Chapter I PRELIMINARY

Short title, extent and commencement.—(1) This Act may be called the Kerala Maritime Board Act, 2017.

1. (2) It extends to the whole of the State of Kerala.
2. (3) It shall come into force at once.
3. (4) It applies to all non-major ports, excluding the Fishing Harbours and Fish Landing Centres in the State, to which the Indian Ports Act, 1908 (Central Act 15 of 1908) applies on the date of commencement of this Act and the State Government may, by notification, apply the provisions of this Act to any other non-major ports in the State to which the Indian Ports Act, 1908 (Central Act 15 of 1908) is extended by the State Government under section 4 of that Act and with effect from such date, as may be specified in the notification.

Definitions.—In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—

1. (a) "appointed day" means the day as may be appointed by the Government by notification in the Gazette, for the vesting and transfer of the undertakings;
2. (b) "Board" means the Kerala Maritime Board established under section 3;
3. (c) "Chairman" means the Chairman of the Board appointed under section 3 and includes the person appointed under section 4 of the Act as Chairman;
4. (d) "Chief Executive Officer" means the officer appointed under sub-section (1) of section 13 of the Act as the Chief Executive Officer;
5. (e) "Court" means the High Court of Kerala and other courts having admiralty jurisdiction on civil and criminal matters to arrest and detain a vessel;
6. (f) "dock" includes all basins, locks, cuts, entrances, graving docks, graving blocks, inclined planes, slipways, gridirons, moorings, transit sheds, warehouses, godowns, open plots and other works and things appertaining to any dock and also the portion of the sea enclosed or protected by the arms break water and outer anchorage including break waters and outer anchorage or groynes of a harbour;
7. (g) "fishing vessel" means a ship fitted with mechanical means of propulsion which is exclusively engaged in sea fishing for profit;
8. (h) "foreign-going ship" means a ship, not being a home-trade ship employed in trading between any port or place in India and any other port or place or between ports or places outside India;
   • (i) "foreshore", in relation to a port, means the area between the high watermark and the low watermark relating to that port;
9. (j) "goods" includes livestock and every kind of movable property but does not include fish caught by traditional fishermen by mechanised boats or other vessels;
10. (k) "Government" means the Government of Kerala;
11. (l) "high watermark" in relation to a port, means a line drawn through the highest point reached by ordinary spring tides during any season of the year at that port;
12. (m) "immovable property" includes wharfage-rights and all other rights exercisable on, over or in respect of any land, wharf, dock or pier;
13. (n) "Indian Ship" means a ship registered as such under the Merchant Shipping Act, 1958 (Central Act 44 of 1958) and includes any ship registered at any port in India at the commencement of the said Act which is recognised as an Indian Ship under the proviso to sub-section (2) of section 22 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1958;
14. (o) "Kerala State Maritime Development Corporation" means the Kerala State Maritime Development Corporation registered under the Companies Act, 1956 (Central Act 1 of 1956);
15. (p) "Kerala State Maritime Society" means the Kerala State Maritime Society registered under the Travancore Cochin Literary, Scientific and Charitable Societies Registration Act, 1955 (Act 12 of 1955);
16. (q) "land" includes the bed of sea below high water mark and also things attached to the earth or permanently fastened to anything attached to the earth;
17. (r) "low watermark", in relation to a port, means a line drawn through the lowest point reached by ordinary spring tides at any season of the year at that port; "master", in relation to any vessel or craft making use of any non-major port, means any person having for the time being in charge or control of such vessel or craft, as the case may be, except a pilot, harbour master, dock master or berthing master of that port;
18. (t) "member" means a member of the Board or its committees, as the case may be;
19. (u) "non-major port" or "port" means a port, other than a major port declared as such by the Central Government under any law, to which this Act applies within such limits as may, from time to time, be defined by the Government under the Indian Ports Act, 1908 (Central Act 15 of 1908);
    • (v) "notification" means a notification published in the official gazette;
20. (w) "owner",—
    • (i) in relation to goods, means any consignor, consignee, shipper or agent for the sale, custody, loading or unloading of such goods; and
    • (ii) in relation to any vessel or craft making use of any port, means and includes any port owner, charterer, consignee or mortgagee in possession thereof;
    • (x) "pier" includes any stage, stairs, landing place, hard jetty, floating barge or pontoon and any bridge or other work connected therewith;
21. (y) "port approaches", in relation to any port, means those parts of the navigable rivers and channels leading to the port in which the Indian Ports Act, 1908 (Central Act 15 of 1908) is in force and in addition includes the road and rail infrastructures within the port limits;
22. (z) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
23. (za) "public securities" mean,—
    • (i) promissory notes, debentures, stock or other securities of the Central Government or of any State Government: Provided that securities both the principal and the interest whereof have been fully and unconditionally guaranteed by any such Government shall be deemed, for the purpose of this clause, to be the securities of that Government; and
    • (ii) debentures or other securities for money issued by or on behalf of any Municipality, Corporation, Improvement Trust or Port Trust under the authority of any law for the time being in force in the State and includes the securities;
24. (zb) "rate" means and includes any toll, dues, rent, fee or charge leviable under this Act;
25. (zc) "regulations" means the regulations made by the Board under this Act;
26. (zd) "rules" means the rules made by the Government under this Act;
27. (ze) "securities" means the securities as defined in clause (h) of section 2 of the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956 (Central Act 42 of 1956);
28. (zf) "State" means the State of Kerala;
29. (zg) "undertakings" means the Kerala State Maritime Development Corporation and the Kerala State Maritime Society transferred to, and vested in the Government under section 10 of this Act;
30. (zh) "vessel" includes anything made for the conveyance, mainly by water, of human beings or of goods;
31. (zi) "wharf" includes any wall or stage and any part of the land or foreshore that may be used for loading or unloading goods for the embarkation or disembarkation of passengers and any wall enclosing or adjoining the same.