Chapter XI CONTROL ON TRANSFER OF LAND

Transfer of land to non-agriculturists barred. (1) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in any law, contract, agreement, custom or usage for the time being in force, but save as otherwise provided in this chapter, no transfer of land(including sales in execution of a decree of a civil court or for recovery of arrears of land revenue) by way of sale, gift, will, exchange, lease, mortgage with possession, creation of a tenancy or in any other manner shall be valid in favour of a person who is not an agriculturist. Explanation. For the purpose of this sub-section, the expression “transfer of land” shall not include- (i) transfer by way of inheritance ; (ii) transfer by way of gift made or will executed, in favour of any or all legal heirs of the donor or the testator, as the case may be; (iii) transfer by way of lease of land or building in a municipal area; but shall not include- (a) a benami transaction in which land is transferred to an agriculturist for a consideration paid or provided by a non-agriculturist ; and (b) an authorisation made by the owner by way of special or general power of attorney or by an agreement with the intention to put a non-agriculturist in possession of the land and allow him to deal with the land in the like manner as if he is a real owner of that land. (2) Nothing in sub-section (1) shall be deemed to prohibit the transfer of land by any person in favour of— (a) a landless laborer ;or (b) a landless person belonging to a scheduled caste or scheduled tribe; or (c) a village artisan ; or (d) a landless person carrying on an allied pursuit ;or (dd) a person who, on commencement of this Act, worked and continues to work for gain in a estate situated in Himachal Pradesh; for the construction of a dwelling house, shop or commercial establishment in a municipal area, subject to the condition that the land to be transferred does not exceed— (i) in case of a dwelling house—500 square Meters ; and (ii) in the case of a shop or commercial establishment—300square meters: Provided that such person does not own any vacant land or a dwelling house in a municipal area in the state. (e) the State Government or Central Government, or a Government Company as defined in section 617 of the Companies Act, 1956, or a Company incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956, for which land is acquired through the State Government under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 or a statutory body or a corporation or a board established by or under a statute and owned and controlled by the State of Central Government ; or (f) a person who has become non- agriculturist on account of— (i) acquisition of his land for any public purpose under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 ; or (ii) vestment of his land in the tenants under this Act; or (g) a non-agriculturist who purchases or intends to purchase land for the construction of a house or shop, or purchases a built up house or shop, from the Himachal Pradesh Housing and Urban Development Authority, established under the Himachal Pradesh Housing and Urban Development Authority Act 2004, or from the Development Authority constituted under the Himachal Pradesh Town and Country Planning Act, 1977 or from any other statutory Corporation set up for framing and execution of house accommodation schemes in the State under any State or Central enactment ;or (h) a non-agriculturist with the permission of the State Government for the purposes that may be prescribed: Provided that a person who is non-agriculturist but purchase land either under clause (dd) or clause (g) or with the permission granted under clause (h) of this sub-section shall, irrespective of such purchase of land, continue to be a non-agriculturist for the purpose of the Act: Provided further that a non-agriculturist who purchases land under clause (dd) or in whose case permission to purchase land is granted under clause (h) of this sub-section, shall put the land to such use for which the permission has been granted within a period of two years or a further such period not exceeding one year, as may be allowed by the State Government for the reasons to be recorded in writing to be counted from the day on which the sale deed of land is registered and if he fails to do so or diverts, without the permission of the State Government, the said user for any other purpose or transfer by way sale, gift or otherwise, the land so purchased by him shall, in the prescribed manner, vest in the State Government free from all encumbrances . (3) No Registrar or the Sub-Registrar appointed under the Indian Registration Act, 1908 shall register any document pertaining to a transfer of land, which is in contravention to sub-section (1): Provided that the Registrar or the Sub-Registrar may register any transfer- (i) where the lease is made in relation to a part or whole of a building; or (ii) where the mortgage is made for procuring the loans for construction or improvements over the land either from the Government or from any other financial institution constituted or established under any law for the time being in force or recognized by the State Government. (3A) Where— (a) the Registrar or the Sub-Registrar, appointed under the Indian Registration Act, 1908 (16 of 1908), before whom any document pertaining to transfer of land is presented for registration, comes to know or has reason to believe that the transfer of land is in contravention of sub-section (1);or (b) a Revenue Officer either on an application made to him or on receipt of any information from any source, comes to know or has reason to believe that any land has been transferred or is being transferred in contravention of the provisions of sub-section (1); such Sub-Registrar, the Registrar or the Revenue Officer, as the case may be, shall make reference to the Collector of the District, in which land or any part thereof is situate, and the Collector, on receipt of such reference, or where the Revenue Officer happens to be the Collector of the District himself, he either on an application made to him or on receipt of any information from any source, comes to know or has reason to believe that any land has been transferred or is being transferred in contravention of the provisions of sub-section (1), shall after affording to the persons who are parties to the transfer, a reasonable opportunity of being heard and holding an enquiry, determine whether the transfer of land is or is not in contravention of sub-section (1) and he shall, within six months from the date of receipt of reference made to him or such longer period as the Divisional Commissioner may allow for reasons to be recorded in writing, record his decision thereon and intimate the findings to the Registrar, Sub-Registrar or the Revenue Officer concerned. (3B) The person aggrieved by the findings recorded by the Collector, that a particular transfer of land is in contravention of the provisions of sub-section (1), may, within 30 days from the date on which the order recording such findings is made by the Collector or such longer period as the Divisional Commissioner may allow for reasons to be recorded in writing file an appeal to the Divisional Commissioner, to whom such Collector is subordinate, and the Divisional Commissioner may, after giving the parties an opportunity of being heard and, if necessary, after sending for the records of the case from the Collector reverse, alter or confirm the order made by the Collector and the order made by the Divisional Commissioner shall be final and conclusive. (3-C) (a) The Financial Commissioner may, either on a report of a Revenue Officer or on an application or of his own motion, call for the record of any proceedings which are pending before, or have been disposed of by, any Revenue Officer subordinate to him and in which no appeal lies thereto, for the purpose of satisfying himself as to the legality or propriety of such proceedings or order made therein and may pass such order in relation thereto as he may think fit. (b) No order shall be passed under this sub-section which adversely affects any person unless such person has been given a reasonable opportunity of being heard. (3-D) Where the Collector of the District under sub-section (3A), in case an appeal is not made within the prescribed period, or the Divisional Commissioner in appeal under sub-section(3B), or the Financial Commissioner in revision under sub-section (3C), decides that the transfer of land is in contravention of the provisions of sub-section (1), such transfer shall be void abinitio and the land involved in such transfer together with structures, buildings or other attachments, if any, shall in the prescribed manner, vest in the State Government free from all encumbrances; and (4) It shall be lawful for the State Government to make use of the land which is vested or may be vested in it under sub-section (2) or sub-section (3D) for such purposes as it may deem fit to do so. Explanation-I for the purpose of this section, the expression “land” shall include- (i) land recorded as “Gair-mumkin”, “Gair-mumkin Makan” or any other Gair-mumkin land, by whatever name called in the revenue records; and (ii) land which is a site of a building in a town or a village and is occupied or let out not for agricultural purposes or purposes subservient to agriculture but shall not include a built-up area in the municipal area; Explanation-II- For the purpose of this section the expression “municipal area” means the territorial area of a Nagar Panchayat, Cantonment Board, Municipal Council or a Municipal Corporation constituted under any law for the time being in force.

(1) Where an agriculturist intends to transfer his land in favour of the State Government he shall give a notice of his intention to transfer the land, in the prescribed form and manner, to the Collector of the District in which the land or any part thereof is situate, specifying the price at which he is willing to transfer such land. The Collector shall, thereupon hold an inquiry in the manner prescribed, and determine the reasonable price of the land, and shall forward the case to the State Government with his recommendations. (2) The State Government, on receipt of the recommendations of the Collector under sub-section (1), may decide to purchase the land or refuse to purchase it, and shall communicate its decision within six months from the receipt of recommendations of the Collector, through the Collector, to the notice server or in case the land is owned jointly by more than one person to all of them, in the manner prescribed. (3) The Collector shall, as soon as may be, after the receipt of the decision of the State Government under sub-section (2), take steps to make payment of the reasonable price, determined by him under sub-section (7) subject to orders of the State Government, to the owner, or owners, as the case may be, in the manner prescribed, or intimate refusal of the State Government to him or them, as the case may be. (4) Immediately on payment of the reasonable price under this section, all rights, title and interest (including contingent interest, if any) in the land of the owner, or owners, as the case may be, shall be extinguished and shall stand transferred to, and vested in, the State Government free from all encumbrances: Provided that the vestment of land in the State Government shall not affect the rights of a tenant in such land.

(1) Except as otherwise provided in this Chapter, the Collector shall determine the reasonable price for the purpose of transfer of land including structures, wells, embankments constructed, permanent fixtures and trees planted on the land under the provisions of section 119, within a period of three months from the date of receipt of notice, and shall take into consideration the following factors for determining such price- (a) the rental value of land used for similar purpose in the locality ; (b) the structures, wells, embankments constructed or permanent fixtures affixed to, and trees planted on, the land ; (c) the profits from agriculture in respect of similar lands in the locality; (d) the price of crops and commodities current in the locality; (e) the improvements made in or on the land; (f) the land revenue and cesses and other sum payable in respect of the land ; and (g) such other factors as may be prescribed. (2) The reasonable price determined by the Collector under sub-section (1) shall be final when confirmed by the State Government.

The State Government shall distribute, the land transferred in its favour under section 119, in such manner and on payment of such reasonable price as may be prescribed, to persons in the following order of preference : (a) landless agricultural labourers and co-operative farms of such labourers; (b) landless persons belonging to scheduled castes and scheduled tribes ; (c) artisans; (d) landless persons carrying on an allied pursuit ; (e) dependents of those who have laid down their lives for the defence of the country. Service for the defence of the country shall mean service in a uniformed force as well as in the capacity of a civilian, provided the death occurred on a front, be it military or civil ; (f) service personnel of the Armed Forces and ex-servicemen ; (g) agricultural labourers or agriculturists possessing uneconomic land holdings ; (h) any other agriculturist of the village in which the land is situated; or (i) a co-operative farming society.

The State Government may, by notification Official Gazette, make rules for carrying out the purposes of this Chapter.