The Andhra Pradesh Road Development Corporation Act, 1998

Short title, extent and commencement.

1. (1) This Act may be called the Andhra Pradesh Road Development Corporation Act, 1998.
2. (2) It extends to the whole of the State of Andhra Pradesh.
3. (3) It shall come into force on such date as the Government may, by notification in the Andhra Pradesh Gazette, appoint.

Definitions. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—

1. (a) “Corporation” means the Andhra Pradesh Road Development Corporation established under section 3;
2. (b) “Government” means the State Government of Andhra Pradesh;
3. (c) “Local Authority” includes a Municipal Corporation, Municipal Council, Nagar Panchayat, Zilla Praja Parishad, Mandal Praja Parishad or Gram Panchayat constituted under the relevant law for the time being in force;
4. (d) “National Highway” means any road which is for the time being declared as a National Highway under section 2 of the National Highways Act, 1956;
5. (e) “Prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
6. (f) “Road” means a road whether or not a highway, which is declared as a State Highway or a Major District Road by the Government and includes,—
   • (i) all lands acquired for the purpose of such road;
   • (ii) all bridges, culverts, tunnels, causeways, carriageways, footways, side-drains and other works constructed on, under or ancillary to such road;
   • (iii) all other structures and works constructed on, under or ancillary to such road;
7. (g) “Road Development” means carrying out of all or any of the works related to improvement, maintenance, management, operation and development of roads;
8. (h) “Regulations” means regulations made under this Act.

Incorporation of the Corporation

1. (1) The State Government shall, by notification in the Andhra Pradesh Gazette, constitute a Corporation by the name of “the Andhra Pradesh Road Development Corporation”.
2. (2) The Corporation shall be a body corporate having perpetual succession and a common seal, with power, subject to the provisions of this Act, to acquire, hold and dispose of property, both movable and immovable, and to contract and shall, by the said name, sue and be sued.

Constitution of the Corporation

1. (1) The Corporation shall consist of the following members, namely:—
   • (a) The Minister for Roads and Buildings, who shall be the Chairman;
   • (b) The Secretary to Government, Transport, Roads and Buildings Department, who shall be the Vice-Chairman;
   • (c) The Secretary to Government, Finance and Planning (Finance Wing) Department, Member;
   • (d) The Managing Director of the Corporation, who shall be the Member-Secretary;
   • (e) The Engineer-in-Chief (Roads and Buildings), Member;
   • (f) Three non-official members to be nominated by the State Government, who have special knowledge and experience in the field of road development, finance or administration.
2. (2) The terms and conditions of service of the non-official members shall be such as may be prescribed.
3. (3) The Corporation shall meet at such times and places and shall observe such procedure in regard to the transaction of business at its meetings as may be provided by regulations made under this Act.

Term of office and conditions of service of members:

1. (1) The term of office and other conditions of service of the members shall be such as may be prescribed.
2. (2) The members shall be entitled to such fees and allowances for attending the meetings of the Corporation as may be prescribed.

Meetings of the Corporation:

1. (1) The Corporation shall meet at such times and places and shall, subject to the provisions of sub-sections
2. (2) and (3), observe such rules of procedure in regard to the transaction of business at its meetings (including the quorum at meetings) as may be provided by regulations made under this Act.
3. (2) The Chairman or, in his absence, any member chosen by the members present from among themselves, shall preside at a meeting of the Corporation.
4. (3) All questions at a meeting of the Corporation shall be decided by a majority of the votes of the members present and voting and, in the case of an equality of votes, the Chairman or, in his absence, the member presiding shall have a second or casting vote.

Constitution of Committees:

1. (1) The Corporation may, from time to time, constitute such committee or committees consisting of such number of persons as it may think fit for the purpose of discharging such of its functions as may be delegated to such committee or committees by the Corporation.
2. (2) Any committee constituted under section
3. (1) shall meet at such time and at such places and shall observe such rules of procedure in regard to the transaction of business at its meetings as may be provided by regulations.

Temporary association of persons with the Corporation for particular purposes:

1. (1) The Corporation may associate with itself in such manner and for such purposes as may be provided by regulations any person whose assistance or advice it may desire in complying with any of the provisions of this Act.
2. (2) A person associated with it by the Corporation under sub-section
3. (1) for any purpose shall have a right to take part in the discussions of the Corporation relevant to that purpose, but shall not have a right to vote at a meeting of the Corporation and shall not be a member of the Corporation for any other purpose.

Vacancy, etc., not to invalidate proceedings of the Corporation.— No act or proceeding of the Corporation or any committee formed under this Act shall be deemed to be invalid by reason only of the existence of any vacancy or defect in the constitution of the Corporation or such committee.

Appointment of Managing Director and other staff.—

1. (1) The Managing Director shall be appointed by the Government: Provided that the Managing Director shall be a person who has knowledge and experience in management of roads or transport or finance or civil engineering.
2. (2) The Corporation may appoint such other officers and employees as it considers necessary for the efficient discharge of its functions under this Act.
3. (3) The conditions of appointment and service of the Managing Director and other officers and employees of the Corporation shall be such as may be provided by regulations.

Authentication of orders and other instruments of the Corporation: All orders and decisions of the Corporation shall be authenticated by the signature of the Chairman or any other member authorized by the Corporation in this behalf and all other instruments issued by the Corporation shall be authenticated by the signature of such officer of the Corporation as may be authorised by the Corporation in this behalf.

General powers of the Corporation:

1. (1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the Corporation shall have power:
   • (a) to acquire and hold property, both movable and immovable, as the Corporation may deem necessary for the performance of any of its functions and to lease, sell or otherwise transfer any property held by it;
   • (b) to purchase by agreement or to take on lease or under any form of tenancy any land and to enter into any contract;
   • (c) to execute works and to do all things necessary for the purposes of this Act;
   • (d) to incur expenditure and undertake any work in any area of the State for the framing and execution of such road development schemes as it may consider necessary from time to time;
   • (e) to cause surveys and studies to be made and plans and estimates to be prepared for the implementation of the road development schemes;
   • (f) to direct and supervise the execution of any road development scheme;
   • (g) to enter into contracts or arrangements with any Government, local authority, or person as the Corporation may deem necessary for performing its functions;
   • (h) to do all such other things as may be necessary or expedient for the purposes of carrying out its functions under this Act;
     • (i) to levy and collect tolls on roads, bridges and such other assets/infrastructure and to retain the proceeds thereof for the purposes of this Act.
2. (2) The Corporation shall have the power to borrow money from the Government or from any financial institution or through the issue of bonds, debentures or such other instruments, as it may deem fit, for the development of roads and for the purposes of this Act.

Functions of the Corporation.—(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the functions of the Corporation shall be to plan, develop, maintain and manage the State Highways, major district roads and other roads vested in or entrusted to it by the Government.

1. (2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provisions, the Corporation may—
   • (a) perform all or any of the functions of the State Government, or any local authority, as the case may be, in relation to the execution of works and development of State Highways, major district roads and other roads, as may be entrusted to it by the Government;
   • (b) carry out surveys, inspections and investigations necessary for the purposes of this Act;
   • (c) provide for, or carry out, the periodic repairs and maintenance of the State Highways, major district roads and other roads vested in or entrusted to it;
   • (d) plant and maintain trees on the sides of the roads vested in or entrusted to it;
   • (e) perform such other functions as may be prescribed.
2. (3) The Corporation may also undertake, if requested by the Government, the construction, maintenance and management of any new road or bridge or any other road development project.
3. (4) The Corporation may, for the discharge of its functions, enter into any contract or agreement with any person or agency, subject to such terms and conditions as may be prescribed.

Vesting of roads in the Corporation.—(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, all State Highways and major district roads, together with all lands, buildings, machinery, equipment, instruments, works and materials appertaining thereto, which immediately before the appointed day vested in the State Government, shall, on and from such appointed day, vest in the Corporation.

1. (2) The Government may, by notification, vest such other roads and bridges, not being National Highways, as it may deem fit, in the Corporation, and on such vesting, the Corporation shall be responsible for the maintenance and management of such roads and bridges.
2. (3) The Corporation shall, in respect of the roads and bridges vested in or entrusted to it, have the power to—
   • (a) levy, collect and appropriate fees at such rates as may be prescribed by the Government from time to time, for the use of any road or bridge by any class of vehicles or persons;
   • (b) regulate the use of such roads and bridges in accordance with the provisions of any law for the time being in force;
   • (c) exercise all the powers of the State Government or any local authority under any law for the time being in force for the purposes of maintenance, management and development of such roads and bridges.

Power of Government to entrust other works to Corporation:

1. (1) The Government may, by notification, entrust to the Corporation the execution of any work or development scheme or the maintenance of any road or bridge not specifically included in the objects of the Corporation and thereupon the Corporation shall be bound to execute such work or development scheme or maintain such road or bridge.
2. (2) Where any such work or scheme is entrusted to the Corporation under sub-section (1), the Government shall pay to the Corporation from the Consolidated Fund of the State, such amount as may be determined by the Government to meet the expenses incurred by the Corporation in the execution of such work or scheme.

Corporation to act as an agent of the Government: The Corporation shall, if so required by the Government, act as an agent of the Government for the development of State Highways, Major District Roads and other roads and for the execution of any development scheme or any other work, whether or not mentioned in the objects of the Corporation.

Capital of the Corporation:

1. (1) The initial capital of the Corporation shall be such amount as the Government may, by notification, determine.
2. (2) The Government may, from time to time, increase the capital of the Corporation by such amount as it may determine.
3. (3) The capital may be provided for by the Government on such terms and conditions as may be prescribed.

Fund of the Corporation:

1. (1) The Corporation shall have a fund to be called the "Road Development Fund".
2. (2) The following shall be credited to the Road Development Fund; namely:
   • (a) all grants, subventions, donations and gifts made by the Government or any local authority or any other body or any person;
   • (b) the amount paid, or as the case may be, the revenue collected by the Corporation by way of levy of tolls, fees and charges;
   • (c) all moneys received by or on behalf of the Corporation including the interest or dividend on investments;
   • (d) all moneys borrowed by the Corporation;
   • (e) all moneys received by the Corporation from the disposal of movable and immovable properties;
   • (f) all other sums received by the Corporation from any other source.
3. (3) The Fund shall be applied for meeting:
   • (a) the cost of administration and management of the Corporation;
   • (b) the cost of acquiring land and properties;
   • (c) the cost of construction, development, maintenance and repairs of the roads;
   • (d) the repayment of loans and interest thereon;
   • (e) the expenditure incurred in exercise of the powers and discharge of the duties and functions under this Act;
   • (f) any other expenditure which may be incurred for the purposes of this Act.

Charges on the Fund of the Corporation:-

1. (1) The Fund of the Corporation shall be held and applied by the Corporation, subject to and for the purposes of this Act, for payment of the following charges, namely:-
   • (a) the cost of administration of the Corporation constituted under this Act;
   • (b) the amounts required for meeting the expenses incurred in the discharge of its functions;
   • (c) the interest on any loans that may be raised by the Corporation;
   • (d) the cost of acquisition of land;
   • (e) the maintenance of the assets of the Corporation;
   • (f) such other expenses as may be authorized by the Government.

Power to borrow:-

1. (1) The Corporation may, with the previous sanction of the Government and subject to the provisions of this Act and to such conditions as may be imposed by the Government, borrow money from any source by the issue of bonds, debentures, stocks or such other instruments as it may deem fit for carrying out any of the purposes of this Act.
2. (2) The Corporation may also borrow money by way of temporary loan or overdraft from any bank or from the Government.

Expenditure not covered by the budget

1. (1) If during the financial year any sum is required to be spent and such expenditure is not covered by any provision in the budget grant or is in excess of the amount provided in the budget grant, the Corporation shall prepare a supplementary budget and get it approved by the Government.
2. (2) No expenditure shall be incurred by or on behalf of the Corporation unless such expenditure is covered by a budget grant or a supplementary budget.

Investment of funds

1. (1) The Corporation may invest its funds in such securities and in such manner as may be prescribed.
2. (2) The Corporation shall maintain a separate fund to be called the "Road Development Fund" to which shall be credited all moneys received by the Corporation by way of grants, loans, advances, fees, development charges and all other receipts of the Corporation.
3. (3) The fund shall be applied for meeting Administrative expenses of the Corporation and for carrying out the purposes of this Act: Provided that the Government may direct that any portion of the fund which is not required for immediate use shall be invested in such interest bearing securities or in such other manner as the Government may deem fit.

Accounts and audit:

1. (1) The Corporation shall maintain proper accounts and other relevant records and prepare an annual statement of accounts including the balance sheet in such form as may be prescribed by the Government in consultation with the Accountant General.
2. (2) The accounts of the Corporation shall be audited annually by the Accountant General or any other person authorised by him in this behalf and any expenditure incurred by him or any person so authorised by him in connection with such audit shall be payable by the Corporation to the Accountant General.
3. (3) The Accountant General and any person authorised by him in connection with the audit of the accounts of the Corporation shall have the same rights, privileges and authority in connection with such audit as the Accountant General has in connection with the audit of Government accounts and, in particular, shall have the right to demand the production of books, accounts, connected vouchers and other documents and papers and to inspect any of the offices of the Corporation.
4. (4) The accounts of the Corporation as certified by the Accountant General or any other person authorised by him in this behalf together with the audit report thereon shall be forwarded annually to the Government and the Government shall cause the same to be laid before the Legislative Assembly of the State.

Submission of Annual Report:

1. (1) The Corporation shall, as soon as may be after the end of each financial year, prepare and submit to the Government before such date and in such form as may be prescribed, a report giving an account of its activities during the previous financial year and the report shall also give an account of the activities, if any, which are likely to be undertaken by the Corporation in the next financial year.
2. (2) The Government shall cause the annual report together with the audit report referred to in section 23 to be laid before the Legislative Assembly of the State within a period of three months from the date of its receipt.

Power of Government to give directions to the Corporation:

1. (1) The Government may issue to the Corporation such general or special directions in writing as they think necessary or expedient for the purpose of carrying out the purposes of this Act and the Corporation shall be bound to follow and act upon such directions.
2. (2) If any dispute arises between the Government and the Corporation as to whether a question is a question of policy, the decision of the Government shall be final.

Execution of contracts:

Exemption from tax on wealth and income Exemption from tax on wealth and income.— Notwithstanding anything contained in the Wealth-tax Act, 1957, the Income-tax Act, 1961, or any other enactment for the time being in force relating to tax on wealth, income, profits or gains, the Corporation shall not be liable to pay wealth-tax, income-tax or any other tax in respect of its wealth, income, profits or gains derived.

Power to make rules.—

1. (1) The Government may, by notification in the Andhra Pradesh Gazette, make rules for carrying out all or any of the purposes of this Act.
2. (2) Every rule made under this Act shall immediately after it is made, be laid before the Legislative Assembly of the State if it is in session and if it is not in session, in the session immediately following for a total period of fourteen days which may be comprised in one session or in two successive sessions, and if, before the expiration of the session in which it is so laid or the session immediately following the Legislative Assembly agrees in making any modification in the rule or in the annulment of the rule, the rule shall from the date of notification of such modification or annulment have effect only in such modified form or shall stand annulled 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.

Power to make regulations:

1. (1) The Corporation may, with the previous approval of the Government, make regulations not inconsistent with this Act and the rules made thereunder, for the administration of the affairs of the Corporation.
2. (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 conditions of service and the scales of pay and allowances of officers and other employees of the Corporation other than those appointed by the Government;
   • (b) the time and place of meetings of the Board, the procedure to be followed in regard to the transaction of business at such meetings and the quorum necessary for the transaction of business at a meeting;
   • (c) the authentication of the seal of the Corporation;
   • (d) the maintenance of minutes of the meetings of the Board and the transmission of copies thereof to the Government;
   • (e) the persons by whom, and the manner in which, payments, deposits and investments may be made on behalf of the Corporation;
   • (f) the custody of moneys required for the current expenditure of the Corporation and investment of moneys not so required;
   • (g) the maintenance of accounts.

Protection of action taken in good faith: No suit, prosecution or other legal proceedings shall lie against the Corporation or any member or any officer or other employee of the Corporation for anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done in pursuance of this Act or any rule or regulation made thereunder.

Power to remove difficulties:

1. (1) If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Government may, by order published in the Andhra Pradesh Gazette, make such provisions, not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as appear to them to be necessary or expedient for removing the difficulty: Provided that no such order shall be made after the expiration of two years from the commencement of this Act.
2. (2) Every order made under this section shall, as soon as may be after it is made, be laid before the Legislative Assembly of the State.