9911796707
TMI Blog2009 (7) TMI 1340X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... se of letting out on rent together with any courtyard, compound, attached garden, orchard and out-building and includes any out-building for the purpose connected with agriculture or horticulture and any tank, library and place of worship appertaining to such dwelling house. Explanation II. - Land perennially submerged under water shall not include submerged in the bed of a river. 2. The appellant is a land-holder. Proceedings were initiated in the year 1973 for determination of the surplus land held by it. The appellant filed a return showing the extent of land in its possession as 379.12 acres. The Circle Officer submitted a report to the Land Reforms Deputy Collector, Jamshedpur, showing the extent of land in the possession of appellant as 443.09 acres. The appellant filed the objections contending that certain tanks which did not fall under the definition of land in all measuring 43.29 acres had been wrongly included in the draft publication. By order dated 9.10.1982, the Addl. Collector held that the tanks covering an area of 43.29 acres fell within the definition of "land" and therefore, had to be taken into account for determining the surplus area. The challenge ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the requirement that only land used or capable of being used for agricultural or horticultural purposes, will be 'land'. He submits that the additions of certain categories by use of the words "and includes land which is an orchard, karhur or pasturage or forest land or even land perennially submerged under water or the homestead of land holder" merely accentuates the requirement that the land should be used or capable of being used for agricultural or horticultural purposes. He points out that each of the categories of land referred to in the inclusive definition is also land which is used or is capable of being used or incidental to the use of land for agriculture or horticulture; that "orchard" refers to a garden of trees devoted to cultivation of fruit trees; "karhur" refers to land producing thatching grass or shrubs; "pasturage" refers to land covered with grass or herbage and grazed or suitable for grazing by livestock; "homestead of the land-holder" means dwelling house together with courtyard, compound, attached garden, orchard and includes any out-building for the purpose of connected with agriculture or horticultu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... njan Das v. Lakshmi Mani Dasi 1986 CWN 318 has taken the view that 'doba' does not come within the mischief of the word 'tank' as is apparent from the Wilson's Glossary of Words. We have caused a copy thereof to be placed before us and we find therefrom that the word 'doba' in Bengali means immersed, low and swampy of inundated land. The depth of such land perhaps comes to cause a distinction between a 'doba' and a 'tank'. Apparently the High Court was of the view that if surface waters be shallow, then the land even though inundated will retain the character of the land, bearing at the back of its mind that paddy crop can be grown in puddled lands. Correspondingly, if the depth is more which prevents the land being put to agricultural use then it would be 'tank' for the purposes of the West Bengal Land Reforms Act and in particular Section 2(7) thereof, which defines 'land' to be agricultural land, tank being an exception thereto. Now here the land has been described as 'Matsyasheho Pushkarini' which apparently would mean a pond with sufficient water, abounding in fish and seemingly it was so described in the deed ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... are capable of providing water for only one season (class III land); or (d) 30 acres of land other than those referred to in clauses (a), (b), (c) and (f) or land which is an orchard or used for any other horticulture purpose (class IV land); or (e) 37.5 acres of Diara land or chaur (class V land); or (f) 45 acres of hilly, sandy, forest land, even land perennially submerged under water or other kind of land, none of which yields paddy, rabi or cash crop (class VI land). 8. At the outset we should clear certain red-herrings. First is the amendment to the Act in Bihar whereby the words "even land" has been substituted by the words "also the land" in the year 2002. The said amendment cannot be applied or extended to the State of Jharkhand as that State has not made such amendment. Secondly, it is not possible to treat the said amendment as mere clarification or re-statement of the pre-amendment position. There are sufficient indications in the Act to show that the word 'even' was not used to mean 'also'. The Hindi version of the Act uses the words "Barhaon mahine jalmagan Samtal Bhoomi" for the English words "even land perenn ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... en land is perennially covered with water, such land cease to be 'land' as ordinarily understood, and become water bodies which may be an ocean, sea, river, lake, tank or pond, depending upon the size, situation and nature of the water body. Reliance is placed on the decision of Arsed Ali (supra) where it was held that a pond abounding with fish was not land. But general meanings and perceptions, or decisions rendered with reference to statutes containing different definitions will not be of any assistance in interpreting a word which is clearly, specially and exhaustively defined in the Act itself. We will have to find out the meaning of the word, with reference to its definition in the Act. While the object of the Act can be one of the indicators used in interpretation, clear and specific words used cannot be ignored. In fact the learned Single Judge keeping in view the object of the Act, has held that only tanks used for agricultural purposes will be 'land' for purposes of the Act and not all tanks in general. Let us now examine the provisions of the Act to find out whether a 'tank' used for agricultural purposes is land, as held by the High Court, keepin ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... er, situated in private holdings, which irrigates or supplies water for the agricultural or horticultural purposes is also land. The word 'even land' with reference to the land submerged under water shows that what is excluded is riverbeds or ravines filled with water. The use of the words 'even land perennially submerged under water' in the definition of 'land' would thus indicate that a tank also is land. What is excluded from the definition of land is the riverbed, or a tank which is a dammed ravine. Section 4(f) of the Act which prescribes the ceiling area in regard to Class VI lands also reiterates that even land perennially submerged under water, is land.
14. Having regard to the clear and specific words used in the definition of 'land', it is not possible to exclude land perennially covered with water, which includes tanks, from the definition of land. We therefore agree that tanks meant to provide water for agricultural/horticultural purposes is 'land' for purposes of the Act. We therefore find no error in the orders of the learned Single Judge affirmed by the Division Bench and consequently, the appeal is dismissed. X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
