The Works of Defence Act, 1903

(1) This Act may be called the 1*** Works of Defence Act, 1903; and 2[(2) It extends to the whole of India.]

In this Act, unless there is something repugnant in the subject or context,-- (a) the expression "land" includes benefits to arise out of land, and things attached to the earth orpermanently fastened to anything attached to the earth; (b) the expression person interested includes all persons claiming an interest in compensation to bemade on account of the imposition of restrictions upon the use and enjoyment of land under this Act; anda person shall be deemed to be interested in land if he is interested in an casement affecting the land; 1[(c) the expression "District" means one of the Districts into which India is, for military purposes forthe time being, divided; it includes a Brigade area which does not form part of any District, and any areawhich the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare to be a District for allor any of the purposes of this Act; (d) the expression "Central Officer Commanding the District" means the officer for the time being incommand of the forces in a District;] (e) the expression "Commanding Officer" means the officer for the time being in command of a workof defence; (f) the expression "Collector" includes any officer specially appointed by the 2[Central Government]to perform the functions of a Collector under this Act; (g) the expression "Court" means a principal Civil Court of original jurisdiction, unless the 2[CentralGovernment] has appointed (as it is hereby empowered to do) a special judicial officer within anyspecified local limits to perform the functions of the Court under this Act; (h) "maintain", with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions, does not, when used inrelation to a house or other construction, include the doing of any act necessary for keeping such house orconstruction, until the making of the award referred to in section 12 or until the exercise, prior to themaking of the award, of the powers of demolition conferred, in case of emergency, by section 6, subsections (1) and (3), in the state in which it was at the time of the publication of the notice referred to insection 3, sub-section (2); (i) the following persons shall be deemed "entitled to act" as and to the extent hereinafter provided,that is to say,-- trustees for other persons beneficially interested shall be deemed the persons entitled to act withreference to any case, and that to the same extent as the persons beneficially interested could haveacted if free from disability; a married woman, in cases to which the English law is applicable, shall be deemed the person soentitled to act, and, whether of full age or not, to the same extent as if she were unmarried and of fullage; and the guardians of minors and the committees or managers of lunatics or idiots shall be deemedrespectively the persons so entitled to act, to the same extent as the minors, lunatics or idiotsthemselves, if free from disability, could have acted: Provided that-- (i) no person shall be deemed "entitled to act" whose interest in the subject-matter is shownto the satisfaction of the Collector or Court to be adverse to the interest of the person interestedfor whom he would otherwise be entitled to act; (ii) in every case the person interested may appear by a next friend or, in default of hisappearance by a next friend, the Collector or Court, as the case may be, shall appoint a guardianfor the case to act on his behalf in the conduct thereof; (iii) the provisions of Chapter XXXI of the Code of Civil Procedure3(14 of 1882) shall,mutatis mutandis, apply in the case of persons interested appearing before a Collector or Court bya next friend, or by a guardian for the case, in proceedings under this Act; and (iv) no person "entitled to act" shall be competent to receive the compensation moneypayable to the person for whom he is entitled to act, unless he would have been competent toalienate the land upon the use and enjoyment of which restrictions are to be imposed and receiveand give a good discharge for the purchase-money on a voluntary sale.

1[2A. Construction of references to laws not in force, or any functionary not in existence, in anyarea.--Any reference in this Act to any law which is not in force in any area or any reference therein to anyfunctionary not in existence in any area shall, in relation to that area, be construed as a reference to thecorresponding law, if any, in force or to the corresponding functionary, if any, in existence, in that area.]

(1) Whenever it appears to the 1[CentralGovernment] that it is necessary to impose restrictions upon the use and enjoyment of land in the vicinity ofany work of defence or of any site intended to be used or to be acquired for any such work, in order that suchland may be kept free from buildings and other obstructions, a declaration shall be made to that effect underthe signature of a Secretary to such Government or of some officer duly authorised to certify its orders. (2) The said declaration shall be published in the Official Gazette and shall state the district or otherterritorial division in which the land is situate and the place where a sketch plan of the land, which shall beprepared on a scale not smaller than six inches to the mile and shall distinguish the boundaries referred to insection 7, may be inspected; and the Collector shall cause public notice of the substance of the saiddeclaration to be given at convenient places in the locality, (3) The said declaration shall be conclusive proof that it is necessary to keep the land free from buildingsand other obstructions.

It shallbe lawful for such officer as the 1[Central Government] may, by general or special order, authorise in thisbehalf, and for his servants and workmen, at any time after publication of the notice mentioned in section 3,sub-section (2), to enter upon and survey and take levels of any land in such locality, to dig or bore into thesub-soil, to do all other acts necessary to ascertain whether any and, if so, what restrictions should be imposedon the use and enjoyment of the land, to set out the boundaries of the land upon the use and enjoyment ofwhich restrictions are to be imposed, or of any part of such land, to mark such levels, boundaries and line byplacing marks and cutting trenches, and, where otherwise the survey cannot be completed and the levels takenand the boundaries and line marked, to cut down and clear away any part of any standing crop, fence orjungle : Provided that no person shall enter into any building or upon any enclosed court or garden attached to adwelling-house (unless with the consent of the occupier thereof) without previously giving such occupier atleast seven days' notice in writing of his intention to do so.