
(2) Every re-cycler shall re-cycle only those parts of an electronic product which have
been permitted by the manufacturer to be re-cycled.
8. Whoever violates the provisions of this Act shall be liable for imprisonment which
may extend to one year and fine which may extend to five lakh rupees.
9. Where a person committing a contravention of any of the provisions of this Act is
a company, every person who, at the time the contravention committed, was in charge of, andwas responsible to, the company for the conduct of business of the company as well as thecompany, shall be guilty of the contravention and shall be liable to be proceeded against andpunished accordingly:
Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section shall render any such person
liable to punishment if he proves that the contravention took place without his knowledgeor he exercised all due diligence to prevent such contravention.
Explanation .—For the purpose of this section:—
(i) "company" means anybody corporate and includes a firm or other association
of individuals; and
(ii) ''director'', in relation to a firm, means a partner in the firm.
10. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent
therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force on the subject.
11. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not derogation of any other
law for the time in force.
12. (1) The Central Government may by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act by the Central Government shall be laid before each
house of the parliament, as soon as may be after it is made, while it is in session, for a totalperiod of thirty days which may be comprises in one session or more successive session,and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or the successivesession aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any such modification in the rule or both thehouses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall as the case may be: so,however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validityof anything previously done under the rule.Duty ofConsumer.
Registration
andresponsibilityof re-cycle.
Penalty.
Offence by a
company.
Act to has
overridingeffect.
Act not in
derogation ofany other law.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
All kind of electronic goods have become the household articles today. Every home
has not one but a number of electronic products. Once these electronic products becomeobsolete or discarded, they are either thrown in the garbage or given to Kabariwala. TheKabariwala sells these products to scrap dealers who dismantle these gadgets and keepwhat is useful and rest of it is rendered into garbage which then is thrown in the landfills.This, of course, is not the proper way of its disposal. In this way millions of tonnes ofelectronic waste is generated in various metropolitan cities in the country. A number ofcomponents in these electronic products are hazardous and should be disposed of in anenvironment friendly manner. Many of these products contain components that containtoxic substances like lead, cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, barium, beryllium andcarcinogenic agents like carbon black and heavy metals. These elements can cause seriousproblems to the health of the person handling it and can also damage the environment if theyare not disposed of properly.
In various countries, there are laws for proper disposal of electronic waste products
and the procedure for it is also displayed on the product. There it is also indicated on theproduct what can be recycled and what cannot be recycled. But, in our country disposal ofelectronic-waste is nobody's responsibility. As of now, there is no law or guideline for thedisposal of electronic waste and no account is being taken how much is being generated andhow it is being disposed of. It is, therefore, high time that matter may be regulated before thesituation becomes alarming.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; JUGAL KISHORE SHARMA
March 8, 2021
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 543
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides that the appropriate Government shall provide for
infrastructure for collection, storage, transportation and disposal of the electronic waste.The expenditure involved is establishing infrastructure for handling and disposal of e-wastein respect of Union territories shall be borne by the Central Government. The Bill, therefore,if enacted, would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimatedthat a recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore would be involved from theConsolidated Fund of India per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 12 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 545
BILL NO. 73 OF 2021
A Bill to provide for welfare of children and for matters connected therewith.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-second Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (I) This Act may be called the Child Welfare Act, 2021.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, 'child' means a person who has
not completed the age of fifteen years.
3. Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, no
child shall be employed by any person for any work in any manner.Short title andextent.
Definitions.
Prohibition of
childemployment.
4. (1) The Central Government shall establish adequate number of juvenile homes with
all basic amenities for the welfare of children in every district of the country.
(2) Any child who is abandoned, orphan, destitute, neglected or engaged in any job,
occupation or begging shall be admitted to the juvenile homes setup under sub-section ( 1).
5. (1) Every child who is admitted into the juvenile home shall be entitled to the
following facilities free of cost,—
(a) accommodation, food and clothing;
(b) education including higher and technical education; and
(c) medical assistance.
(2) Every child shall also be entitled to such other facilities as arc necessary for his all-
round development.
6. The Central Government shall make provisions of reservation in posts and
services under its control for children admitted to juvenile homes on attaining the age ofeighteen years.
7. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules
for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days whichmay be comprised in one session in two or more successive sessions, and if, before theexpiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid,both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both the Houses agree thatthe rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified formor be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulmentshall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Establishmentof juvenilehomes.
Facilities to
be provided tothe childrenin juvenilehomes.
Provision for
reservation inposts andservices underCentralGovernment.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 547
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
A large number of children are forced by their parents to do menial labour, in order to
sustain their livelihood . Due to lack of proper diet and healthcare, these children becomevictims of a number of diseases. Some of them even succumb to premature death. Many ofthese children are highly talented. But due to lack of proper education and other opportunities,their talent goes waste.
Children are the future of a country. It is, therefore, the responsibility of the Government
to provide opportunities of all-round development to every child and also to provide protectionagainst exploitation. Thus, it is proposed to bring in a legislation for the welfare and protectionof children against exploitation .
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; JUGAL KISHORE SHARMA
March 8, 2021.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill provides for setting up of adequate number of juvenile homes with
all basic amenities for the welfare of children in every district of the country by the CentralGovernment. Clause 5 provides for free of cost food, accommodation, clothing, educationand medical facilities to the children in juvenile homes. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, willinvolve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that an annualrecurring expenditure of about rupees fifty crore is likely to be involved.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore is also likely to be
involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLA TION
Clause 7 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying out
the pruposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 549
BILL NO. 264 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Representation of the People Act, 1951.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Representation of the People (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In PART-II of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, after CHAPTER-IV, the
following Chapter and section thereunder shall be inserted, namely:—
CHAPTER IV A
MAXIMUM TERM OF MEMBERSHIP OF PARLIAMENT AND STATE LEGISLATURE
"11C. No person shall be elected as a member to either House of Parliament or of the
Legislative Assembly or Legislative Council of a State for more than three terms for the eachmembership.".MaximumTerm ofMembershipof Parliamentand StateLegislature.Short title and
commencement.
Insertion
of newChapter IVA.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Since independence, we as a country embraced a democratic system of governance.
The democratic framework has given the citizens to form any political party, join any politicalparty and exercise his or her democratic right. However, it has been seen that with thepassage of time the democratic framework has rusted in many places with no development inpolitical ideology, lack of fresh and innovative ideas and at places the archaic systems arestill being followed. The political leaders continue for long and thus not introduce any kindof variation in the systems.
To bring change in the system and to infuse new methods and ideas we need to think
differently. To bring freshness in the political biosphere there is a need to stipulate the tenureof political leaders in their capacity as elected representative and develop scope of rotation.The term of each person be at State Legislature (both houses where applicable) and atParliament (both houses) should be restricted to a maximum of three terms separately.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; ABDUL KHALEQUE
November 23, 2022
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 551
BILL NO. 226 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order (Amendment)
Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950, paragraph 3 shall be omitted.Short title and
commencement.
Omission of
paragraph 3.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The founding fathers of our Constitution made several provisions in the Constitution
which ensured rights and equality to the citizens of this diverse country. Unity in diversity isone of the brightest aspects of our country.
Para 3 of the Constitution (Scheduled Caste) Order, 1950 states that no person who
professes a religion different from Hinduism shall be deemed to be a member of the ScheduledCaste. Thereby, the Order ceased to recognise a person as the Scheduled Caste if he or shebelonged to any religious minority groups. The order was amended later to grant ScheduledCaste status to those people of Scheduled Caste origin who embraced Buddhism and Sikhism.However, Dalit Christians and Dalit Muslims have been kept out of the amended order thus
denying them equality and fair justice.
Meanwhile, several State Governments have recommended that Dalit Muslims and
Dalit Christians should be brought under the preview of the amended rule and provide a levelplaying ground to all. Further amendment of the original Order is necessary to establish anequilibrium amongst the religious minority communities and provide justice. Non-inclusionof Scheduled Caste Muslims and Christians is religious discrimination which is against thespirit of our Constitution.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; ABDUL KHALEQUE
November 23 , 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 553
BILL NO. 85 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and the Code of Criminal
Procedure, 1973.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be called as the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
CHAPTER II
AMENDMENTS TO THE INDIAN PENAL CODE, 1860
2. In section 99 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, hereinafter referred to as the Penal
Code, after para 3, the following para shall be inserted, namely:—
"There is no right of private defence for a police officer or other person authorized
in this behalf making an arrest of a person in an unprovoked situation which does notreasonably cause the apprehension of death or injury.".
3. After section 308 of the Penal Code, the following section shall be substituted,
namely:—
"308A. If a police officer or such other person while making an arrest of a person
causes death of the person to be arrested without any reason sufficient to causedeath, such police officer or other person shall be guilty of offence of extra-judicialkilling and tried accordingly and shall be punished with death or imprisonment forlife.".
CHAPTER III
A
MENDMENTS TO THE CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE , 1973
4. In section 46 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973,—
(a) in sub-section ( 2), for the words "use all means necessary to effect the
arrest", the words "use all means except causing death of the person to effect thearrest" shall be substituted;
(b) after sub-section ( 2), the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:—
"Provided that if the police officer or other person causes death of the
person to be arrested, such police officer or other person shall be triedaccordingly."; and
(c) sub-section ( 3) shall be omitted.Short title and
commencement.
Amendment
of section 99.
Insertion of
new section308A.
Amdnement
of section 46.Extra-Judicial
killing.45 of 1860.
2 of 1974.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The menace of extra-judicial killings has taken a brutal turn over the last few decades.
The extra-judicial killings, what is also known commonly as fake encounters has become amean for the security forces to eliminate alleged criminals even before judgement is deliveredby the judiciary. Police encounters are the violation of the human rights of the person who isactually until not proven guilty cannot be called as offender or criminal. India is not a rogueState. Nor it is ruled by any kind of dictatorship. These kinds of killings existed centuriesback primarily during the times of Kings and Emperors. However, such a system cannotprevail in a democracy like ours where rule of law exists.
These extra-judicial killings have become means of settling, at times personal rivalry
and more so in today's date it has become a tool to silence political opponents. We areexperiencing the situation across many States in India. Under the garb of section 46 of theCriminal Procedure Code, 1973 and section 96 of Indian Penal Code, 1860 security forcesindulge in such acts of fake encounters. Many a times, even unarmed person, women andchild became victims of extra-judicial killings and the persons responsible for such killingswalked away. So, it is time that the law be tweaked so that Human Rights of people are notviolated.
All encounter killings must be investigated with the utmost diligence as such killings
affect the credibility of the rule of law. Rule of law must be ensured at all costs in every caseacross the country. It is the duty of the State Government to adhere to the rule of law andwork in accordance with the rule of law. There is a need to train the police officials in such away that they are able to handle every unforeseen situation and protect the accused in policecustody. As encounter killings are increasing day by day, resulting in human rights violations.Thus, there is a need to instill the importance of human rights in the minds of the policeofficers executing these unlawful killings.
Hence this Bill.
NEW DELHI; ABDUL KHALEQUE
March 14, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 555
BILL NO. 266 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Constitution of India.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In article 85 of the Constitution,—
(a) in clause 1, the following proviso shall be added at the end, namely:—
"Provided that the Parliament shall meet for not less than one hundred and
forty working days in a calendar year.".
(b) after clause 2, the following explanation shall be inserted, namely:—
"Explanation .—For the purpose of this article, "working days" shall
include any day on which there is a joint sitting of the Houses and not includeany period, exceeding two days for which the Parliament is adjourned.".Short title andcommencement.
Amendment
of article 85.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
In the last five years, the average number of working days for the Indian Parliament has
fallen consistently. As a result, the time spent on discussing Bills has also reduced. In theUnited Kingdom, Parliament sits for an average of one hundred and fifty days each year. Inthe United States, Congress sits for upwards of one hundred days each year. The GermanBundestag sits for an average of one hundred and five days each year, and has a pre-setcalendar.
In the year 2018, as many as twenty-five per cent Bills in the Lok Sabha were passed in
less than thirty minutes and the entire Union Budget of 2018 was passed in less than thirtyminutes.
As the Government keeps restricting the Parliament's calendar, the opposition's space
to be effective is constrained leading to ever increasing disruptions in Parliament.
India needs to set high standards for Parliamentary democracy amongst international
peers as well as its own leaders.
The Bill seeks to achieve the above objectives.
N
EW DELHI; SHYAM SINGH YADA V
November 23, 2022
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 557
BILL NO. 31 OF 2023
A Bill to establish a Central Human Trafficking Prevention and Control Commission for
prevention and control of human trafficking in the country andfor matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Human Trafficking (Prevention and Control)
Act, 2023.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,extent andcommencement.
2. (1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "appropriate Government" means in the case of a State, the Government of
that State and in all other cases, the Central Government;
(b) "Commission" means the Central Human Trafficking Prevention and Control
Commission established under section 4;
(c) "human trafficking" means an act of recruiting or transferring any person for
unlawful purpose including sexual exploitations or engaging him as forced labourwithin the country or in a foreign country; and
(d) "prescribed" means prescribed by the rules made under this Act.
(2) The words and expressions used and not defined in this Act but defined in the
Indian Penal Code, 1860, or the Immoral Traffic (Prevention and Control) Act, 1956 shall havethe same meaning, respectively, assigned to them in those Acts.
3. (1) The Central Government shall, as soon as may be after the commencement of this
Act and in consultation with the State Governments by notification in the Official Gazette,formulate a National Policy aimed at Prevention and Control of growing incidents of humantrafficking and overall welfare, protection and rehabilitation of victims of human trafficking.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, it
shall be the duty of the appropriate Government to implement the national policy formulatedunder sub-section ( 1).
4. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, establish a
Central Human Trafficking Prevention and Control Commission for Prevention and Controlof the human trafficking of citizens within the country or abroad.
(2) The headquarters of the Commission shall be at Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh.
(3) The Commission may establish its branches in the States and Union Territories in
such manner as may be prescribed.
(4) The Commission shall consist of one Chairperson and such other members having
relevant experience in the field to be appointed by the Central Government in such manner asmay be prescribed.
(5) The salary and allowances payable to the Chairperson and members of the
Commission shall be such as may be prescribed.
(6) The Commission shall be a body corporate by the name of aforesaid having perpetual
succession and a common seal with power to acquire, hold and dispose of property, bothmovable and immovable and to contract and shall by the said name sue and be sued.
(7) The Commission may appoint such number of officers and employees as may be
necessary for the efficient functioning of the Commission and carrying out the purposes ofthis Act.
(8) The salary and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of service of
officers and employees of the Commission shall be such as may be prescribed.
5. The Commission shall—
(a) take measures for rehabilitation and welfare of victims of human trafficking;
(b) provide boarding and lodging facilities for victims of human trafficking;
(c) provide emergency medical care and necessary legal assistance to victims of
human trafficking; and
(d) undertake such other measures as may be deemed fit for Prevention and
Control of human trafficking.Definitions.
Formulation
of NationalPolicy toprevent andcontrolHumanTrafficking.
Establishment
of CentralHumanTraffickingPreventionand ControlCommission.
Functions of
theCommission.45 of 1860.
104 of 1956.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 559
6. The appropriate Government shall formulate rehabilitation scheme for persons
rescued from trafficking and take such other welfare measures for Prevention and Control ofhuman trafficking under this Act in such manner as may be prescribed.
7. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by law in
this behalf, provide adequate funds to the State Governments for carrying out the purposesof this Act.
8. The provisions of this Act and rules made thereunder shall have effect
notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith contained in any other law for the timebeing in force.
9. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any other
law for the time being applicable to the subject matter of this Act.
10. (1) The appropriate Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make
rules for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act by the Central Government shall be laid, as soon as
may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a totalperiod of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successivesessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or thesuccessive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule orboth the Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effectonly in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any suchmodification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previouslydone under that rule.
(3) Every rule made by the State Government under this Act shall be laid, as soon as
may be after it is made, before the State Legislature.AppropriateGovernmentto formulaterehabilitationscheme.
A Central
Governmentto provideadequate fundsto the StateGovernments.
Act to have
overridingeffects.
Act not in
derogation ofother laws.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Human Trafficking is the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of
people through force, fraud or deception, with the aim of exploiting them for profit. Men,women and children of all ages and from all backgrounds can become victims of this crime,which occurs in every region of the world. The traffickers often use violence or fraudulentemployment agencies and fake promises of education and job opportunities to trick andcoerce their victims.
In 2021, over one thousand human trafficking cases were reported with almost three
thousand victims across India. The State of Maharashtra had the highest number of humantrafficking cases in the country with over 260 cases. India is in the league of such nationswhere the Governments have proved to be unsuccessful in Prevention and Control of incidentsof human trafficking. India has become the largest base of human trafficking in the world. Inthe abominable market of human trafficking, India is being identified both as a consumer andproducer.
Human trafficking has taken deep roots in the society. The network of human trafficking
has been spreading across the country. Lakhs of women are being trafficked every yearwithin the country, out of which more than forty per cent are minors. Forty per cent of thekidnapped children are forced into child labour or prostitution.
Human trafficking is a heinous and inhumane crime. The web of human trafficking is
spreading rapidly in the country and it is not only spoiling the image of India in the world, butalso contaminating the society on a large scale. If the growing number of incidents of humantrafficking are not checked in time, the situation would go out of control.
N
EW DELHI; BHOLA SINGH
January 17, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 561
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill provides for establishment of a Central Human Trafficking Prevention
and Control Commission for Prevention and Control of the human trafficking. Clause 5provides for rehabilitation and welfare measure of persons victims of human trafficking.Clause 6 provides for the formulation of rehabilitation scheme for persons rescued fromhuman trafficking. Clause 7 provides that the Central Government shall provide adequatefunds to the State Governments. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, will involve expenditure fromthe Consolidated Fund of India. It is likely to involve a recurring expenditure of rupees fivehundred crore per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees five hundred crore is also likely to be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 10 of this Bill empowers the Appropriate Government to make rules for carrying
out the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, the delegation oflegislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 563
Amendment
of theSchedule.BILL NO. 32 OF 2023
A Bill further to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes ) Order, 1950.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.This Act may be called the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Amendment)
Act, 2023.
2. In the Schedule to the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950, in Part XIV ,
Tamil Nadu, for entry 18, the following entry shall be substituted, namely:—
"18. Kuruma, Kuruman, Kurumba, Kurmbagounder, Kurumban, and
Kurumbar.".Short title.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Kurumans is aboriginal tribe of Tamil Nadu and are dwelling throughout the
state of Tamil Nadu with their tradition, culture, custom, traits etc. but still being deniedthe ST categorisation and other affirmative actions in the better interest of the tribecommunity.
As per the article 366(25) of the Constitution of India, Scheduled Tribe means
such tribe or tribal communities or parts of group within such tribe for the purpose ofConstitution of article 342(2) to specify the Tribe. Kurumans synonyms are presentlydeprived and denied their constitutional rights being extended to tribes. The saidcommunity is tribal by birth, culture, customs, traits, as concluded, under anethnographic detailed study by the Tribal Research Centre, Ooty, Tamil Nadu. Moreover,as early as Meckenzie Manuscript's 1816, First India Surveyor General of India andother Tribal Literature viz., Madras General of Literature and Science support theKurumans Tribes synonyms with common and generic name & culture, customs, historyand origination, therefore, to be identified under ST Categorisation.
In order to render the social justice and affirmative actions without further loss of
time, this Bill seeks to amend 'The Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order 1950' forinclusion of Kurumans synonyms names such as "Kuruma, Kuruman, Kurumba,Kurmbagounder, Kurumban, Kurumbar tribes", in the ST List in order to render socialjustice to oppressed and suppressed Kurumans & its synonyms names. That will ensureconstitutional protection to the adivasi's Kurumans tribal synonyms against all sorts ofsocio-economic exploitation. Moreover it will confer all Constitutional and Legal Rightsto Kuruman generic tribes as guaranteed under article 46 of the Constitution.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI C.N. ANNADURAI
January 19, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 565
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
The Bill seeks to include Kuruma, Kuruman, Kurumba, Kurmbagounder, Kurumban
and Kurumbar as the synonym name of Kurumans to the list of Scheduled Tribes withrespect to the State of Tamil Nadu by way of amending the Constitution (ScheduledTribes) Order, 1950. The Bill, if enacted, would involve recurring and non-recurringexpenditure on account of the benefits to be given under the schemes and programmesof the Government meant for social, educational and economic development of theScheduled Tribes. At this stage, it is not possible to mention the exact amount whichmay be incurred on this account. However, it is estimated that a sum of approximatelyrupees thirty-five crore is likely to be involved as a recurring expenditure per annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees seventy crore is also likely to be
involved.
BILL NO. 77 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for protection and welfare of small land holding farmers by
constitution of a Minimum Price Assurance Commission and a Small LandHolding Farmers Welfare Fund and for matters connected therewith.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1.(1) This Act may be called the Small Land Holding Farmers (Protection and
Welfare) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by
notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title andcommencement.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 567
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "agricultural produce" means agricultural produce specified in the sched-
ule;
(b) "Commission" means the Minimum Price Assurance Commission consti-
tuted under section 6;
(c) "Fund" means the Small Land Holding Farmers Welfare Fund consti-
tuted under section 4;
(d) "minimum assured price" means the price of the agricultural produces
fixed and declared by the Central Government under section 3;
(e) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act; and
(f) "small land holding farmer" means a person possessing agricultural land
measuring not more than ten acres and who has no major income from any sourceother than agriculture.
3. The Central Government shall, on recommendation of the Commission, at least
one month before every financial year, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare theminimum assured price for each agricultural produce.
4. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette,
constitute a Fund to be known as the Small Land Holding Farmers Welfare Fund forcarrying out the purposes of this Act.
(2) The initial corpus of rupees one hundred crore of which rupees fifty crore shall
be provided by the Central Government, after due appropriation made by Parliament bylaw in this behalf, and rupees fifty crore shall be provided by the State Governments insuch proportion as may be prescribed.
(3) The Central Government and State Governments shall contribute every year to
the Fund in such ratio as may be prescribed.
(4) There shall also be credited to the Fund moneys received under corporate
social responsibility from the corporate and other private individuals.
5. The Fund shall be utilized for—
(i) providing minimum assured price for agricultural produce;
(ii) payment of pension to every small land holding farmer who has attained
the age of fifty-five years;
(iii) financial assistance to the young small land holding farmers for
innovative proposals; and
(iv) establishing efficient institutional mechanism for full-fledged marketing
of agricultural produce.
6. (1) The Central Government shall, as soon as possible but not later than six
months of the commencement of this Act, by notification in the Official Gazette,constitute a Commission to be known as the Minimum Price Assurance Commission.
(2) The Commission shall consist of—
(a) a Chairperson to be appointed by the Central Government in such man-
ner, as may be prescribed, from amongst the persons having knowledge in thefield of agricultural operations in small land holding farming sector and expertisein agricultural economics;Definitions.
Central
Governmentto declareminimumassured priceof agriculturalproduce.
Constitution
of Small LandHoldingFarmersWelfare Fund.
Utilization of
Fund.
Constitution
of theMinimumPriceAssuranceCommission.
(b) a Vice-Chairperson to be elected by and from amongst the members of
the Commission representing the small-holder farmers;
(c) two Members of Parliament, one each from Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha,
to be elected by the respective Houses;
(d) one member not below the rank of Joint Secretary, representing the Union
Ministry of Agriculture;
(e) one member not below the rank of Joint Secretary, representing the Indian
Council of Agriculture Research; and
(f) five members representing small land holding farmers to be nominated by
the Central Government in such manner as may be prescribed.
(3) The term of office of the Commission shall be three years.(4) The Commission shall be a body corporate having perpetual succession and
common seal with power to acquire, hold and dispose of property both movable andimmovable and to contract and shall, by the said name, sue or be sued.
7. The Commission shall recommend to the Central Government—
(a) the minimum assured price for agricultural produce after taking into
consideration the cost of cultivation including fifty per cent. margin on the costof cultivation; and
(b) the steps to be taken for the improvement of livelihood of small-holder
farmers.
8. The Central Government may issue such directions to the State Governments
as it may think necessary for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
9. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything
inconsistent therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force.
10. (1) The Central Government may make rules for carrying out the purposes of
this
(2) Every rule made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is
made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirtydays which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions,and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or thesuccessive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in therule or both the Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafterhave effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so,however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to thevalidity of anything previously done under that rule.Functions oftheCommission.
Power to issue
directions.
Act to have
overridingeffect.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 569
SCHEDULE
[see section 3]
1. Fibre Coconut
2. Cereals Paddy
3. Oil seeds Coconut, Oil palm
4. Fruits Mango, Orange, Papaya, Guava, Banana, Grapes, Jack fruit,
Pineapple, Rambutan, Mangostin, Cocoa
5. V egetables Common pea, Gram, Tomato, Turmeric, Bitter gourd, Snake
gourd, Ash gourd, Winter crops, Chilly
6. Tubers T opioca, Carrot, Beet root, Common taro, Elephant foot yam,
Carrot, Potato
7. Spices Pepper, Cardamom, Ginger, Nutmeg, Clove, Cinnamon
8. Cash crops Rubber, Tea, Coffee
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Agriculture plays a major role in Indian economy and small land holding farmers
owe a considerable share in it. Small land holding farmers are farmers with a low assetbase and limited resource endowments and who depend on household members formost of the labour, small land holding farmers are characterized by smaller applicationsof capital but higher use of labour and other family-owned inputs, and generally higherindex of cropping intensity and diversification. Farmers, especially small land holdingfarmers fall in debt trap due to vagaries of nature and lack of assured minimum supportprice for agricultural produce.
Currently, a farmer is born under debt and dies under the threat of its repayment.
Due to total negligence and non-remunerative profession, youngsters are not preferringagriculture as promising and profitable. The pitfalls in farming policy and Free TradeAgreements make the situation more assailable, especially in rural economies. Thewhole proceedings result in social discontent, anarchy and turmoil which paves theway for terrorism and naxalism.
In short, an immediate effective intervention is needed by the Government to
safeguard the dreams, hopes and aspirations of agrarian people. The constitution ofthe Small Land Holding Farmers Welfare Fund and the Minimum Price AssuranceCommission will lend a helping hand in removing indebtedness and social insecurityfrom small land holding farming community. The Bill seeks to achieve the aboveobjectives.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; GANESHAN SELV AM
February 27, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 571
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 4 of the Bill provides for the constitution of a Small Land Holding Farmers
Welfare Fund with initial corpus of one hundred crore rupees of which fifty crorerupees shall be provided by the Central Government. Clause 6 provides for constitutionof a Minimum Price Assurance Commission for the welfare of small land holding farmers.The Bill, therefore, if enacted will involve expenditure from Consolidated Fund of India.It is estimated that a recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore would beinvolved from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees fifty crore is also likely to be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 10 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying
out the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, thedelegation of legislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 573
BILL NO. 73 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for right to health for residents of Andaman and Nicobar Islands and
for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (Right to Health)
Act, 2023.
(2) It shall extend to the whole of the Union territory of Andaman and Nicobar
Islands only.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Government may, by notification in
the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,extent andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "clinical establishment" means establishments defined as a clinical es-
tablishment under clause ( c) of section 2 of the Clinical Establishment
(Registration and Regulation) Act, 2010;
(b) "Government" means the Administration of Andaman & Nicobar Islands
and in all other cases, the Central Government.
(c) "health care" means testing, treatment, care, procedures and any other
service or intervention towards a preventative, promotive, therapeutic, diagnostic,nursing, rehabilitative, palliative, convalescent, research and/or other health relatedpurpose or combinations thereof, including reproductive health care andemergency medical included any of these as a result of participation in a medicalresearch program;
(d) "health care establishment" means the whole or any part of a public or
private institution, facility, building or place, whether for profit or not, that isoperated to provide inpatient and/or outpatient health care, and a "public healthcare establishment" shall accordingly refer to a health care establishment set up,run, financed or controlled by the Government or privately owned;
(e) "health care provider" means a medical doctor, nurse, other paramedical
professional, social worker or other appropriately trained and qualified personwith specific skills relevant to particular health care, nursing, rehabilitation,palliative, convalescent, preventative or other health services, and any referenceto "service provider" shall mean the same unless specifically stated otherwise;
(f) "health impact assessment" means a combination of procedures, methods,
and tools for identifying, predicting, evaluating, and mitigating potential effectsof a proposed law, policy, program, project, technology, or a potentially damagingactivity, in relation with health prior to taking decisions thereon and makingcommitments thereunder, on the health of the population, and other relevanteffects, and the distribution of those effects within the population, and anyreference to health impact assessment shall mean the same;
(g) "informed consent" means consent given, specific to a proposed health
care without any force, undue influence, fraud, threat, mistake or misrepresentationand obtained after disclosing to the person giving consent, either for himself, orin representative capacity wherever it is necessary, all material informationincluding costs, risks, benefits and other significant implications of, andalternatives to, the proposed health care in a language and manner understoodby such person;
(h) "Panchayati Raj Institutions" means institutions of local self-Government
established under any of the Union territory's Panchayati Raj Laws at village,block or district level, like Gram Panchayat, Panchayat Samiti, or Zilla Parishad, orby whatever other name called, and any reference to "PRI" shall mean the same;
(i) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(j) "public health" means the health of the population, as a whole, especially
as monitored, regulated, and promoted by the Government;
(k) "public health institution" means governmental organizations that is
operated or designed to provide in-patient or out-patient treatment, diagnostic ortherapeutic, interventions, nursing, rehabilitative, palliative, convalescent,preventative, promotive, medical research program or other health services topublic;
(l) "Government funded health care services" means the health care servicesDefinitions.
23 of 2010.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 575
funded and provided by the Government or those provided by the non- govern-
ment entities but for which Government funds part or whole of the costs of care tosome or all patients;
(m) "resident" means an ordinary resident of the Union territory of Andaman
and Nicobar Islands; and
(n) "social audit" means the audit conducted by the community using the
social dimension.
3. Every person in the Union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands shall have
the right:—
(a) to have adequate relevant information about the nature, cause of illness,
proposed investigations and care, expected results of treatment, possiblecomplications and expected costs;
(b) to avail free Out-Patient Department services, In-patient Department
services consultation, drugs, diagnostics, emergency transport, procedure, andemergency care as provided by all public health institutions accordantly to theirlevel of health care as may be prescribed;
(c) to have emergency treatment and care under any emergent circumstances,
without pre-payment of requisite fee or charges including prompt and necessary
emergency medical treatment and critical care, emergency obstetric treatment and
care, by any health care provider, establishment or facility, including privateprovider, establishment or facility, qualified to provide such care or treatmentwithout delay and in a case of medico-legal nature of case, no health care provideror health care establishment shall delay treatment merely on the grounds ofreceiving police clearance or a police report.
Explanation .—For the purposes of this clause "medico-legal case" means
any medical case which has legal implications, either of a civil or criminal nature,and includes but is not limited to cases relating to accidents, assault, sexualassault, suicide, attempt to murder, poisoning, injuries on account of domesticviolence, injuries to workers during course of employment, in some of which theservice provider may be required to prepare documents in compliance with
demands by authorized police-officer or magistrate;
(d) in case of a resident, to have the right to avail free health care services
from any clinical establishment in the prescribed manner and subject to the termsand conditions specified in the rules;
(e) to have access to patient records, investigation reports and detailed
itemized bills of treatment;
(f) to know the name, professional status and job chart of the person who is
providing health care;
(g) to informed consent prior to specific tests or treatment including surgery
and chemotherapy from all health care establishments;
(h) to confidentiality human dignity and privacy during treatment at all
health care establishments;
(i) to the presence of female person, during physical examination of a female
patients by a male practitioner;
(j) to choose alternative treatment available at any health care establishments;
(k) to have treatment without any discrimination based upon illness or
conditions, including HIV status or other health condition, religion, race, caste,Right to
health.
sex, age, sexual orientation or place of birth of any of them at all health care
establishments;
(l) to have information about the rates or charges for each type of service
provided and facilities available;
(m) to choose source of obtaining medicines or tests at all health care
establishments;
(n) to patient's education about health condition;
(o) to safe and quality care according to standards prescribed for the health
care establishments;
(p) to referral transport by all health care establishments, whether public or
private, in the prescribed manner;
(q) to have treatment summary in case of a patient leaving health care
establishment against the medical advice;
(r) to be heard and seek redressal in case of any grievance occurred during
and after availing health care services;
(s) in case of residents, to avail free transportation, free treatment and free
insurance coverage against road accidents at all health care establishments in theprescribed manner and subject to the terms and conditions specified in the rules;and
(t) to obtain treatment records and information from the treating health care
establishments to seek second opinion from another health care professional orhealth care establishment.
4. The Government shall have the following general obligations at all times, by
enhancing the quantum of the health care resources in time bound manner for realizationof health and well-being of every resident in the Union territory of Andaman and NicobarIslands:-
(a) to develop and institutionalize Human Resource Policy for Health to
ensure availability and equitable distribution of doctors, nurses and other ancillaryhealth professionals and workers at all levels of health care as may be prescribed;
(b) to set up the quality audit and grievance redressal mechanisms as may
be prescribed;
(c) to align all health services and schemes to strengthen a system of health
services to empower and make residents aware for preventive, promotive andprotective health care, not merely an absence of disease;
(d) to lay down standards for quality and safety of all levels of health care as
may be prescribed;
(e) to make availability of Government funded health care services as per
distance or geographical area or considering population density which includeshealth care institutions, free medicine, test and diagnostics of notified items andambulance services as per standards as may be prescribed;
(f) to ensure that there is no any direct or indirect denial to anyone for any
Government funded health care services at such health care establishment andsuch guaranteed services as may be prescribed;
(g) to mobilize resources and frame plans or policies to carry out obligations
under this Act;Obligation ofGovernment.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 577
(h) to set up co-ordination mechanisms among the government departments
to facilitate availability of nutritionally adequate and safe food, adequate supplyof safe drinking water and sanitation to patients; and
(i) to take appropriate measures to inform, educate and empower people
about health issues.
5. (1) The Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute an
independent body to be known as the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar IslandsHealth Authority consisting of the following members, namely:-
Lieutenant Governor of ex-officio
Andaman & Nicoba r Islands Chairperson;
Member of Parliament from ex-officio
House of the People representing V ice-Chairperson;
Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Chief Secretary, Union Territory of ex-Officio
Andaman & Nicoba r Islands Member;
Three Members, to be nominated by Members.
Administration of Andaman & NicobarIslands having knowledge ofPublic Health and Hospital Management
(2) The Union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands Health Authority shall
meet at least once in three months.
(3) The salary and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of
services of members of the Union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands HealthAuthority shall be such as may be prescribed.
6. The Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands Health Authority shall,—
(a) advise the Government on any matter concerning public health, including
preventive, promotive, curative, and rehabilitative aspects of health andoccupational, environmental, and socio-economic determinants of health;
(b) formulate Union Territory health goals and get these included in the
mandate of Panchayati Raj Institutions and urban local bodies;
(c) formulate Union Territory level strategic plans for implementation of
Right to Health as provided under this Act, including action on the determinantsof healthy food, water and sanitation;
(d) develop mechanisms and systems for regular medical, clinical, and social
audits for good quality of health care at all levels;
(e) constitute one or more committees, scientific panels, technical panels for
the efficient discharge of its functions as and when required;
(f) ensure quality and cost effective health and diagnostic services by private
health sector; and
(g) carry out other functions as may be prescribed.
7. (1) The Government shall establish Grievance Redressal Mechanism within
three months from the date of commencement of this Act.
(2) The Grievance Redressal Mechanism under sub-section (1) shall include the
following, namely:—
(a)
a specified web-portal and helpline centre where complaint may be made
on denial of services and infringement of rights provided under this Act;Constitutionof Unionterritory ofAndaman andNicobarIslands HealthAuthority.
Functions of
the UnionTerritory ofAndaman andNicobarIslands HealthAuthority.
Grievance
RedressalMechanism.
(b) the web-portal and helpline centre shall forward the grievances received
to the concerned officer and his immediate supervisors within 24 hours;
(c) the concerned officer shall respond to the complainant within next 24
hours;
(d) if the complaint is not resolved by concerned officer within 24 hours as
aforesaid the complaint shall be forwarded to Union territory of Andaman andNicobar Islands Health Authority immediately.
8. The Central Government shall, after due appropriation made by Parliament by
law in this behalf, provide requisite funds for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
9. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the
Central Government may, by order, published in the Official Gazette, make suchprovisions not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act as may appear to be necessaryfor removing the difficulty:
Provided that no order shall be made under this section after the expiry of two
years from the commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is
made, before each House of Parliament.
10. (1) The Central Government may make rules for carrying out the purposes of
this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is
made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirtydays which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions,and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or thesuccessive session aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the ruleor both the Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter haveeffect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however,that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity ofanything previously done under that rule.CentralGovernmentto providefunds.
Power to
removedifficulties.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 579
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The islanders of the Union Territory of Andaman & Nicobar, due to its
geographical location remain susceptible to public health problems. This island located1200 km from mainland India, is beset with several bottlenecks, in terms of infrastructurein health care facilities as well as in the number of health care professionals available.
Looking at the overall supply of health care (supply side) and the health outcomes
(demand side) scenario, the Union Territory of Andaman & Nicobar still has miles to goin terms of improving its services in health care. The Post Pandemic scenario hasthrown up new challenges for the island, which is grappling with the constrainedinfrastructure of healthcare facilities, further aggravated by the locational inhibitingfactors.
The GB Pant Hospital is the lone referral hospital for the entire Union Territory
with specialized services in Surgery, Medicine, Gynecology, Pediatrics, ENT, Pathology& Ophthalmology, etc. The Union Territory has a total of 4 functioning CHCs, out ofwhich urban areas have zero CHCs.
It is pertinent to note that the right to life and proper health care is an integral part
of life and the quality of life of an individual depends upon the quality of health care.Thus, the schemes implemented by the Government will be reaching out to more andwill be implemented more efficiently if it is backed by legal sanction. Over the yearsAndaman and Nicobar islands have proven to be of strategic importance to the nationand have established itself as tourist hubs. In the first quarter of the last year, the islandsaw a footfall of 1,36,190 tourists. It is only imperative that the health infrastructure ofthe island is robust enough to meet the medical needs of the tourists as well.
Thus, keeping in mind the violability of the life of an individual this bill seeks to
provide the basic right to health to all the citizens of Andaman and Nicobar. In additionto this, this bill also cast a duty upon the Government to protect the right to basichealth care and the right to access health care for all its citizens.
The present Bill seeks to enumerate certain rights for the people of Andaman and
Nicobar including free access to health care for all its citizens. However, these rightsare not limited to what has been enumerated under this provision but are also in additionto what has been provided by the constitution and in other laws for the time being inforce. Further, under the proposed Bill, certain duty has also been entrusted to theGovernment. Thus, in a nutshell, this Bill provides an inclusive approach to deal withthe wide range of problems of health care and its accessibility. Further, keeping in mindthe financial condition of all its citizens of the Andaman and Nicobar island this Billprovides free access to health care in cases as enumerated under the provision of theBill.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; KULDEEP RAI SHARMA
February 28, 2023.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clauses 4 of the Bill provides for the Administration of Andaman and Nicobar
Islands to develop and institutionalize Human Resource Policy for Health to ensureavailability and equitable distribution of doctors, nurses and other ancillary healthprofessionals and workers at all levels of health care and setting up the quality auditand grievance redressal mechanisms, etc. Clause 5 provides for appointment of membersfor Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Health Authority and provides for salary
and allowances for the members. Clause 7 provides for the Administration of Andamanand Nicobar Islands to establish Grievance Redressal Mechanism within three monthsfrom the date of commencement of this Act. Clause 8 provides for the Central Governmentto provide requisite funds for carrying out the provisions of this Act. The Bill, therefore,if enacted would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. A recurringexpenditure of about rupees two crore is likely to be involved per annum from theConsolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees five crore is also likely to be involved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 10 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to frame rules for carrying
out the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, thedelegation of legislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 581
BILL NO. 72 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for the welfare of Shopkeepers in Andaman and Nicobar Islands and
for setting up of Shopkeepers' Welfare Fund and a Board to administer the Fundand for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Welfare of Shopkeepers in Andaman and Nicobar
Islands Act, 2023.
(2) It extends to the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands only.
(3) It shall come into force at once.Short title,
extent andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "Board" means the Shopkeepers Welfare Board established under
section 4;
(b) "Fund" means Shopkeepers Welfare Fund set up under section 3;
(c) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under the Act; and
(d) "shopkeeper " means any person who is engaged in sale of goods either
retail or wholesale or where services are rendered to customers and includes an
office, a store-room, godown, warehouse or workhouse or workplace.
3. (1) The Central Government shall by notification in the Official Gazette set up a
Fund to be known as the Shopkeepers Welfare Fund for carrying out the purposes of
this Act.
(2) The Fund shall consist of contributions from Central Government and the
Administration of Andaman and Nicobar Islands in such ratio as may be prescribed.
4. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, estab-
lish a Board to be called the Shopkeepers Welfare Board.
(2) The Board shall consist of,—
(a) a Chairperson to be appointed by the Central Government in such man-
ner as may be prescribed;
(b) Member of Parliament representing Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the
House of the People—Vice-Chairperson;
(c) one representative from the Administration of Andaman and Nicobar
Islands to be appointed by the Central Government in such manner as may be
prescribed; and
(d) two representatives from Retailers Association of India to be appointed
by the Central Government in such manner as may be prescribed.
(3) The salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of the
service of Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and other members of the Board shall be such
as may be prescribed.
5. (1) The Board shall administer the Fund determine the purposes for which the
Fund shall be utilized.
(2) Notwithstanding anything in sub-section (1), the Fund shall be utilized for the
following purposes:—
(i) payment of old-age pension at the rate of rupees twenty thousand per
month after the shopkeeper has attained the age of sixty years and is incapable of
performing his job on account of physical illness, infirmity or incapacity;
(ii) free healthcare facilities for the shopkeepers and their dependent family
members at the Government and other designated hospitals;
(iii) free insurance cover to shopkeepers; and
(iv) free housing facilities for shopkeepers.
6. The Central Government shall after due appropriation made by Parliament by
Law in this behalf, provide adequate funds to the Board forthe effective implementationof the provisions of the Act.Definitions.
Shopkeepers
Welfare Fund.
Establishment
ofShopkeepersWelfareBoard.
Utilisation of
Fund.
Central
Governmentto provideFunds.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 583
7. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any
other law providing for matters dealt with in this Act.
8. (1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make
rules for carrying out the purposes of the Act.
(2) Every rule made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is
made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirtydays which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions,and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or thesuccessive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in therule or both the Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafterhave effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so,however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to thevalidity of anything previously done under that rule.Act not inderogation ofany other lawin force.
Power to
make rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
According to International Labour Organisation, "Social security is the protec-
tion that a society provides to individuals and households to ensure access to healthcare and to guarantee income security, particularly in cases of old age, unemployment,sickness, invalidity, work injury, maternity or loss of a breadwinner". It is a right whichis generally guaranteed by some act or legislation to people for their economic andsocial security in the time of sickness, disability or old age.
The recent occurrence of coronavirus pandemic has brought the issue of social
security in India at the forefront. Large scale movement of migrant workers from thevarious cities of India was a great lesson for all the stakeholders. It made people realisethe need for social security for all the members in the society and thus, there needs tobe a great deal of discussion on this issue at all the levels. It helps the recipients toensure their rights to family protection and assistance, an adequate standard of livingand adequate access to healthcare. Social security acts as an umbrella for people duringadverse situations. Social welfare is not possible without social security. It acts as abuffer against all odds in the time of need. It helps in lifting millions of people out ofpoverty and thus, raises people's standard of living.
This bill can be considered as one of the step in the direction of dealing with
provision of social security net for shopkeepers in the Andaman and Nicobar Islandsby providing:
(i) payment of old-age pension at the rate of rupees twenty thousand per
month after the shopkeeper has attained the age of sixty years and is incapable ofperforming his job on account of physical illness, infirmity or incapacity;
(ii) free healthcare facilities for the shopkeepers and their dependent family
members at the designated Government and other hospitals;
(iii) free insurance cover to shopkeepers; and
(iv) free housing facilities for shopkeepers.
The Bill also seeks to provide for the establishment of a welfare fund for
shopkeepers in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands with a sense of security in times ofneed.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; KULDEEP RAI SHARMA
February 28, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 585
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for setting up of a Shopkeepers' Welfare Fund for
welfare for shopkeepers in Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Clause 4 provides forconstitution of a Board for administration of the Shopkeepers Welfare Fund. It alsoprovides for appointment of Chairperson and other member to the Board. Clause 6provides that the Central Government shall provide adequate Funds to the Board foreffective implementation of the provisions of the Bill. The Bill, therefore, if enacted, willinvolve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a sum ofone hundred crore rupees is likely to be involved out of the Consolidated Fund of Indiaper annum.
A non-recurring expenditure of one hundred crore rupees is also likely to be
involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGA TED LEGISLATION
Clause 8 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying
out the purposes of the Bill. Since the rules will relate to matters of detail only, thedelegation of legislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 587
BILL NO. 70 OF 2023
A Bill to provide for regularization of the services of Anganwadi workers in the
Andaman and Nicobar Islands by giving them status of permanent employee ofthe Government and for matters connected therewith.
B
E it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called as the Anganwadi Workers of Andaman and Nicobar
Islands (Regularization of Service and Welfare) Act, 2023.
(2) It extends to the Union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands only.
(3) It shall come into force on such date, as the Central Government may, by
notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,extent andcommencement.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "anganwadi" means an anganwadi centre set up by the Central Govern-
ment or Union Territory Administration in the Union territory of Andaman and
Nicobar Islands to implement the Integrated Child Development Scheme;
(b) "anganwadi worker" means any person working in an anganwadi on
regular or contract or daily wages basis;
(c) "helper" means a person who has been engaged to assist Anganwadi
workers in discharge of their duties under Integrated Child Development Scheme;and
(d) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act.
3. (1) The Central Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, take all
such steps as may be necessary to regularize the services of Anganwadi workers andhelpers employed in Andaman and Nicobar Islands and confer the status of not lessthan those of Group 'C' employees of the Central Government on all such Anganwadiworkers.
(2) The Central Government shall also provide such wages and welfare facilities
as are available to, or not less than, Group 'C' employees of the Central Government.
4. The Central Government shall take steps to provide housing facilities to the
Anganwadi workers and helpers within the vicinity of their workplace.
5. (1) There shall be constituted a Committee for the socio-economic develop-
ment of Anganwadi workers employed in Andaman and Nicobar Islands to be known asthe Committee for Welfare of Anganwadi Workers.
(2) Subject to the provisions of any law made in this behalf by Parliament, the
Committee shall consist of a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and three other Membersand the conditions of service and tenure of office of the Chairperson, Vice-Chairpersonand other Members so appointed shall be such as Parliament may by law determine.
(3) The Committee shall have the power to regulate its own procedure.(4) It shall be the duty of the Committee—
(a) to investigate and monitor all matters relating to the safeguards pro-
vided for the Anganwadi workers under any law in force at the time of the com-mencement of this Act, or under any other law for the time being in force or underany order of the Government and to evaluate the working of such safeguards;
(b) to inquire into specific complaints with respect to the deprivation of
rights and safeguards of the Anganwadi workers;
(c) to advise on the socio-economic development of the Anganwadi work-
ers and to evaluate the progress of their development in the Union territory ofAndaman and Nicobar Islands;
(d) to bring about synergy between technology and public policy and rec-
ommend measures for enhancing income and employment potential of theAnganwadi workers through training and reforms in the health sector; and
(e) to discharge such other functions in relation to the protection, welfare
and development and advancement of the Anganwadi workers.
6. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any
other law for the time being in force.Definitions.
Regularization
of services ofAnganwadiworkers.
Accommodation
to Anganwadiworkers.
Committee for
welfare ofAnganwadiWorkers.
Provisions of
the Act to bein addition toother laws.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 589
7. (1) The Central Government may make rules for carrying out the purposes of
this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty dayswhich may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if,before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or the successivesession aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both theHouses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect onlyin such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any suchmodification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anythingpreviously done under that rule.Power tomake rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Anganwadi Centres were started in this country by the Central Government
and State Governments for implementation of the Integrated Child Development ServicesScheme. It includes the comprehensive development of health awareness among womenand child welfare. The contribution of Anganwadi Centres is remarkable and has becomean integral and essential part of life in rural areas. The Anganwadi workers are goodpromoters of various schemes of the Central Government and State Government andensuring the health and welfare of children and women. The duties and services renderedby the Anganwadi workers are very important for the protection of the health andwelfare of women and children. The Anganwadi workers do not have job security andthe honorarium given to them are not sufficient to meet their immediate basicrequirements. This may adversely affect the working of the Integrated ChildDevelopment Scheme.
The Anganwadi workers are one of the main links between the Government and
the general public. They are helping the Government for the effective implementation ofhealth programmes. Considering the importance of their duties and service, it is highlynecessary to protect their service and welfare.
Hence this Bill.
New Delhi; KULDEEP RAI SHARMA
February 28, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 591
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for regularisation of the services of anganwadi
workers and helpers and confers the status not less than those of Group 'C' employeesof the Central Government on all such workers. It also provides for such wages andwelfare measures as are available to or not less than Group 'C' employees of the CentralGovernment to anganwadi workers. Clause 4 provides for accommodation to Anganwadiworkers. Clause 5 provides for constitution of a Committee for Welfare of AnganwadiWorkers. It also provides for appointment of a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson andMember to the Committee. The Bill, therefore, if enacted would involve expenditurefrom the Consolidated Fund of India. Arecurring expenditure of about rupees threehundred crore is likely to be involved per annum from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees three hundred crore is also likely to
be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGA TED LEGISLATION
Clause 7 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying
out the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, thedelegation of legislative powers is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 593
BILL NO. 260 OF 2022
A Bill to provide for welfare of Anganwadi workers employed across the country and
to ensure that they are provided with all social security benefits.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Anganwadi Worker's Welfare Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by
notification in the Official Gazette, specify.
2. In this Act, until unless the context otherwise requires:—
(a) "anganwadi worker" means any person employed to provide additional
and supplementary healthcare and nutritional services to children and pregnantwomen under the Integrated Child Development Services Scheme (ICDS Scheme);and
(b) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act.Short title,
extent andcommencement.
Definitions.
3. (1) The Central Government shall, for the purpose of welfare of ASHA
workers,—
(a) ensure a minimum of honorarium of rupees twenty thousand per
month which shall be reviewed every five years taking into account theprevailing inflation;
(b) provide a personal accident insurance cover ofrupees ten lakhs to
each Anganwadi workers;
(c) provide a health insurance cover of rupees five lakh on floater basis
which shall be reviewed every five years; and
(d) provide a life insurance cover of rupees twenty lakh to each
Anganwadi worker.
(2) The premium in respect of the personal accident insurance, health insurance
and life insurance cover to Anganwadi workers under sub-section ( 1) shall be borne by
the Central Government.
4. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the
Central Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make provisions,not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act as appear to it to be necessary orexpedient, for removing the difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made after the expiry of a period of two years
from the date of commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall, as soon as may be after it is made,
be laid before each House of Parliament.
5. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the
Central Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, make provisions,not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act as appear to it to be necessary orexpedient, for removing the difficulty:
Provided that no such order shall be made after the expiry of a period of two years
from the date of commencement of this Act.
(2) Every order made under this section shall, as soon as may be after it is made,
be laid before each House of Parliament. ·Welfare ofASHA worker.
Power to
removedifficulty.
Power to
make rules.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 595
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Anganwadi workers form the backbone of India's healthcare system. They are the
grassroot workers who have significantly contributed for betterment of our country'sprogress. As a result of this, it's important that we acknowledge their contributions.The present remuneration paid for the service of these exemplary healthcare warriors ishighly inadequate. Moreover, there is no proper social security for these workers.Considering the present circumstances, it's important that we provide them withadequate social security. This Bill incorporates the minimum amount of wages forAnganwadi worker's and also incorporates social security measures such as personalaccident insurance, health and life insurance for these workers.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; M.K. RAGHA V AN
November 21, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for payment of Honorarium to the Anganwadi work-
ers by the Central Government. It further provides for payment of insurance premiumby the Central Government. It also provides for contribution to pension fund ofAnganwadi workers by the Central Government. The Bill, therefore, if enacted wouldinvolve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. A recurring expenditure ofabout rupees twenty thousand crore is likely to be involved per annum from the Con-solidated Fund of lndia.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees hundred crores is also likely to be in-
volved.
————
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISL ATION
Clause 5 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying
out the purposes of the Bill. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, thedelegation of legislative power is of a normal character.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 597
BILL NO. 3 OF 2023
A Bill to amend the Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda Act, 2020.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda
(Amendment) Act, 2023.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by
notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.Short title,extent andcommencement.
2. In the Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda Act, 2020 (hereinafter
referred to as the principal Act), in the long title, for the words, "The Institute ofTeaching and Research in Ayurveda" the words, "The Institutes of Teaching and Re-search in Ayurveda'' shall be substituted.
3. In section 1 of the principal Act, in sub-section ( 1) for the words, "The Institute
of Teaching and Research" the words, "The Institutes of Teaching and Research inAyurveda" shall be substituted.
4. In section 3 of the principal Act in clause ( h), after the words and number
"under section 4", the words and number "under section 4 including the Institute ofAyurveda Kozhikode established under section 4A'' shall be substituted.
5. After section 4 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted,
namely:—
"4A. (1) There shall be established an Institute of Ayurveda at Kozhikode in
the State of Kerala which shall be a body corporate, to be known as the Instituteof Ayurveda, Kozhikode.
(2) The provisions of this Act shall apply mutatis mutandis to the Institute of
Ayurveda, Kozhikode established under sub-section ( 1).''.Amendment
of the longtitle.
Amendment
of section 1.
Amendment
of section 3.
Insertion of
new section4A.
Establishment
of Institute ofAyurveda atKozhikode inthe State ofKerala.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 599
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Kerala is bestowed with a great natural resources. Its divine location is sand-
wiched between the Sahyadris on the one side and the majestic Arabian sea on theother side. This unique geographical location has led it to have some unique flora andfauna. Large number of medicinal plants and herbs are found here. Kerala has been thecradle of Ayurvedic medicine since ancient times. Ayurveda is not a science in Kerala,but has been blended with the lives of common people in a great way. People fromacross the globe comes to Kerala for its unique Ayurvedic experience. There are largenumber of private sector interventions in Ayurveda in Kerala. Hence there is a greatneed for a Central Government institution of Ayurveda in Kerala. Kozhikode is the ideallocation for such an institute. Due to its geographic location, Kozhikode will be acces-sible easily to neighbouring States as well.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; M.K. RAGHA V AN
November 21, 2022.
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 5 of the Bill vide proposed section 4A provides for establishment of Insti-
tute of Ayurveda, Kozhikode in the State of Kerala. The Bill, therefore, if enacted wouldinvolve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a recurringexpenditure of about rupees one hundred crore per annum would be involved from theConsolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of rupees hundred crore is also likely to be involved.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 601
BILL NO. 275 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and the Code of Criminal
Procedure, 1973.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY
1. (1) This Act may be called the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by
notification in the official gazette, appoint.
CHAPTER II
AMENDMENT TO THE INDIAN PENAL CODE, 1860
2. In section 353 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, for the words ''which may extend
to two years'', the words, ''which shall not be less than one month but which may extendupto one year'' shall be substituted.
CHAPTER III
A
MENDMENT TO THE CODE ON CRIMINAL PROCEDURE , 1973
3. In the First Schedule to the Code of Criminal Procedure under the heading
''I-OFFENCES UNDER THE INDIAN PENAL CODE'', for the entries relating to section353, the following entries relating to section 353, the following entries shall be substi-tuted, namely:—
12 3 4 5 6
''353 Assault or use of Imprisonment for a Non- Bailable Any
Criminal force to term which shall not cognizable Magistrate''
deter a public be less than one monthservant from but which may extenddischarge of his upto one year, or fine
duty. or with both.Short title, and
commencement.
Amendment
of section353.45 of 1860.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Over the years, section 353 of the Indian Penal Code has remained a controversial
one. The veiled nature of this section provided being misused in most of the instances.Public servants often misuse this section as a form of privilege. There have been count-less incidences whereby many have become victim of this section. It's with the beliefthat no common man walks to the door of any public office with the intention of causingany harm to the working of officials that this bill is being introduced. Public servantsare not a vestige of the elite and coveted civil services, rather they are merely an agentof our citizens. Hence, it's our duty to protect the citizens.
The Bill, therefore, seeks to amend the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and the Code of
Criminal Procedure, 1973 with a view to make the offence of assault or use of Criminalforce to deter a public servant from discharge of his duty as ''non-cognizable'' and''bailable''.
The Bill seeks to achieve the above objectives.
N
EW DELHI; M.K. RAGHA VAN
November 21, 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 603
BILL NO. 243 OF 2022
A Bill further to amend the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 .
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-third Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment)
Act, 2022.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by
notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. In section 20 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, in sub-section (1),
the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:—
"Provided that in all cases related to property loans or vehicle loans, the
place of arbitration shall be in the district where the borrower usually resides.".Short title, andcommencement.
Amendment
of section 20.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
There have been many problems with regard to agreement between the parties
under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996. In fact, a lot of provisions have beenmade to ease the process of arbitration under the Act, but the lending companies aremisusing them by getting the borrowers to sign the agreements to the benefit of thecompanies.
Section 20(1) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 provides that "the
parties are free to agree on the place of arbitration." The same Section 20(1) of the Actis being misused by the lending companies, and in case of a dispute among the parties,these companies do not fail to harass the borrower by determining the place of arbitrationthousands of kilometers away from where the borrower resides.
Under the Act, there is a provision to refer the case to the arbitrator in case of any
dispute among the parties. At this juncture, the lending company decides the place ofappointment of the arbitrator to be included in the terms of the loan agreement as per itsown convenience.
Often, it happens that under the guise of Section 20(1) of the Arbitration and
Conciliation Act, 1996, the lending companies choose the place of appointment ofarbitrator at their own convenience, which becomes a hardship to the borrower. Due tothis, in case of a dispute, the borrower has to travel to other States far from his residenceto present his case before the arbitrator.
The place of arbitration being chosen far away, the debtor is neither able to
appear before the arbitrator nor present his case. This leads to ex-parte decision beingpassed by the arbitrator which is equivalent to a decree of a civil court.
In view of the above, it is necessary to amend the Arbitration and Conciliation
Act, 1996, with a view to provide that in the cases related to property loan or vehicleloan, the place of arbitration shall be in the district, where the borrower usually resides.
N
EW DELHI; HANUMAN BENIWAL
23 November , 2022.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 605
BILL NO. 61 OF 2023
A Bill to make provisions to deal with misconduct of Government servants and for
matters connected therewith.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Government Servants (Regulation of Services)
Act, 2023.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by
notification in the Official Gazette appoint.Short title,extent andcommence-ment.
2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) "appointing authority", in relation to a Government servant, means—
(i) the President or the authority empowered by the President to make
appointments to the service of which the Government servant is for the time
being a member or to the grade of the Service in which the Governmentservant is for the time being included, or
(ii) the authority empowered to make appointments to the post which
the Government servant for the time being holds, or
(iii) the authority which appointed the Government servant to such
Service, grade or post, as the case may be, or
(iv) where the Government servant having been a permanent member
of any other Service or having substantively held any other permanentpost, has been in continuous employment of the Government, the authoritywhich appointed him to that Service or to any grade in that Service or to thatpost,
(b) "disciplinary authority" means the authority competent under section 5
to impose any of the penalties specified under section 4 on a Government serv-
ant;
(c) "Government servant" means a person who-
(i) is a member of a Service or holds a civil post under the Union;
(ii) is a member of a Service or holds a civil post under a Central
Government and whose services are temporarily placed at the disposal of
the State Government;
(iii) is in the service of the Central Government and whose services
are temporarily placed at the disposal of the local or other authority;
(d) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under the Act.
3. (1) The Central Government shall evaluate the functioning of every Govern-
ment servant through feedback from the citizens in such manner as may be prescribed.
(2) For the purpose of sub-section (1), the Central Government shall establish
unitary feedback system in each of its department.
4. The Central Government may, for good and sufficient reasons and as hereinaf-
ter provided, impose the following penalties on a Government servant, namely:-
(a) minor penalties including,—
(i) censure; or
(ii) withholding of his promotion; or
(iii) recovery from his pay of the whole or part of any pecuniary loss
caused by him to the Government by negligence or breach of orders; or
(iv)
reduction to a lower stage in the time-scale of pay by one stage
for a period not exceeding three years, without cumulative effect and not
adversely affecting his pension; or
(v) withholding of increments of pay;
(b) major penalties including,-
(i) save as provided for in sub-clause ( iv) of clause (a), reduction to a
lower stage in the time-scale of pay for a specified period, with further
directions as to whether or not the Government servant may earnEvaluation of
Governmentservants.
Penalties.Definitions.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 607
increments of pay during the period of such reduction and whether on the
expiry of such period:
Provided that the reduction may or may not have the effect of post-
poning the future increments of his pay;
(ii) reduction to lower time-scale of pay, grade, post or service for a
period to be specified in the order of penalty, which shall be a bar to the
promotion of the Government servant during such specified period to the
time-scale of pay, grade, post or service from which he was reduced, withdirection as to whether or not, on promotion on the expiry of the said speci-fied period;
(iii) the period of reduction to time-scale of pay, grade, post or service
shall operate to postpone future increments of his pay;
(iv) compulsory retirement;
(v) removal from service which shall not be a disqualification for fu-
ture employment under the Government;
(vi) dismissal from service which shall ordinarily be a disqualification
for future employment under the Government:
Provided that, in every case in which the charge of possession of
assets disproportionate to known-sources of income or the charge of ac-
ceptance from any person of any gratification, other than legal remunera-tion, as a motive or reward for doing or forbearing to do any official act isestablished, the penalty mentioned in sub-clauses ( v) or (vi) of clause ( b)
shall be imposed:
Provided further that where a Government servant delays performing
an official act requested by any citizen under his jurisdiction by givingillogical and unnecessary reasons, the penalty mentioned in sub-clauses
(i), (ii), or ( iii) of clause ( b) shall be imposed:
Provided also that in any exceptional case and for special reasons
recorded in writing, any other penalty may be imposed.
Explanation .—For the purposes of this section, the following shall
not amount to a penalty, namely:-
(i) withholding of increments of pay of a Government servant for his
failure to pass any departmental examination in accordance with the rules ororders governing the Service to which he belongs or post which he holds or
the terms of his appointment;
(ii) stoppage of a Government servant at the efficiency bar in the
timescale of pay on the ground of his unfitness to cross the bar;
(iii) non-promotion of a Government servant, whether in a substan-
tive or officiating capacity, after consideration of his case, to a Service,
grade or post for promotion to which he is eligible;
(iv) reversion of a Government servant officiating in a higher Service,
grade, or post to a lower Service, grade or post, on the ground that he is
considered to be unsuitable for such higher Service, grade or post or on any
administrative ground unconnected with his conduct;
(v) reversion of a Government servant, appointed on probation to any
other Service, grade or post, to his permanent Service, grade or post during
or at the end of the period of probation in accordance with the terms of his
appointment or the rules and orders governing such probation;
(vi) repatriation of a Government servant whose services had been
borrowed from a State Government or an authority under the control of aState Government, at the disposal of the State Government or the authorityfrom which the services of such Government servant had been borrowed;and
(vii) compulsory retirement of a Government servant in accordance
with the provisions relating to his superannuation or retirement.
5. (1) The President may, through the appointing authority or by any other au-
thority empowered in this behalf by a general or special order, impose any of the penal-ties specified in section 4 on any Government servant who is,-
(a) a member of a Central Civil Service other than the General Central Serv-
ice;
(b) a person appointed to a Central Civil Service included in the General
Central Service,
(2) The power to impose any of the penalties specified in section 4 may also be
exercised, in the case of a member of a Central Civil Services, Group 'C' (other than theCentral Secretariat Clerical Service), or a Central Civil Service, Group 'D',-
(a) if he is serving in a Ministry or Department of the Government of India,
by the Secretary to the Government of India in that Ministry or Department; or
(b) if he is serving in any office, by the head of that office, except where the
head of that office is lower in rank than the authority competent to impose thepenalty under section 4.
6. (1) No order imposing any of the penalties specified in section 4 shall be made
except after an enquiry held, as far as may be, in the manner provided by the PublicServants (Inquiries) Act, 1850, where such inquiry is held under that Act.
(2) Whenever the disciplinary authority is of the opinion that there are grounds
for inquiring into the truth of any imputation of misconduct or misbehaviour against aGovernment servant, it may itself inquire into, or appoint under this rule or under theprovisions of the Public Servants (Inquiries) Act, 1850, as the case may be, an authorityto inquire into the truth thereof:
Provided that where there is a complaint of sexual harassment within the meaning
of rule 3 C of the Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 1964, the Complaints Committeeestablished in each Ministry or Department or Office for inquiring into such complaints,shall be deemed to be the inquiring authority appointed by the disciplinary authorityfor the purpose of these rules and the Complaints Committee shall hold, if separateprocedure has not been prescribed for the Complaints Committee for holding the inquiryinto the complaints of sexual harassment, the inquiry as far as practicable in accordancewith the procedure laid down in those rules.
7. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any
other law for the time being in force.
8. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central
Government may, by order, make such provisions or give such directions not inconsistentwith the provisions of this Act as may appear to it to be necessary or expedient for theremoval of the difficulty:
Provided that no such order or direction shall be made or given after the expiry of
two years from the commencement of this Act.DisciplinaryAuthorities.
Procedure for
imposingmajorpenalties.
Act not in
derogation ofother law.
Power to
removedifficulties.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 609
9. (1) The Central Government may, by notification and in consultation with the
Chief Justice of India, make rules for carrying out the provisions of this Act.
(2) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid as soon as may be after it is made,
before each House of Parliament, while it is in session for a total period of thirty dayswhich may be comprised in one session or in two successive sessions, and, if beforethe expiry of the session in which it is so laid or the session immediately following, bothHouses agree in making any modification in the rule or both Houses agree that the ruleshould not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form orbe of no effect, as the case may be, so, however, that any such modification or annulmentshall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.Power tomake rules.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
Bureaucrats are an essential component of government machinery. They work in
government for the improvement of society and to help their fellow citizens. However,they are frequently found to be misbehaving and refusing to cooperate with the peoplethey are obligated to serve. Many individuals frequently complain about howgovernment employees waste their time. Even if we now have a number of rules in placeto govern the behaviour of government officials, yet a robust legislation regulating theconduct of erring officials to benefit individuals and the country as a whole is urgentlyrequired.
Hence this Bill.
N
EW DELHI; OMPRAKASH BHUPALSINH RAJENIMBALKAR
February 13, 2023.
SEC. 2] THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY 611
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 3 of the Bill provides that the Central Government shall establish unitary
feedback system in each of its department for having feedback on the functioning ofevery government servant. The Bill, therefore, if enacted will involve expenditure fromthe Consolidated Fund of India. It is estimated that a recurring expenditure of aboutrupees one thousand crore would be involved from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees one hundred crore is also likely to
be involved.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
Clause 9 of the Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules for carrying
out the purposes of this Act. As the rules will relate to matters of detail only, thedelegation of legislative powers is of a normal character.
————
UTPAL KUMAR SINGH
Secretary General.
UPLOADED BY THE MANAGER, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA PRESS, MINTO ROAD, NEW DELHI–110002
AND PUBLISHED BY THE CONTROLLER OF PUBLICATIONS, DELHI–110054.
MGIPMRND—248GI—16-09-2023
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