Levy of forest development cess

(1) There shall be levied and collected a forest development cess on every sale or supply of forest produce by the Forest Department at the rate of four per cent. of the price at which such forest produce is sold or supplied. (2) The forest development cess levied under sub-section (1) shall be in addition to any tax leviable on forest produce under any other law for the time being in force. (3) The forest development cess payable under sub-section (1) in respect of forest produce sold or supplied by the Forest Department shall be payable by the person to whom the forest produce is sold or supplied and shall be collected by and recovered by the officer or official of the Forest Department concerned with such sale or supply at the time of such sale or supply. (4) The proceeds of the forest development cess levied under sub-section (1) shall first be credited to the Consolidated Fund of the State and the State Government may, at the commencement of each financial year after due appropriation has been made by law, withdraw from the Consolidated Fund of the State an amount equivalent to the proceeds of the forest development cess realised by the State Government in the preceeding financial year and shall place it to the credit of a separate fund to be called the Forest Development Fund and such credit to the said fund shall be an expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund of the State of Madhya Pradesh. (5) The amount in the credit of the fund shall, at the discretion of the State Government, be utilised for-- (a) social forestry purposes; (b) afforestation, re-forestation and rehabilitation of forest; and (c) any other purposes connected with the development of forests, as the State Government may, by notification, specify. (6) The maintenance and operation of the Forest Development Fund shall be in accordance with the rules made in this behalf.