SURVEYS AND BOUNDARIES

116.    Revenue survey may be introduced by Board of Revenue in any part of Province.– (1) It shall be lawful for the Board of Revenue, whenever it may deem expedient, to direct by notification, the survey of any land in any part of the Province with a view to the settlement of land revenue, the preparation of record-of-rights and preservation thereof, or for any other similar purpose, and such survey shall be called a revenue survey.

      (2)  A revenue survey may extend to the lands of any village, town, or city generally, or to such land only as may be specified in the notification.

      (3)  Subject to the orders of the Board of Revenue, it shall be lawful for the officers conducting any such survey to except any land to which it may not seem expedient that such survey should extend.

117.    Power of Revenue Officers to define boundaries.– (1) A Revenue Officer may, for the purpose of framing any record or making any assessment under this Act, or on the application of any person interested, define the limits of any estate, or of any holding, field or other portion of an estate, and may, for the purpose of indicating those limits, require boundary marks to be erected or repaired.

      (2)  In defining the limits of any land under sub-section (1), the Revenue Officer may cause boundary marks to be erected on any boundary already determined by, or by order of, any Court or Revenue Officer or any Forest Settlement Officer appointed under the Forest Act, 1927 (Act XVI of 1927), or restore any boundary mark already set up by, or by order of, any Court or any such officer.

118.    Surveys for purpose of preparation of records.– (1) When any land is being surveyed in pursuance of rules under clause (c) of section 55 or under section 116, any Revenue Officer directing the survey may, by notice or proclamation, require all persons having rights or interests in the land to attend personally or through authorized agent, and indicate, within a specified time, by temporary marks of a kind to be described in the notice or proclamation, the limits of those rights or interests.

      (2)  If a person to whom the notice or proclamation is addressed fails to comply with the requisition, he shall be liable, at the discretion of the Revenue Officer, to a fine which may extend to fifty rupees.

119.    Assistance to be given by holders and others in the measurement or classification of lands.– (1) It shall be lawful for the Revenue Officer to call upon all owners of land and other persons interested therein to assist in the measurement or classification of the lands to which the survey extends by providing flag-holders and chainmen, and such owners shall be bound to provide suitable persons to act as flag-holders and chainmen.

      (2)  If the owners of land fail to provide suitable persons to act as flag-holders and chainmen, or do not provide them in sufficient number, and it becomes necessary to employ hired labour for the object aforesaid, or other similar object incidental to survey operations, it shall be lawful to assess the cost thereof with all contingent expenses, on the lands surveyed, for collection as an arrear of land-revenue from such owners.

120.    Professional surveys.– (1) If it is found necessary to make a survey by an agency other than that of Revenue Officers and Village Officers, the Board of Revenue may publish a notification stating–

           (a)  the local area to be surveyed and the nature of the survey;

           (b)  the names or official designations of the officers by whom the survey is to be made; and

           (c)  the kind of boundary marks to be erected by those officers.

      (2)  From the date of the notification, the officers specified therein, and the person acting under their orders, shall have, for the purposes of the survey, the powers conferred on Revenue Officers by section 30.

121.    Power of Board of Revenue to make rules for demarcation of boundaries and erection of boundary marks.– (1) The Board of Revenue may make rules as to the manner in which the boundaries of all or any of the estates in any local area are to be demarcated and as to the boundary marks to be erected within those estates.

      (2)  Rules under this section may prescribe, among other matters, the form of boundary marks and the material to be used in their construction.

122.    Effect of the settlement of boundary.– (1) The settlement of a boundary under any of the foregoing provisions of this Chapter shall, subject to the provisions of Chapter XIII, be determinative–

           (a)  of the proper position of the boundary line or boundary marks, and

           (b)  of the rights of the land-owners on either side of the boundary fixed in respect of the land adjudged to appertain, or not to appertain, to their respective holdings.

      (2)  Where a boundary has been so fixed, the Collector may, under rules to be framed in this behalf by the Board of Revenue with the previous approval of Government, evict any land-owner who is wrongfully in possession of any land which has been adjudged in the settlement of a boundary not to appertain to his holding or to the holding of any person through or under whom he claims.

123.    Power to fix boundary between riverain estates.– (1) When any two or more estates are subject to river action and the limits of any such estates are, by any law, rule of custom or usage, or order or decree of any Court or other authority, applicable thereto, liable to vary according as variations may from time to time occur in the course or action of such river, the Board of Revenue may order a permanent boundary line to be fixed between any such estates or such portions thereof as are liable to river action.

      (2)  Upon an order being made under sub-section (1), the Collector shall fix a boundary line between such estates or portions of such estates accordingly, and shall demarcate the same, in accordance with the provisions of section 117, and of the rules, if any, made under section 121.

      (3)  Every such boundary line shall be fixed with due regard to the history of the estates and the interests of the persons respectively owning them or possessing rights therein, in such manner as may be just and equitable in the circumstances of each case.

      (4)  No such boundary line shall be deemed to have been permanently fixed until it has been approved by the [103][Commissioner].

      Explanation– In this section, and in sections 124, 125 and 126 “Collector” shall be deemed to include any Revenue Officer appointed by Government to perform the functions of Collector under all or any of the provisions thereof.

124.    Effect of fixing boundary between riverain estates.– (1) Every boundary line fixed in accordance with the provisions of section 123 shall, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in any law, rule of custom or usage, or order or decree of any Court or other authority, be fixed as constant boundary between the estates affected thereby, and the proprietary and all other rights in every holding, field or other portion of an estate situate on each side of the boundary line so fixed, shall, subject to the other provisions of this section, vest in the land-owners of the estate which lies on that side of the boundary line on which such holding, field or other portion of an estate is situate.

      (2)  If, by the operation of sub-section (1), the proprietary or any other rights in any land which at the time a boundary line is fixed is under cultivation, or reasonably fit for cultivation, or yields any produce of substantial value, be transferred from the land-owners and other right-holders of any one estate, to the land-owners of any other estate, the Collector shall, by written order, direct that the rights in such land shall not, subject to the provisions of sections 125, 126 and 127, be so transferred unless and until the land in respect of which any such order is made ceases to be reasonably fit for cultivation, or to yield any produce of substantial value, and upon any such order being made, the transfer of the rights in such land shall be suspended accordingly.

      (3)  When any portion of the land specified in any order made under sub-section (2), ceases to be reasonably fit for cultivation or to yield any produce of substantial value, the order shall, when the Collector, in writing, so directs, cease to operate as to that portion.

      (4)  The decision of the Collector as to whether, for the purposes of sub-section (2), any land is or is not reasonably fit for cultivation or does or does not yield any produce of substantial value, shall be final.

125.    Application for immediate transfer of rights.– When any order has been made under sub-section (2) of section 124, the land-owners, or any of them in whom, but for such order, the rights in the land specified therein would vest, may apply in writing to the Collector to forthwith transfer the rights the transfer of which has been suspended by such order, upon payment of compensation for the same.

126.    Award of compensation and extinguishment of rights thereby.– (1) When an application under section 25 is made, the Collector shall–

           (a)  fix a day for the hearing of the application;

           (b)  cause notice of the application, and of the day fixed for the hearing thereof, to be served on or proclaimed for the information of, all persons recorded as having rights in the land specified in the order made under sub-section (2) of section 124, and all other persons interested or claiming to be interested therein;

           (c)  upon the day so fixed for hearing, or any day to which the hearing may be adjourned, inquire into the rights in the land and award compensation in respect of all rights found established therein to the persons severally entitled thereto;

           (d)  inform the applicant of the aggregate amount of compensation so awarded and require him to deposit the amount with the Collector on or before a day to be fixed by him in that behalf:

      Provided that, notwithstanding anything contained in this sub-section, it shall be lawful for the Collector, in his discretion and at any time before an award of compensation thereon has been made, to reject such application.

      (2)  In awarding compensation under sub-section (1), the Collector shall be guided by the provisions of section 23 and section 24 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (Act I of 1894), so far as the same may be applicable to the circumstances of the case.

      (3)  On the fifteenth day of May next after the whole amount of compensation so awarded has been deposited with the Collector, the order made under sub-section (2) of section 124 shall cease to operate, and the rights specified therein shall be transferred and vest in the manner provided for in sub-section (1) of that section, and the Collector shall proceed to tender the compensation to the persons severally entitled to receive the same under his award.

      (4)  If any such person as aforesaid refuses to accept the sum so awarded and tendered to him, it shall be placed to his credit in Government treasury.

      (5)  When any order made under sub-section (2) of section 124 ceases, under the provisions of sub-section (3) of the said section, to operate, all rights reserved to any person by such order shall be extinguished.

127.    Voluntary transfers not affected.– Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 124, 125 and 126, when any person possessing any rights in any land, in regard to the rights in which an order has been made under sub-section (2) of section 124, voluntarily transfers such rights to any land-owners of the estate, in the land-owners of which but for such order such rights would vest under the operation of sub-section (1) of that section, the rights so transferred shall forthwith cease to be subject to such order and vest in the land-owners to whom they have been so transferred.

128.    Rights transferred to be liable to all the incidents of tenure of the estate of which the transfer is made.– In every case in which, under the provisions of section 124, or sections 125 and 126, or section 127, proprietary or other rights in land are transferred from the land-owners, and other right-holders of any one estate to the land-owners of any other estate, such rights shall be subject to all the incidents of tenure and liabilities which, under any law or custom for the time being in force, apply to the rights of the land-owners of the estate to which such rights are so transferred.

129.    Cost of erection and repair of boundary and survey marks.– (1) Subject to any rules which the Board of Revenue may, with the previous approval of Government, make in this behalf, boundary and survey marks shall be erected and kept in repair by or at the cost of the persons interested in the land for the indication of the limits of which they are required:

      Provided that Government may in any case direct that the cost of erection shall be borne by Government or be paid out of the proceeds of the Village Officers’ cess.

      (2)  It shall be the duty of the Village Officers to prevent the destruction or unauthorised alteration of the village boundary and survey marks.

130.    Recovery of cost incurred by Government.– (1) If the persons interested in the land fail to erect or repair a boundary or survey mark within thirty days from the date of their being required by a Revenue Officer to do so, the Revenue Officer may cause it to be erected or repaired.

      (2)  Where the Revenue Officer causes a boundary or survey mark to be erected or repaired he shall, subject to any rules or direction under section 129, apportion the cost among the persons interested in the land in such manner as he deems just, and certify, the same to the Collector.

      (3)  The Collector may recover the cost from such persons as if it were an arrear of land revenue.

131.    Responsibility for the maintenance of boundary and survey marks.– Every land-owner shall be responsible for the maintenance and good repair of the boundary and survey marks of his holding, and for any charges reasonably incurred on account of the same by the Revenue Officers in cases of alteration, removal or disrepair.

132.    Report of destruction or removal of or injury to boundary or survey marks.– Every Village Officer of an estate shall be bound to furnish a Revenue Officer with information respecting the destruction or removal of, or any injury done to, any boundary or survey mark lawfully erected in the estate.

133.    Land measurement or survey to be based on a square system or rectangulation.– (1) Save as may specifically be otherwise provided for in the rules made in this behalf by the Board of Revenue, with the previous approval of Government, land measurement or survey shall be based on square system or rectangulation, and no survey or khasra number shall be made less than one acre in area.

      (2)  The rules made under sub-section (1) may also lay down conditions for and restrictions upon sub-division of surveys or khasra numbers.

134.    Penalty.– (1) If any person wilfully destroys or injures or without lawful authority removes a boundary or survey mark lawfully erected, he may be ordered by a Revenue Officer to pay such fine not exceeding [104][five hundred] rupees for each mark so destroyed, injured or removed as may, in the opinion of the Revenue Officer, be necessary to defray the expenses of restoring the same and of rewarding the person, if any, who gave information of the destruction, injury or removal.

      (2)  The imposition of a fine under this section shall not bar a prosecution under section 434 of the Pakistan Penal Code (Act XLV of 1860).

CHAPTER XI

PARTITION

135.    Application for partition.– Any joint owner of land may apply to a Revenue Officer for partition of his share in the land if–

           (a)  at the date of the application the share is recorded under Chapter VI as belonging to him; or

           (b)  his right to the share has been established by a decree which is still subsisting at the date; or

           (c)  a written acknowledgment of that right has been executed by all persons interested in the admission or denial thereof.

[105][135-A.   Partition in case of inheritance.– (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in section 135, immediately after the inheritance mutation has been sanctioned and without any application, the Revenue Officer shall serve notice on all joint land-owners of the holding to submit, within thirty days, a scheme of private partition agreed to by all the joint land-owners.