32Conditions as to— power to stop water-supply; claims to compensation in case of failure or stoppage of supply; claims on account of interruption from other causes; duration of supply; sale or sub-letting of right to use canal-water; transfer, with land, of contracts for water; no right acquired by user

Such contracts and rules must be consistent, with the following conditions:--

(a) Power to stop water-supply.--The Divisional Canal-officer may not stop the supply of water to any water-course, or to any person, except in the following cases:

(1) whenever and so long as it is necessary to stop such supply for the purpose of executing any work ordered by competent authority and with the previous sanction of the State Government;

(2) whenever and so long as any water-course is not maintained in such proper customary repair as to prevent the wasteful escape of water therefrom;

(3) within periods fixed from time to time by the Divisional Canal-officer;

(b) Claims to compensation in case of failure or stoppage of supply.-- No claim shall be made against the State Government for compensation in respect of loss caused by the failure or stoppage of the water in a canal, by reason of any cause beyond the control of the State Government or of any repairs, alterations or additions to the canal, or of any measures taken for regulating the proper flow of water therein, or for maintaining the established course of irrigation which the Divisional Canal-officer considers necessary; but the person suffering such loss may claim such remission of the ordinary charges payable for the use of the water as is authorised by the State Government :

(c) Claims on account of interruption from other causes.--If the supply of water to any land irrigated from a canal be interrupted otherwise than in the manner described in the last preceding clause, the occupier or owner of such land may present a petition for compensation to the Collector for any loss arising from such interruption, and the Collector may award to the petitioner reasonable compensation for such loss:

(d) Duration of supply.--When the water of a canal is supplied for the irrigation of a, single crop, the permission to use such water shall be held to continue only until that crop comes to maturity, and to apply only to that crop; but, if it be supplied for irrigating two or more crops to be raised on the same land within the year, such permission shall be held to continue for one year from the commencement of the irrigation, and to apply to such crops only as are matured within that year :

(e) Sale or subletting of right to use canal-water.--Unless with the permission of the Superintending Canal-officer, no person entitled to use the water of any canal, or any work, building or land appertaining to any canal, shall sell or sublet or otherwise transfer his right to such use:

Provided that the former part of this clause shall not apply to the use by a cultivating tenant of water supplied by the owner of a water-course for the irrigation of the land held by such tenant :

Transfer, with land, of contracts for water.--But all contracts made between the State Government and the owner or occupier of any immovable property, as to the supply of canal-water to such property, shall be transferable therewith, and shall be presumed to have been so transferred whenever a transfer of such property takes place :

(f) No right acquired by user.--No right to the use of the water of a canal shall be, or be deemed to have been, acquired under the ¹ Indian Limitation Act, 1877 (15 of 1877), Part IV, nor shall the State Government be bound to supply any person with water except in accordance with the terms of a contract in writing.