Keyword(s):
Bombay Metropolitan Region, Corporation Area, Urban Area, Vacant Land

SECTION.

  1. Short title, extent and commencement.
  2. Definitions.
  3. Prohibition against unauthorised occupation of vacant land.
  4. Power of Competent Authority to evict persons from unauthorised occupation
    of vacant lands.
    4-A. Permission for renovation of structures on vacant lands as a temporary
    measure in certain circumstances.
    4-B. Recovery of dues of financing institutions, which render assistance for
    renovation of structures.
    4-C. Powers of Controller of Slums under sections 4-A and 4-B exercisable by
    authorised officer also.
  5. Penalty.
  6. Power to try summarily.
  7. Offences to be non-bailable.
  8. Bar of jurisdiction of Courts.
  9. Power of State Government and Controller of Slums to give directions to
    Competent Authority.
  10. Protection of action taken in good faith.
  11. Rules of orders.
  12. Repeal of Mah. Ord. XVIII of 1975 and savings.
    SCHEDULE.
    MAHARASHTRA ACT No. LXVI OF 19751
    [THE MAHARASHTRA VACANT LANDS (PROHIBITION OF UNAUTHORISED OCCUPATION
    AND SUMMARY EVICTION) ACT, 1975]
    [24th December 1975]
    [This Act received assent of the Governor on the 20th December 1975; assent was first
    published in “Maharashtra Government Gazette”, in Part IV, Extraordinary, on the
    24th December 1975]
    Amended by Mah. 37 of 1976. (3-8-1976)*
    ” ” 7 of 1977. (25-1-1977)*
    An Act to prohibit unauthorised occupation of vacant lands in the urban areas in the
    State to provide for summary eviction of persons from such lands and for
    matters connected therewith.
    WHEREAS both Houses of the Legislature of the State were not in session ;
    AND WHEREAS the number of unauthorised occupants on vacant lands in the urban areas
    in the State was rapidly increasing and was causing grave danger to the public health and
    sanitation, and peaceful life of the inhabitants of such areas ;
    AND WHEREAS the Governor of Maharashtra was satisfied that circumstances
    existed which rendered it necessary for him to take immediate action to prohibit
    unauthorised occupation of vacant lands in the urban areas in the State, and to provide
    for summary eviction of persons from such lands and for matters connected therewith
    and, therefore, promulgated the Maharashtra Vacant Lands (Prohibition of the
    Unauthorised Occupation and Summary Eviction) Ordinance, 1975, on the 11th November 1975 ;
    AND WHEREAS it is expedient to replace the said Ordinance by an Act of the State
    Legislature; It is hereby enacted in the Twenty-sixth Year of the Republic of India as
    follows :-
  13. (1) This Act may be called the Maharasthra Vacant Lands (Prohibition of
    Unauthorised Occupation and Summary Eviction) Act, 1975.
    (2) It extends to the whole of the State of Maharashtra.
    (3) This Act shall, in the first instance, be deemed to have come into force in the
    Bombay Metropolitan Region on the 11th day of November 1975. The State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, bring this Act into force in such other
    urban area or areas in the State, on such date or dates as may be specified in the notification.
  14. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
    (a) “appointed date” in relation to any urban area, means the date on which this
    Act comes into force in that area ;
    (b) “Bombay Metropolitan Region” or “Metropolitan Region” as the meaning
    assigned to it in the Bombay Metropolitan Region Development Authority Act, 1974 ;
    (c) “Competent Authority” means such officer, not below the rank of a Deputy
    Collector or an Executive Engineer, a Municipal Ward Officer or Chief Officer as the
    State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint for the purposes of this Act ; and different officers may be appointed for different areas of the
    State ;
    (d) “corporation area” means the Metropolitan Region and an area within the limits
    of a municipal corporation (other than Greater Bombay) constituted under any law for
    the time being in force in the State ;
    (e) “urban area” means any corporation area or the area for the time being included
    within the limits of any municipal council constituted or deemed to be constituted
    under any law for the time being in force, and includes such area as the State
    Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify ;
    1
    Short title,
    extent and
    commencement.
    Mah.
    Ord.
    XVIII
    of
    1975.
    Definitions.
    1 For Statement of Objects and Reasons, see Maharashtra Government Gazette, 1975, Pt. V, p. 753.
  • This indicates the date of commencement of Act.
    Mah.
    IV of
    1975.
    1
    [(f) “vacant land,” in relation to any urban area, means—
    (a) all lands in such area, whether agricultural or non-agricultural, which are
    vacant and are not built upon on the appointed date ;
    (b) all lands in such area on which any structure has been or is being
    constructed otherwise than in accordance with any law regulating the construction
    of such structure and which the Competent Authority may, from time to time, by an
    order in writing, specify and declare to be vacant lands by announcing by beat of
    drum or other suitable means on or in the vicinity of such lands, and the declaration
    so made shall be deemed to be notice to all those who are occupying such lands
    that all such lands shall be vacant lands for the purposes of this Act ;
    and includes, in particular, all lands specified in the Schedule to this Act.
    The State Government may, from time to time, by an order, published in the Official
    Gazette, amend that Schedule by adding thereto any land or lands specified in that
    order or by modifying or transferring any entry in that Schedule.]
  1. (1) No person shall, on or after the appointed date, occupy any vacant land or
    continue in occupation of any vacant land in any urban area or erect any shelter or
    enclosure or other structure on such land for the purposes of residence or otherwise
    without the express permission in writing of the Municipal Commissioner in a corporation
    area, of the Chief Officer in a municipal area and elsewhere, of the Collector, or except in
    accordance with any law for the time being in force in such urban area.
    (2) No person shall on or after the appointed date abet any person in occupying any
    vacant land or in continuing to occupy such land in any urban area, or in erecting any
    shelter, enclosure or other structure on such land for the purposes of residence or
    otherwise in contravention of the provisions of sub-section (1), or shall receive or collect
    from the occupier of such vacant land any amount whether by way of rent,
    compensation or otherwise or shall in any manner whatsoever operate in relation to the
    unauthorised occupants of such vacant land :
    2
    [Provided that, the State Government or any Officer or authority specified by it in this
    behalf, shall have a right to receive or collect from the occupier of such vacant land such
    reasonable amount by way of penal charges as may be determined, by general or special
    order, by the State Government, till such time as the structure erected in contravention of
    the provisions of sub-section (1) is removed from the land. Payment of any such amount
    shall not create or confer on the unauthorised occupant any right of occupation of such
    land or structure. Such amount if not paid on demand shall be recoverable as an arrear
    of land revenue. The amount so collected shall, as far as possible, be utilised for
    purposes connected with the eviction, rehabilitation and improvement of conditions of
    unauthorised occupans of vacant lands.]
  2. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force if
    the Competent Authority, either on application or suo motu, has reason to believe that
    any person is occupying any vacant land in an urban area in contravention of the
    provisions of section 3, it may by order require such person to vacate the land forth with
    or by certain time intimated to such person, and to remove all property therefrom, and if
    such person fails to comply with the order to vacate the land and to remove all property
    therefrom, he may be summarily evicted from such land by the Competent Authority, and
    any property which may be found thereon may be ordered by the Competent Authority
    3
    [to be forfeited to such authority as the State Government may by general or special
    order specify and be removed from the vacant land.]
    2 Maharashtra Vacant Lands (Prohibition of [ 1975 : Mah. LXVI
    Unauthorised Occupation and Summary
    Eviction) Act, 1975
    Prohibition
    against
    unauthorised
    occupation of
    vacant land.
    Power of
    Competent
    Authority to
    evict persons
    from
    unauthorised
    occupation of
    vacant lands.
    1 Clause (f) was deemed always to have been substituted by Mah. 37 of 1976, s. 2.
    2 This proviso was added, ibid., s. 3.
    3 These words were substituted, ibid., s. 4(a).
    For the purposes of eviction and removal of any such property, the Competent Authourity
    may take, or cause to be taken, such steps and use, or cause to be used, such force, and
    may take such assistance of the police officers as the circumstances of the case may require.
    Explanation.—For the avoidance of doubt, it is hereby declared that the power to take
    steps under this sub-section includes the power to enter upon any land or other property
    whatsoever.
    (2) The order of eviction of any person from any vacant land 1
    [or forfeiture of any
    property thereon or removal of any property therefrom] under sub-section (1) shall be
    final and conclusive, and shall not be called in question in any Court.
    (3) A person who is found to be on any vacant land belonging to, or vesting in,
    another person shall, unless the contrary is proved by him to the satisfaction of the
    Competent Authority, be deemed to be in occupation of such vacant land in
    contravention of the provisions of section 3.
    2
    [4A. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in sections 3 and 4, where any
    occupier of a structure on a vacant land, in respect of which penal charges are collected
    from him under section 3, or any occupier is by an order made under sub-section (1) of
    section 4 required to vacate any vacant land and to remove all property (including any
    structure) therefrom, desires to renovate the structure at his risk and expense as a
    temporary measure, he may seek the previous permission of the Controller of Slums to do
    so. On receipt of any application for such permission, if the Controller of Slums is, after
    such inquiry as he deems fit to make, satisfied that the structure is not fit for human
    habitation and the proposed renovation is necessary to make it so fit temporarily, he may,
    subject to such conditions as he may impose, grant the required permission.
    (2) Where any structure is renovated in accordance with the permission granted
    under sub-section (1), the Competent Authority shall not evict the occupier of the structure so renovated, till such time as the Controller of Slums may specify :
    Provided that if, in the opinion of the Controller of Slums, the occupier has at any time
    committed a breach of any of the conditions subject to which the permission was granted,
    he may cancel the permission granted and direct the Competent Authority to take necessary action against the occupier under section 4 forthwith for his eviction and forfeiture
    and removal of his property.
    4B. (1) Where an occupier of any structure referred to in section 4A has availed of
    any financial assistance for renovation of the structure from any financing institution
    recognised by the State Government in this behalf, the Controller of Slums may, at the
    request of the financing institution, collect on behalf of that institution the amount of loan
    advanced to the occupier by that institution in such instalments and at such intervals,
    and remit the amount so collected to the institution in such manner, as may be directed by
    the State Government.
    (2) If any such occupier fails to pay any amount due to the financing institution on
    or before the due date, the Controller of Slums may send to the Collector, a certificate
    under his hand indicating therein the amount which is due to the financing
    institution. Thereupon, the Collector or an officer authorised by him shall recover the
    amount due as an arrear of land revenue :
    Provided that no such certificate shall be sent to the Controller, unless the occupier
    has been served with a notice by the Controller of Slums calling upon him to pay the
    amount due by a specified date.
    1975 : Mah. LXVI ] Maharashtra Vacant Lands