24Vigilance Committees

(1) Every State Government shall, by notification, constitute a Vigilance Committeefor each district and each Sub-Division.

(2) Each Vigilance Committee constituted for a district shall consist of the followingmembers, namely:—

(a) the District Magistrate—Chairperson, ex officio;

(b) all members of the State Legislature belonging to the Scheduled Casteselected from the district—members:

Provided that if a district has no member of the State Legislature belonging tothe Scheduled Castes, the State Government may nominate such number of othermembers of the State Legislature from the district, not exceeding two, as it may deemappropriate.

(c) the district Superintendent of Police— member, ex officio;

(d) the Chief Executive Officer of,—

(i) the Panchayat at the district level—member, ex officio;

(ii) the Municipality of the district headquarters—member, ex officio;

(iii) any other Municipal Corporation constituted in the district—member, ex officio;

(iv) Cantonment Board, if any, situated in the district—member,ex officio;

(e) one representative be nominated by the railway authority located in thedistrict;

(f) not more than four social workers belonging to organisation working for theprohibition of manual scavenging and rehabilitation of manual scavengers, or,representing the scavenger community, resident in the district, to be nominated by theDistrict Magistrate, two of whom shall be women;

(g) one person to represent the financial and credit institutions in the district, tobe nominated by the District Magistrate;

(h) the district-level officer in-charge of the Scheduled Castes Welfare—Member-Secretary, ex officio;

(i) district-level officers of Departments and agencies who, in the opinion of theDistrict Magistrate, subject to general orders, if any, of the State Government, have asignificant role to play in the implementation of this Act.

(3) Each Vigilance Committee, constituted for a Sub-Division, shall consist of thefollowing members, namely:—

(a) the Sub-Divisional Magistrate—Chairperson, ex officio;

(b) the Chairpersons and the Chief Executive Officers of Panchayats atintermediate level of the Sub-Division, and where Panchayats at intermediate level, donot exist, Chairpersons from two Panchayats at Village level to be nominated by theSub-Divisional Magistrate—member, ex officio;

(c) the Sub-Divisional Officer of Police—member, ex officio;

(d) Chief Executive Officer of—

(i) the Municipality of the Sub-Divisional headquarters—member,ex officio; and

(ii) Cantonment Board, if any, situated in the Sub-Division—member,ex officio;

(e) one representative to be nominated by the railway authority located in the Sub-Division—member, ex officio;

(f) two social workers belonging to the organisation working for the prohibitionof manual scavenging and rehabilitation of the manual scavengers, or representing thescavenger community resident in the Sub-Division, to be nominated by the DistrictMagistrate, one of whom shall be a woman;

(g) one person to represent the financial and credit institutions in theSub-Division, to be nominated by the Sub-Divisional Magistrate;

(h) the Sub-Divisional level officer in-charge of Scheduled Castes welfare—Member-Secretary, ex officio;

(i) Sub-Divisional level officers of Department and agencies who in the opinionof the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, subject to any general orders of the State Governmentor the District Magistrate, have a significant role to play in the implementation of thisActmember, ex officio.

(4) Each Vigilance Committee constituted at district and Sub-Divisional level shallmeet at least once in every three months.

(5) No proceeding of a Vigilance Committees shall be invalid merely by reason of anydefect in its constitution.