Chapter II CONSTITUTION OF COUNCIL, APPOINTMENT OF OFFICE

Election of members of the Council under sub-section (2) of section 3 shall be held at such time and place and in such manner as may be prescribed by rules or regulations and where any dispute arises regarding any such election, it shall be referred to the State Government whose decision shall be final. No suit or other legal proceeding, whatsoever, shall lie in any court against the State Government or the said Council or its officers for and on account of, or in respect of, any such orders made, proceedings taken, appointments made, examinations conducted, licences, diplomas or certificates issued, registrations or rules made or acts done as aforesaid and validated by the provisions of the preceding section.

(1) Except as otherwise provided in section 3, and in this section, the term of office of member of a the Council, other than a member appointed by virtue of his office, shall be five years and shall commence from the date on which the appointment or election of such member, as the case may be, is notified in the Official Gazette by the State Government. (2) A member, other than a member appointed by virtue of office, where appointed or elected in place of a member who has for any reason vacated his office earlier than his term, shall hold office for the remaining period of the term of the member in whose place he has been appointed or elected. (3) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, an outgoing member shall, unless State Government otherwise directs, continue in office until the election or appointment of his successor is notified. (4) An outgoing member shall, if he is otherwise qualified, be eligible for being re-elected or re-appointed. (5) The term of office of a member of the Council appointed by virtue of his office shall continue so long as he holds the office by virtue of which he is such a member.

A member of the Council shall be deemed to have vacated his seat,- (a) if he submits his resignation in writing to the President of the Council; or (b) if he has, in the opinion of the Council without sufficient cause, been absent from three consecutive meetings of the Council; or (c) if he has been absent out of India for more than one year continuously ; or (d) if, in the case of a member under clause (b), (c) or (d) of sub-section (2) of section 3, he ceases to be a registered nurse, a registered health visitor or a registered auxiliary nurse midwife or a registered midwife, as the case may be; or (e) if he refuses to act or becomes, in the opinion of the Council, incapable of acting or has been declared a bankrupt or an insolvent or has been convicted of any such offence or subjected by a criminal court to any such order as implies, in the opinion of the Council a defect of character, which makes him unfit to be a member.

Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the State Government may, at any time for any reason which it may deem to affect the public interest or on a resolution passed by a majority of two thirds of the members of the Council, by notification in the Official Gazette, direct that the seat of any specified member, whether elected or appointed, shall be vacated on a date specified in the notification and such seat shall thereupon be vacated accordingly.

A casual vacancy in the Council shall be filled by fresh election or appointment, as the case may be, depending upon the specific category to which such vacancy belongs.

No act done, or proceedings taken, under this Act by the Council shall be invalid merely on the ground,- (a) of any vacancy or defect in the constitution of the Council; or (b) of any defect or irregularity in the election or appointment of a person acting as a member thereof ; or (c) of any defect or irregularity in such act or proceedings not affecting the merits of the case.

No person shall be eligible for election or appointment as a member of the Council,- (a) who is a minor or an undischarged insolvent; or (b) who has been adjudicated by a competent court to be of unsound mind ; or (c) who has been sentenced by a criminal court to imprisonment for an offence involving moral turpitude.

(1) The term of office of Vice-President of the Council shall be five years, but shall not extend beyond the expiry of his term as a member of the Council. (2) A Vice-President may resign his office by notice in writing to the President and on his resignation being accepted by the Council, the office shall become vacant. (3) When the office of the Vice-President becomes vacant another member shall be elected as Vice-President for the remainder of the term of the office of the Vice-President in whose place he is elected or for the remainder of his term of office as a member, whichever is less.

The Council shall meet at such time and place and every meeting of the Council shall be summoned in such manner as may be provided by regulations: Provided that, until such regulations are made, it shall be lawful for the President to summon a meeting of the Council at such time and place as he may deem expedient by a letter addressed to each member.

Any number or proportion of the members of the Council as may, from time to time, be fixed by regulations but not less than five, shall form a quorum at a meeting of the Council : Provided that, if at any meeting of the Council, a quorum is not present the President shall adjourn the meeting and the business which would have been brought before such meeting shall be brought before and transacted at the adjourned meeting whether there may be a quorum present or not.

(1) The President of the Council, or in this absence the Vice-President, or in the absence of both a person elected by the Council from amongst themselves, shall preside at a meeting of the Council. (2) All questions at a meeting of the Council shall be decided by the votes of a majority of the members present any voting: Provided that, in case of equality of votes, the President, Vice-President or the person presiding, as the case may be, shall have a second or casting vote.

(1) Subject to such rules as the State Government may make in this behalf, the Council shall with the previous approval of the State Government, appoint a Registrar who shall also act as a treasurer, unless the Council appoints another person as treasurer, and shall receive such salary and allowances and be subject to such conditions of service as may be prescribed : Provided that until a Registrar is so appointed, person appointed by the State Government shall, as from the commencement of this Act, be deemed to be Registrar who shall be entitled to such salary and allowances and shall be subject to such conditions of service as may be determined by the State Government. (2) The Council may appoint such other employees as may be necessary for carrying out the purposes of this Act and such employees shall receive such salaries and allowances and be subject to such conditions of service as may be prescribed. (3) All employees of the Council, including the Registrar, shall be deemed to be public servants within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code 1860 (45 of 1860).

(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act and rules made thereunder and subject to any general or special orders of the Council, it shall be the duty of the Registrar to maintain the registers and to act as Secretary to the Council. (2) The Registrar shall keep the register in accordance with the provisions of this Act and any rules or regulations made thereunder and shall, from time to time, make all necessary alteration in the names and addresses entered in the registers of such nurses, health visitors, midwives, nurse dais and auxiliary nurse midwives, trained dais or dais and remove the name of any person who is dead. (3) To enable the Registrar to perform the duties imposed upon him by sub-section(2), he may send through post a registered letter to any person registered as a nurse, health visitor, midwife, nurse dai, auxiliary nurse midwife or trained dai or dai addressed according to his/her registered address for the purposes of enquiring whether he/she has ceased to practise or whether his/her residence or address has changed and if no answer to any such letter is received within a period of six months from its despatch, the Registrar may remove the name of such person from the concerned register : Provided that, any name removed, under this section, may, on a representation made in this behalf, be re-entered in the register, subject to such conditions and payment of such fees as may be prescribed in the direction by the Council or the committee constituted under section 19 if an appeal was preferred against the order of the Council. (4) An entry in the register which is proved to the satisfaction of the Council to have been fraudulently or incorrectly made shall be removed or corrected in pursuance of a resolution of the Council.

(1) The Council may make regulations consistent with this Act and with the rules made thereunder to provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:- (a) the time and place of its meetings; (b) the manner is which notices of a meeting shall be given; (c) the conduct of business at a meeting, the record of the proceedings thereof and the adjournment of meetings ; (d) the quorum necessary for the transaction of business at a meeting ; (e) the appointment and constitution of committee for any purpose relating to any matter with which the Council is empowered to deal and the co-operation of persons specially qualified to advise on any particular matter ; (f) the payment of fees and travelling allowances to members attending a meeting of the Council ; (g) the custody of the common seal and the purposes for which it shall be used ; (h) the persons by whom receipts shall be granted on behalf of the Council for moneys received under this Act; and (i) the appointment, duties, executive powers, leave, suspension and removal of the officers and servants and the payment or salaries and allowances to such person. (2) No regulation made under the provisions of sub-section (1) of this section shall take effect until it has been confirmed by the State Government, and published in the Official Gazette.