55. Power to prohibit obstructions or order their removal. - Whenever it
appears to the State Government that injury to any land or the public health or
public convenience has arisen or may arise from the obstruction of any river,
stream or drainage channel, such State Government may, by notification
published in the Official Gazette prohibit, within limits to be defined in such
notification, the formation of any obstruction or may, within such limits, order the
removal or other modification of such obstruction.
Thereupon so much of the said river, stream, or drainage channel as is
comprised within such limits, shall be held to be a drainage work as defined in
section three.
56. Power to remove obstruction after prohibition. - The Divisional Canal
Officer, or other person authorised by the State Government in that behalf, may,
after such publication issue an order to the person causing or having control over
any such obstruction to remove or modify the same within a time to be fixed in
the order.
If, within the time so fixed, such person does not comply with the order, the said
Canal Officer may himself remove or modify the obstruction; and if the person to
whom the order was issued does not, when called upon, pay the expenses
involved in such removal or modification, such expenses shall be recoverable by
the Collector from him or his representative in interest as an arrear of land
revenue.
57. Preparation of Schemes for works of improvement. - Whenever it appears
to the State Government that any drainage works are necessary for the
improvement of any lands, or for the proper cultivation or irrigation thereof,
or that protection from floods or other accumulations of water, or from erosion by
a river, is required for any lands,
the State Government may cause a scheme for such drainage works to be drawn
up and published, together with an estimate of its cost and a statement of the
proportion of such cost which the State Government proposes to defray, and a
schedule of the lands which it is proposed to make chargeable in respect of the
scheme.
[57A. Application for Sections 30-A to 30-G to "field drains".] - The provision
contained in section 30-A to 30-G shall apply to Field Drains as well.
58. Powers of persons employed on such schemes. - The persons authorised
by the State Government to draw up such schemes may exercise all or any of the
powers conferred on the Canal Officers by section fourteen.
59. Rate on lands benefitted by works. - [(1) The proportion of the cost other
than that which is to be defrayed by Government in respect of such scheme, may
be charged from the owners of all lands made chargeable under section 57 in
accordance with rules made by the State Government in this behalf.]
(2) An owner shall be competent to contribute towards the charges payable by
him either wholly or in part in terms of land, labour or cash in the manner
prescribed by rules made in this behalf.
[60. Recovery of rate.] - Any sum certified by the Divisional Canal Officer to be
due under the last preceding section and which remains unpaid after the expiry of
the period during which it was payable; shall be recoverable from the owner liable
for the same as if it were an arrear of land revenue.
61. Disposal of claims as to compensation. - Whenever, in pursuance of a
notification made under section 55, any obstruction is removed or modified, or
whenever any drainage work is carried out under section 57, all claims for
compensation on account of any loss consequent on the removal or modification
of the said obstruction, or the construction of such works, may be made before
the Collector, and he shall deal with the same in the manner provided in section
10.
62. Limitation of such claims. - No such claim shall be entertained after the
expiration of one year from the occurrence of the loss complained of unless the
Collector is satisfied that the claimant had sufficient cause for not making the
claim within such period.