The Bengal Land Holder's Attendance Act, 1848

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THE BENGAL LAND HOLDER’ ATTENDANCE ACT, 1848 

 

ACT NO. XX OF 1848  

Passed by the Governor General of India in Council on the 23d September 1848. 

An Act for the establishment and maintenance of field boundary marks in the Presidency of 

Bombay. 

WHEREAS by sundry Regulations of the Bengal Code, provision is made for the imposition of a daily 

fine, by the Board of Revenue or other authority exercising the powers of that Board, on any proprietor or 

farmer of land subject to the provisions contained in the said several Regulations, who, when duly 

summoned by the Collector or other Officer exercising the power of Collector, shall omit or refuse to 

attend, or to cause his Officer or Agent to attend, or to furnish the accounts or documents required, and 

shall not shew sufficient cause for such omission ; and it is further provided that the fine, when confirmed 

by Government, is to be levied by same process as is prescribed for the recovery of arrears of revenue ; 

and whereas in many cases, by the delay thus occasioned, the whole burden of the penalty is greatly 

increased beyond what would be necessary, if summary power were given to the Officer by whom the 

requisition is made, to impose and levy reasonable fines, subject to review by the Commissioner of 

Revenue and other superior authority, It is enacted as follows: 

I. If any proprietor or farmer of land shall omit or refuse to attend, or to cause his Officer or Agent to 

attend, when duly summoned by the Collector, in any case specified in any of the said Regulations, by the 

time prescribed in the notice issued by the Collector, or shall omit or refuse to furnish the accounts or 

documents required, and shall not shew sufficient cause for such omission, the Collector may impose of 

his own authority such daily fine, to be payable daily until compliance with the requisition, as he may 

think adequate to the situation and circumstances in life or the defaulter, not exceeding in any case the 

daily fine of fifty Rupees: and the amount of such fine, accruing due from time to time may be levied 

without further confirmation, by the same process as is prescribed for the recovery of arrears of revenue. 

II. The Collector shall forthwith report the imposition of every such fine, and the amount thereof, and 

also from time to time the amount levied, to the Commissioner of Revenue, who shall report the same for 

the information of the local Government. 

III. Every order passed by a Collector under this Act shall be appealable in the usual manner to the 

Commissioner of Revenue, and other superior authority ; but no such appeal shall avail to prevent the 

levy of any fine so imposed pending the appeal. 

IV. Whenever the amount levied under any such order, issued for any default by authority of a 

Collector under this Act, shall have exceeded five hundred Rupees, the Collector shall report the case 

specially to the Commissioner of Revenue ; and no further levy for such default shall be made otherwise 

than by authority of the Commissioner of Revenue. 

V. Nothing in this Act contained shall be deemed to repeal the power of imposing daily fines and of 

levying the fines so imposed in the manner prescribed by the said several Regulations. 

VI. The word “Collector” used in this Act shall be taken to mean any person lawfully exercising the 

powers of a Collector. 

VII. This Act shall not extend to the North West Provinces of the Presidency of Bengal.