section 19
Offences and penalties for unlawful tube-well drilling, ground water abstraction, supply, sell or usage
The Chhattisgarh Ground Water (Management and Regulation) Act, 2022Environmental202230 sections6 chapters
Chapter V VIOLATION, OFFENCES AND PENALTIES
Statutory text
- (1) Whoever in contravention of this act or of any rule, notification or order made, issued or given thereunder, or of any license or permit granted under this act -
- (a) constructs any new tubewell/ dug well etc. ; or
- (b) extracts, sell or supply of raw unprocessed untreated ground water ; or
- (c) supplies ground water in any tanker, vessel, etc. ; or
- (d) Obstructs the appropriate body or any other person authorized by the State Government or State Ground Water Management and Regulatory Authority to exercise any of the powers conferred under this Act; or
- (e) neglects the security arrangement for any old, incomplete, abandoned or unusefull well owned by him, in such a way that it may cause death/injury to any person or animal ; shall subject to the provisions of subsection (2), be punishable for every such offence with imprisonment for a term not less than three months which may extend to one Year years and fine which shall not be less than five thousand rupees but which may extend to Ten thousand rupees: Provided that when any person is convicted under this section of any offence for a second or subsequent time, he shall be punishable for every such offence with imprisonment for a term not less than six month but which may extend to One year and with fine which shall not be less than Ten thousand rupees but which may extend to fifteen thousand rupees.
- (2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), if the offences described in clause (a), clause (b), clause
- (c) or clause
- (d) is committed by any commercial user, industrial user, infrastructural user or any bulk user, he shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six month but which may extend to two years and with fine which shall not be less than ten thousand rupees but may extend to twenty five thousand rupees: Provided that when any person is convicted under this Section for an offence for second or subsequent time, he shall be punishable for every such offence with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than one year but which may extend to three years and with fine which shall not be less than twenty thousand rupees but may extend to fifty thousand rupees.
- (3) When an offence covered by sub section
- (1) or sub section
- (2) proved to be committed for second or subsequent time the permission / license issued for ground water abstraction may be cancelled with immediate effect.
- (4) When there is reason to believe that any offence under this Act has been committed, officer not below the rank of Assistant Engineer or any other officer authorised under this act by the state government in this behalf may, seize such machine, equipment, tool, vehicle, vessel or any other articles used in committing such offence under the provisions of this Act.
- (5) Any officer seizing any property under this section shall place on all such properly a mark indicating that the same has been so seized and shall, as soon as may be, produce a report of seizer of the property before the Executive Engineer of the Water Resources Department; (6)
- (i) When any seizure report is produced before the Executive Engineer during any inquiry and before filing of complaint to the court, the executive Engineer may make such order as he thinks fit for the proper custody of such property pending the conclusion of the inquiry or trial. however if in the opinion of the Executive Engineer that the order for the interim custody of such property is not appropriate, he may refer the report, before the Collector to order the confiscation of such property;
- (ii) If the Executive Engineer or any other officer authorised to do so has produced a written complaint before the magistrate, in such case for disposal of property the provisions of Chapter-XXXIV of the criminal procedure code, 1973 (No. 2 of 1974) shall be applicable.
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