Chapter VII MISCELLANEOUS

All forest Officers shall be deemed to be public servants within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

Except with the permission in writing of the State Government no Forest Officer shall, as principal or agent, trade in trees, timber or other forest produce, or be or become interested in any lease of any forest or in any contract for working in any forest.

When a notification has been issued in respect of any forest under section 20 or under sub-section (1) of section 35 or when an order has been made under sub-section (1) of section 30 or under sub-section (3) of section 31, no suit or other proceedings shall, save as otherwise provided in this Act lie in or be entertained by any civil, criminal or revenue court- (a) in respect of any modification, suspension or extinction as a result of any such modification or order or as a result of restriction imposed by section 28 or section 29 of any right which any person was entitled by virtue of any contract or otherwise to exercise in such forest;

(1) Every person who exercises any right in a Controlled Forest or who is permitted to take any forest produce from or to cut or remove trees or timber in or from, or to pasture cattle, in such forest, and every person in any village contiguous to such forest who is employed by the Government, or who receives emoluments from the Government for services to be performed to the community, shall be bound to furnish without unnecessary delay, to the nearest Forest Officer any information he may possess respecting the commission of, or intention to commit, any forest offences, and shall forthwith take steps, whether so required by any Forest Officer or not- (a) to extinguish any forest fire in such forest of which he has knowledge or information; (b) to prevent by any lawful means in his power any fire in the vicinity of such forest of which he has knowledge or information from spreading to such forest and shall assist any Forest Officer demanding his aid; (c) in preventing the commission in such forest of any forest offence; and (d) when there is reason to believe that any such offence has been committed in such forest in discovering and arresting the offender. (2) Any person who being bound to do, without lawful excuse (the burden of proving which shall lie upon such person) fails- (a) to furnish without unnecessary delay to the nearest Forest Officer any information required by sub-section (1); or (b) to take steps, as required by sub-section (1) to extinguish any forest fire in a Controlled Forest; or (c) to assist any Forest Officer demanding his aid in preventing the commission in such forest of any forest offence, or when there is reason to believe that any such offence has been committed in such forest, in discovering and arresting the offender, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one month or with fine which may extend to Rs. 200, or with both.

All money payable to the State Government under this Act, or under any rule made under this Act, or on account of the price of any forest produce may, if not paid when due, be recovered under the law for the time being in force as if it were an arrear of land revenue.

(1) When any such money is payable for or in respect of any forest produce, the amount thereof shall be deemed to be first charge on such produce and such produce may be taken possession of by a Forest Officer until such amount has been paid. (2) If such amount is not paid when due, the Forest Officer may sell such produce by public auction and the proceeds of the sale shall be applied first in discharging such amount and the surplus, if any, shall be paid to the person.

When any person in accordance with any provision of this Act, or in compliance with any rule, binds himself by any bond or instrument to perform any duty or act, or covenants by any bond or instrument that he and his servants and agents, will abstain from any act, the whole sum mentioned in such bond or instrument as the amount to be paid in case of the breach of the conditions thereof, may, notwithstanding anything in section 74 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872 (9 of 1872) be recovered from him in case of such breach as if it were an arrear of land revenue.

(1) The State Government may make rules to carry out the purposes of this Act. (2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may regulate all or any of the following matters, namely:- (a) the cutting, sawing, conversion and removal of trees and timber, and the collection, manufacture and removal of forest produce from Controlled Forests; (b) the granting of licences to the inhabitants of towns and villages in the vicinity of Controlled Forests to take trees, timber or other forest produce for their own use, and the production and return of such licences by such persons; (c) the granting of licences to persons for felling or removing trees or timber or other forest produce in or from such forests for the purposes of trade, and the production and return of such licences by such persons; (d) the payment, if any, to be made by the persons mentioned in clause (b) or (c) for permission to cut such trees or to collect and remove such timber or other forest produce; (e) other payments, if any, to be made by them in respect of such trees, timber and forest produce and the places where such payments shall be made; (f) the examination of forest produce passing out of such forest; (g) the clearing and breaking up of land for cultivation or other purposes in such forests; (h) the protection from fire of timber lying in such forests and trees; (i) the cutting of grass and the pasturing of cattle in such forests; (g) hunting, shooting, fishing, poisoning water and setting traps or snares in such forests: Provided that the rules made under this clause shall not require the landlord of a Controlled Forest or any person authorised by him and by the Forest Officer to obtain a permit, or to pay any fee to hunt, shoot or fish in such forest; (k) the burning of charcoal, or the subjection of any forest produce to any manufacturing process in such forests; (l) the exercise in such forests of right-holders; (m) to regulate rewards to be paid to officers and informers out of the proceeds of fines and confiscations under this Act; (n) the extracting of resin in, and its removal from a private forest; (o) to regulate working of mines and quarrying for minerals for purposes of section 50; (p) the powers and duties of a Forest Officer under this Act; (q) the items to be included as revenue and items to be included as expenditure in the account mentioned in section 43 and the manner, in which such account shall be prepared; and (r) any matter which is by this Act, expressly required or authorised to be prescribed or to be provided for by rules. (3)(a) The power to make rules under this section shall be subject to the condition of their being made after previous publication. (b) All rules made under this section shall be published in the Official Gazette and they shall, unless a different date has been specified, come into force from the date of notification.

Nothing in this Act shall affect any right to minerals lying in or under the Controlled Forest and the State Government shall made adequate provisions for exercise of this right by the person or persons legally entitled to this right in accordance with any rule made by the State Government in this behalf.