*Orissa Irrigation (Amendment) Act, 1993**
| [Orissa Act No. 3 of 1994] | [25th January, 1994] |
An Act further to Amend the Orissa Irrigation Act, 1959.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Orissa in the Forty-fourth Year of the Republic of India as follows:-
* For the Bill see Orissa Gazette Extraordinary dated the 22nd December, 1993 (No. 1658).
** [Received the assent of the Governor on the 25th January, 1994, first published in an extraordinary issue of the Orissa Gazette, dated the 2nd February, 1994]
1. Short title.- This Act may be called the Orissa Irrigation (Amendment) Act, 1993.
2. Amendment of long title.- In the Orissa Irrigation Act, 1959 (Orissa Act 14 of 1959) (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act), in the long title, the words "AND TO PROVIDE FOR THE REGULATION OF USE OF WATER FROM GOVERNMENT SOURCE" shall be added at the end.
3. Amendment of preamble.- In the principal Act, in the first pa re graph of the preamble, the words "and to provide for the regulation of use of water from Government source" shall be added at the end.
4. Amendment of section 4.- In the principal Act, in section 4, after clause (6), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:-
‘(6-a) "Government water source" means any water source created naturally or otherwise by collection or deposit of water at a fixed place, any subsoil water or water in a State of running such as rivers, nals, springs, streams and the alike, which is other than an Irrigation Work and is the property of the Government;"
5. Insertion of new section 20-A.- In the principal Act, after section 20, the following section shall be inserted, namely:-
"20-A. Regulation and use of water from Government water source.- (1) The State Government may, in the public interest, regulate the use 1 diversion, collection or consumption of water from Government water source for industrial and commercial purposes other than agriculture.
(2) On and after commencement of the Orissa Irrigation (Amendment) Act, 1993, no person shall use, divert, collect or consume water from Government water source for any industry or commercial establishment except in accordance with a licence granted under this Act.
(3) The licence referred to in sub-section (1) shall be subject to such terms and conditions, and shall be obtained from such authority, in such manner, and subject to payment of such fees, as may be prescribed.
(4) Not withstanding anything contained in sub-section (1) or in any subsisting contract, any person using, diverting, collecting or consuming water from Government water source for any industry or commercial establishment immediately before the commencement of the Orissa Irrigation (Amendment) Act, 1993 may continue to do so and shall be deemed to have been granted a licence under this Act-
(i) for a period of three months from the date of such commencement; or
(ii) if an application for the required licence is duly made in the prescribed manner to the appropriate authority within the period specified in clause (i) till the disposal of such application.
(5) Any person who uses, diverts, collects or consumes water from Government water source in contravention of the provisions of this section, shall on conviction, be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three months, or with fine which may extend to twenty-five thousand rupees, or with both and where any sucli person after beiog convicted under this sub-section for the offence continues to commit the offence or commits it for the second or any subsequent time he shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to fifty thousand rupees, or with both.
(6) (a) 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, shall be deemed to be guilty of the offence and shill be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly:
Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section shall render any such person Liable to any punishment, if he proves that the offence was committed without his knowledge or that he had exercised all-due diligence to prevent the commission of such offence.
(b) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1) whore an offence under this Act has been committed by a company and it is proved that the offence has been committed 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 ba deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly,
(7) The rules that may be made for the purposes of this section may provide that the State Government may, in any case or class of cases, exempt in part or in full the payment of the required licence fee for any specified period in the interest of industrial and commercial developments in the State.
Explanation:- For the purposes of this section;-
(a) "Commercial establishment" shall have the same meaning as defined Orissa Act in the Orissa Shops and Commercial Establishment Act, 1956 (30 of 1956);
(b) "Company" means a body corporate and includes a firm or other association of individuals;
(c) "Director" in relation to a firm, means a partner in the firm; and
(d) "Industry" shall have the same meaning as defined in the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947", (14 of 1917).