| [Act 70 of 1982] | [13th November, 1982] |
An Act to amend the Limestone and Dolomite Mines Labour Welfare Fund Act, 1972
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Thirty-third Year of the Republic of India as follows:-
Prefatory Note-Statement of Objects and Reasons.-The Limestone and Dolomite Mines Labour Welfare Fund Act, 1972, was enacted with a view to ameliorating the living conditions of labour employed in limestones and dolomite mines. It provides for the levy and collection of a cess on limestone and dolomite consumed in factories and for the crediting of the proceeds of the cess, after due appropriation, to the Limestone and Dolomite Mines Labour Welfare Fund. The Act also provides for the application of the said Fund for meeting the expenditure in connection with welfare measures undertaken for the benefit of workers engaged in limestone and dolomite mines.
2. The 1972-Act does not define the expression "limestone". To secure that minerals like lime-shell, calcareous sand and sea sand essentially composed of lime-shell, marl, kankar or lime kankar which are similar in composition to limestone are also treated as limestone for the purposes of the Act, it is proposed to include a definition of limestone in the Act (Clause 2 of the Bill).
3. In an appeal under the rules made under the Act, the view has been taken that an owner of a mine who uses the limestone or dolomite produced in the mine would be liable for payment of duty under the Act only when such limestone or dolomite is used in connection with the manufacture of cement, iron or steel. The Act has all along been administered on the basis that the duty is leviable not only when the owner uses the limestone or dolomite for the manufacture of cement, iron or steel, but also when he uses it for other purposes, such as, manufacture of ferro-alloys, alloy steels, chemicals, sugar, paper, fertilizers, refractories and iron ore pelletisation. It is, therefore, proposed to amend Sections 3 and 4 of the Act suitably to bring out this intention clearly and to validate levies made in the past in accordance with this intention (Clauses 3, 4 and 8 of the Bill).
4. The other amendments proposed in the Bill, which are of a minor nature, are as follows:-
(a) a provision is being include to enable the Advisory Committees under the Act to co-opt members (Clause 5 of the Bill);
(b) the power to make inspections under the Act, which at present can be exercised only by Inspectors and Welfare Administrators under the Act, is proposed to be conferred on the Welfare Commissioners under the Act who rank above Welfare Administrators (Clause 6 of the Bill);
(c) with a view to keeping track of the mode of disposal of minerals, provision is being made to enable the Central Government to make rules for collection of statistical information from purchasing agents and stockists of limestone and dolomite [Clause 7(b) of the Bill].
5. The Bill seeks to achieve the above objects.
1. Short title.-This Act may be called the Limestone and Dolomite Mines Labour Welfare Fund (Amendment) Act, 1982.
2. Amendment of Section 2.-In Section 2 of the Limestone and Dolomite Mines Labour Welfare Fund Act, 1972 (62 of 1972) (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act), after clase (b), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:-
"(bb) ‘limestone’ includes minerals like, calcareous sand and sea sand essentially composed of lime-shell, marl, kankar or lime-kankar;".
3. Amendment of Section 3.-In Section 3 of the principal Act,-
(a) in clause (ii), for the words "iron or steel", the words "iron, steel, ferro-alloys, alloy steels, chemicals, sugar, paper, fertilizers, refractories, iron ore pelletisation or such other article or goods or class of articles or goods, as the Central Government may, from time to time, specify by notification in the Official Gazette" shall be substituted and shall be deemed always to have been substitued;
(b) in the Explanation, for the words "cement, iron or steel", the words, brackets and figures "any article or goods referred to in or specified under clause (ii)" shall be substituted and shall be deemed always to have been substituted.
4. Amendment of Section 4.-In Section 4 of the principal Act, in clause (b), for the words "cement, iron or steel", the words, brackets and figures "any article or goods referred to in or specified under clause (ii) of Section 3" shall be substituted and shall be deemed always to have been substituted.
5. Insertion of new Section 7-A.-After Section 7 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely:-
"7-A. Power to co-opt etc.-(1) An Advisory Committee or the Central Advisory Committee may, at any time and for such period as it thinks fit, co-opt any person or persons to the Committee.
(2) A person co-opted under sub-section (1) to a Committee shall exercise and discharge all the powers and functions of a member thereof, but shall not be entitled to vote.".
6. Amendment of Section 8.-In Section 8 of the principal Act,-
(a) in sub-section (1), for the words "Inspectors, Welfare Administrators", the words "Welfare Commissioners, Welfare Administrators, Inspectors" shall be substituted;
(b) in sub-section (3), for the words "Any Inspector or Welfare Administrator", the words "a Welfare Commissioner, Welfare Administrator or Inspector" shall be substituted
7. Amendment of Section 16.-In Section 16 of the principal Act,-
(a) in clause (m), for the words "an Inspector or a Welfare Administrator", the words "a Welfare Commissioner or a Welfare Administrator or an Inspector" shall be substituted;
(b) in clause (n), after the words "the occupier of factories", the words "the purchasing agents or stockists of limestone or dolomine" shall be inserted.
8. Validation.-Notwithstanding any judgment, decree or order of any court, tribunal or other authority,-
(a) all duties of excise levied, assessed or collected or purported to have been levied, assessed or collected under the principal Act before the commencement of this Act shall, for all purposes, be deemed to be, and to have always been, as validly and effectively levied, assessed or collected as if the provisions of Sections 3 and 4 of the principal Act as amended by Sections 3 and 4 of this Act had been in force at all material times;
(b) no suit or proceeding shall be maintained or continued in any court for the refund of, and no enforcement shall be made by any court of any decree or order directing the refund of, any such duty of excise which had been collected and which would have been validly collected if the provisions of Sections 3 and 4 of the principal Act, as amended by Sections 3 and 4 of this Act, had been in force at all material times;
(c) refunds shall be made of all such duties of excise which have been collected but which would not have been so collected if the provisions of Sections 3 and 4 of the principal Act, as amended by Sections 3 and 4 of this Act, had been in force at all material times;
(d) recoveries shall be made of all such duties of excise which have not been collected or, as the case may be, which have been refunded but which would have been collected or, as the case may be, would not have been refunded if the provisions of Sections 3 and 4 of the principal Act, as amended by Sections 3 and 4 of this Act, had been in force at all material times.
Explanation.-For the removal of doubts, it is hereby declared that no act or omission on the part of any person, before the commencement of this Act, shall be punishable as an offence which would not have been so punishable if this Act had not come into force.