Lawgist68Power to compound offences
(1)The 1[State Government] may, by notification in the2[Official Gazette], empower a Forest officer--
(a) to accept from any person against whom a reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed any forest-offence, other than an offence specified in section 62 or section 63, a sum of money by way of compensation for the offence which such person is suspected to have committed, and
(b) when any property has been seized as liable to confiscation, to release the same on payment of the value thereof as estimated by such officer.
(2) On the payment of such sum of money, or such value, or both, as the case may be, to such officer, the suspected person, if in custody, shall be discharged, the property, if any seized shall be released, and no further proceedings shall be taken against such person or property.
(3) A Forest-officer shall not be empowered under this section unless he is a Forest-officer of a rank not inferior to that of a Ranger and is in receipt of a monthly salary amounting to at least one hundred rupees, and the sum of money accepted as compensation under clause (a) of sub-section (1) shall in no case exceed the sum of fifty rupees.
STATE AMENDMENT
Maharashtra
Amendment of section 68 of Act 16 of 1927. --In section 68 of the principal Act,--
(a) in sub-section (1), --
(1) in clause (a), --
(i) after the words "other than an offence specified in" the words, brackets and figures "sub-section (4) of section 26 or" shall be inserted;
(ii) for the words "payment of a sum of money or, at his discretion, an undertaking in writing to pay a sum of money," the words "payment of a sum of money" shall be substituted.
(2) in clause (b), for the words "on payment of, or at his discretion, on acceptance of an undertaking in writing to pay," the words "on payment of" shall be substituted.
(b) in sub-section (2), for the words "payment of, or on acceptance of an undertaking in writing to pay, "the words "payment of," shall be substituted.
(c) in sub-section (3), for the words "five hundred rupees" the words "five thousand rupees" shall be substituted.
[Vide Maharashtra Act 21 of 2015, s. 18].
STATE AMENDMENT
Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh (UTs).--
Section 68.--For section 68, substitute the following section, namely:--
68. Power to compound offences.- (1) The Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, empower any forest officer not below the rank of Assistant Conservator of Forests-
(a) to accept from any person against whom a reasonable suspicion exists, that he has committed any forest offence involving damage not exceeding fifty thousand rupees, other than an offence specified in section 62 or section 63, a sum of money by way of compensation for the offence, which such person is suspected to have committed:
Provided that the sum of money accepted by way of compensation shall in no case be less than double the amount involved in the loss caused by such offence; and
(b) when any property has been seized as liable to confiscation, release the same on payment of the value thereof, in addition to the compensation referred to in clause (a) of this subsection, as estimated by such officer.
(2) On the payment of such compensation and such value, to such officer, the suspected person if in custody, shall be discharged, the property, if any, seized shall be released, and no further proceedings shall be taken against such person or property.
[Vide the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization (Adaptation of Central Laws) Order, 2020, notification No. S.O. 1123(E) dated (18-3-2020) and Vide Union Territory of Ladakh Reorganisation (Adaptation of Central Laws) Order, 2020, notification No. S.O.3774(E), dated (23-10-2020).]
Tripura.--
Amendment of Section 68(3).--In sub-section (3) of section 68 of Principal Act, for the words "hundred rupees" and the words "fifty rupees" the words "one thousand five hundred rupees" and "five thousand rupees" respectively shall be substituted.
[Vide Tripura Act 5 of 1991, s. 3]
Uttar Pradesh
Amendment of section 68--
(i) the words "and is in receipt of a monthly salary amounting to at least one hundred rupees" shall be omitted;
(ii) for the words "fifty rupees" the words "five thousand rupees for the first offence and for second subsequent offence of the same nature shall not be less than five thousand rupees or more than ten thousand rupees" shall be substituted.]
[Vide Uttar Pradesh Act 1 of 2001, s. 16]
Amendment of Sections 68 of Act XVI of 1927-- In sub-section (3) of Section 68 of the principal Act, for the word "fifty" the words "five hundred" shall be substituted.
[Vide Uttar Pradesh Act XXI of 1960, s. 8]
Download our fully-offline, High speed android app.- Click here
1. Subs. by the A.O. 1950, for "Provincial Government".
2. Subs. by the A.O. 1937, for "Local Official Gazette".
- 1 Short title and extent
- 2 Interpretation clause
- 3 Power to reserve forests
- 4 Notification by State Government
- 5 Bar of accrual of forest-rights
- 6 Proclamation by Forest Settlement-officer
- 7 Inquiry by Forest Settlement-officer
- 8 Powers of Forest Settlement-officer
- 9 Extinction of rights
- 10 Treatment of claims relating to practice of shifting cultivation
- 11 Power to acquire land over which right is claimed
- 12 Order on claims to rights of pasture or to forest-produce
- 13 Record to be made by Forest Settlement-officer
- 14 Record where he admits claim
- 15 Exercise of rights admitted
- 16 Commutation of rights
- 17 Appeal from order passed under section 11, section 12, section 15 or section 16
- 18 Appeal under section 17
- 19 Pleaders
- 20 Notification declaring forest reserved
- 21 Publication of translation of such notification in neighbourhood of forest
- 22 Power to revise arrangement made under section 15 or section 18
- 23 No right acquired over reserved forest, except as here provided
- 24 Rights not to be alienated without sanction
- 25 Power to stop ways and water-courses in reserved forests
- 26 Acts prohibited in such forests
- 27 Power to declare forest no longer reserved
- 28 Formation of village-forests
- 29 Protected forests
- 30 Power to issue notification reserving trees, etc
- 31 Publication of translation of such notification in neighbourhood
- 32 Power to make rules for protected forests
- 33 Penalties for acts in contravention of notification under section 30 or of rules under section 32
- 34 Nothing in this Chapter to prohibit acts done in certain cases
- 35 Protection of forests for special purposes
- 36 Power to assume management of forests
- 37 Expropriation of forests in certain cases
- 38 Protection of forests at request of owners
- 39 Power to impose duty on timber and other forest-produce
- 40 Limit not to apply to purchase-money or royalty
- 41 Power to make rules to regulate transit of forest-produce
- 41A Powers of Central Government as to movements of timber across customs frontiers
- 42 Penalty for breach of rules made under section 41
- 43 Governments and Forest-officers not liable for damage to forest-produce at depot
- 44 All persons bound to aid in case of accident at depot
- 45 Certain kinds of timber to be deemed property of Government until title thereto proved, and may be collected accordingly
- 46 Notice to claimants of drift-timber
- 47 Procedure on claim preferred to such timber
- 48 Disposal of unclaimed timber
- 49 Government and its officers not liable for damage to such timber
- 50 Payments to be made by claimant before timber is delivered to him
- 51 Power to make rules and prescribe penalties
- 52 Seizure of property liable to confiscation
- 53 Power to release property seized under section 52
- 54 Procedure thereupon
- 55 Forest-produce, tools, etc., when liable to confiscation
- 56 Disposal, on conclusion of trial for forest-offence, of produce in respect of which it was committed
- 57 Procedure when offender not known, or cannot be found
- 58 Procedure as to perishable property seized under section 52
- 59 Appeal from orders under section .55, section 56 or section 57
- 60 Property when to vest in Government
- 61 Saving of power to release property seized
- 62 Punishment for wrongful seizure
- 63 Penalty for counterfeiting or defacing marks on trees and timber and for altering boundary-marks
- 64 Power to arrest without warrant
- 65 Power to release on a bond a person arrested
- 66 Power to prevent commission of offence
- 67 Power to try offences summarily
- 68 Power to compound offences
- 69 Presumption that forest-produce belongs to Government
- 70 Cattle-trespass Act, 1871, to apply
- 71 Power to alter fines fixed under that Act
- 72 State Government may invest Forest-officers with certain powers
- 73 Forest-officers deemed public servants
- 74 Indemnity for acts done in good faith
- 75 Forest-officers not to trade
- 76 Additional powers to make rules
- 77 Penalties for breach of rules
- 78 Rules when to have force of law
- 79 Persons bound to assist Forest-officers and police-officers
- 80 Management of forests the joint property of Government and other persons
- 81 Failure to perform service for which a share in produce of Government forest is enjoyed
- 82 Recovery of money due to Government
- 83 Lien on forest-produce for such money
- 84 Land required under this Act to be deemed to be needed for a public purpose under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894
- 85 Recovery of penalties due under bond
- 85A Saving for rights of Central Government
- 86 [Repealed.]
