Chapter I PRELIMINARY.

(1) This Act may be called the Gujarat Land Improvement Schemes Act, 1942. (2) It shall extend to the whole of the State of Gujarat. (3) It shall come into force in such area and on such date as the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, direct : Provided that on the commencement of the Bombay Land Improvement Schemes (Extension and Amendment) Act, 1958, it shall come into force at once in those areas in which the Saurashtra Land Improvement Schemes Act, 1954 was in force immediately before such commencement.

In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context,- (1) "Board" means a Board constituted under section 3; (1A) "Collector" includes a Deputy Commissioner; (1B) "Company" means the Gujarat State Land Development Corporation Limited, and any other company owned or controlled by the State, the purpose of which is execution or financing or both execution and financing of the schemes under this Act; (1C) "Company Officer" means any officer of the Company duly appointed by it for all or any of the purposes of this Act; (2) "Director of Agriculture" means the officer appointed for the time being to be the Director of Agriculture and includes any officer appointed by the State Government to perform the duties of the Director of Agriculture under this Act; (2A) "Divisional Soil Conservation Officer" means the officer appointed for the time being to be the Divisional Soil Conservation Officer and includes any other officer authorised by the State Government to exercise the powers and perform the duties of a Divisional Soil Conservation Officer under this Act; (2B) "District Agricultural Officer" means the officer appointed for the time being to be the District Agricultural Officer; (2C) "Executing Officer" means an officer appointed by the Board or the Company under sub-section (1) of section 11 and shall be construed according as the schemes are executed at the expense of the State Government or the Company; (3) "Inquiry Officer" means an officer appointed as such by the Board; (4) 'Owner' includes an owner in severalty, in common or joint, an occupant, a tenure holder, pattadar, tenant, and a mortgagee in possession and the expressions 'owning' and 'own' shall be construed accordingly; (5) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act; (5A) "Code" means the Bombay Land Revenue Code, 1879; (5B) "relevant tenancy law" means- (i) in the pre-reorganisation State of Bombay, excluding the transferred territories, the Bombay Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act,1948; (iv) in the Saurashtra Area of the State of Bombay, the Saurashtra Prohibition of Leases of Agricultural Lands Act, 1953 and the Saurashtra Gharkhed, Tenancy Settlement and Agricultural Lands Ordinance, 1949; and (v) in the Kutch Area of the State of Bombay, the Bombay Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948 as extended to that area; (7) "Scheme" means a land improvement scheme prepared under this Act; (7A) "Soil Conservation Officer" means the officer appointed for the time being to be the Soil Conservation Officer ; (7B) 'tenant' means a tenant within the meaning of the relevant tenancy law; (8) the words and expressions used in this Act, but not defined, shall have the meaning assigned to them in the Code.