BOMBAY NON AGRICULTURISTS LOANS ACT, 1928

3 of 1928

30th March, 1928

An Act to provide for the grant of loans by Government to non agriculturists for certain purposes and for the recovery of such loans. WHEREAS it is expedient to provide for the grant of loans by Government to non-agriculturists for certain purposes and for the recovery of such loans in manner hereinafter appearing: It is hereby enacted as follows :-

SECTION 01: SHORT TITLE

This Act may be called "The Bombay Non-Agriculturists 'Loans Act, 1928 ".

SECTION 02: EXTENT

3This Act shall extend to the whole of the4State of Maharashtra.

SECTION 03: PURPOSE FOR WHICH LOANS MAY BE GRANTED

Subject to such rules as may be under section 6, loans may be granted under this Act5[for erecting, rebuilding or repairing houses, for building or repairing boats] or for the relief of distress of any person to whom a loan under the6[Agriculturists' Loans Act, 1884, cannot be granted.

SECTION 04: LOANS ALREADY GRANTED TO BE DEEMED TO HAVE BEEN GRANTED UNDER ACT

All loans granted after the lst day of August 1927, to such persons as are referred to in section 3 for the purpose mentioned therein shall be deemed to be loans granted under this Act:

SECTION 05: RECOVERY OF LOANS

7[* All loans granted or deemed to have been granted under this Act, together with all interest (if any) chargeable thereon, and costs (if any) incurred in making or recovering the same shall be recoverable at the direction of the Collector in any one or more of the following modes, namely:-

(a) from the borrower- as if there were arrears of land revenue due by him;

(b) from his surety (if any)- as if there were arrears of land revenue due by him;

(c) out of the assets left by a deceased borrower or surety or out of the property comprised in a collateral security (if any)- according to the procedure for the realization of land revenue by the sale of a defaulter's moveable or immovable property other than the land on which that revenue is due;

(d) if the loan is for the benefit of a house.; out of such house, - as if it were arrears of land revenue due in respect of the land on which the house stands.

Explanation.- In this section "Collector" includes a Deputy Commissioner.

SECTION 06: POWER TO MAKE RULES

2(1) The3[4[State] Government] may, from time to time, by notification in the5[Official Gazette], make rules to carry out the purpose of this Act.

(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power such rules may be made for the following matters, namely:-

(a) the manner of making applications for loans;

(b) the officers by whom loans may be granted:

(c) the nature of the security, if any, to be taken for the due application and repayment of the money, the rate of interest at which and the conditions under which the loans may be granted and the manner and term of granting loans; and

(d) the installments by which and the mode in which loans shall be repaid.

SECTION 07: REPEALS AND SAVINGS

Omitted by the Maharashtra Adaptation of Laws (State and Concurrent Subjects) Order, 1960.

BOMBAY NON-AGRICULTURISTS LOANS RULES, 1928

3 of 1928

In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 6 of the Bombay Non- Agriculturists' Loans Act, 1928 (Bom. III of 1928), the Government of Bombay hereby makes the following Rules, namely:-

RULE 01: SHORT TITLE

These rules may be called the Bombay Non- Agriculturists' Loans Rules, 1958.

RULE 02: INTERPRETATION

In these rules, unless the context otherwise requires,

(a)"Act" means the Bombay Non- Agriculturists' Loans Act, 1928;

(b)"sanctioned form" means a form approved and sanctioned by the State Government by a general or special order for the purposes of these rules.

RULE 03: POWER OF STATE GOVERNMENT TO SANCTION REMISSIONS

The State Government shall have full power to sanction remissions of principal and interest.

RULE 04: PURPOSES FOR WHICH LOANS MAYBE GRANTED

Loans may be granted under the Act for any of the following purposes, namely :-

(a)for erecting, rebuilding or repairing houses;

(b)for building or repairing boats; and

(c)for the relief of distress, to any person to whom a loan under the Non- Agriculturists' Loans Act, 1884, cannot be granted.

RULE 05: LOANS IN CERTAIN CASES HOW MADE

Advances in villages where co-operative reconstruction societies exist shall ordinarily to be made through such societies but the Collector may in his discretion grant an advance from the funds at his disposal if in any case owing to exceptional circumstances he thinks it necessary to do so.

RULE 06: WHEN LOANS MAYBE GRANTED

Loans shall ordinarily be refused to persons who have already reconstructed houses either from their own resources or by raising loans from the private money lenders.

Provided that the Collector, or any Assistant or Deputy Collector specially authorised by the Collector in this behalf may, notwithstanding anything contained in this rule, grant loans in special cases, e.g. where the owner has obviously anticipated a loan from the State Government and made temporary arrangements in order to save time.

RULE 07: APPLICATION

(1) An application for loan under the Act shall be presented to any Revenue Officer not below the rank of an Aval Karkun or Naib-Tahsildar.

(2) The application may be made either in writing in the sanctioned application form or orally. If orally made it shall be reduced to writing in the said form by the officer to whom it is made. When the security offered is land extracts from the Record of Rights relating thereto must be attached to the application.

(3) The officer granting the loan shall cause such inquiry, as he thinks fit to be made into the statements made in the application.

RULE 08: AUTHORITIES BY WHOM LOANS MAY BE GRANTED

Loans may be granted by the authorities mentioned, and to the extent specified against each, in the following table:-

Authority Amount

Commissioner Not exceeding 10,000

Collectors Do. 4,000

Assistant or Deputy Collector or Special

Deputy Collector.

Do. 1,000

Tahsildar Do. 400

Aval Karkun or Naib-Tahsildar specially

authorised by the Collector.

Do. 400

RULE 09: OFFICER GRUNTING LOANS TO SATISFY HIMSELF OF SECURITY

Except as otherwise directed by the State Government no loan shall be granted unless the officer granting the loan is satisfied as to the sufficiency of the security, after allowing for a margin of safety. If a loan is to be granted to a tenant not himself a holder, the tenant's house upon which the money will be spent should be his security and his landlord should guarantee the repayment of loan. If a loan is to be advanced to a non-agriculturists, he should be required to find solvent sureties to sign the sanctioned bond form in addition to the house which should be his security for repayment of the loan.

RULE 10: SECURITY AND FORM THEREOF

(1) Moveable property shall not be accepted as security except under the special orders of the State Government. Personal security may be accepted, even that one person, provided that his solvency is certain.

(2) At the time of, or before, the issue of the loan or the first installment of it a mortgage bond shall be executed in the sanctioned form by the applicant and other persons standing as sureties in token that they understand and agree to the conditions contained therein.

(3) In the cases of Hindu joint families the bond shall be signed by the Manager of the joint family on behalf of the family and if possible by all other major members of the family and also by the guardian of the minor members.

(4) In the case of a joint application by several persons for a loan to be taken jointly and severally under a joint bond a bond in the sanctioned form shall be executed at the time of, or before, the issue of the loan or its first installment.

(5) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-rules (2) or (4), in cases where in the opinion of the Collector it is not possible for the applicant or his sureties to execute a bond for the repayment of the loan under this rule at the time of, or before, the issue of the loan or any installment thereof, the loan or such installment may be paid to the applicant on his agreeing, whenever required by the Collector, to execute a bond in the sanctioned form.

RULE 11: CHARGING OF INTEREST ON LOANS

Interest shall ordinarily be charged on all loans at the sanctioned rate, but the State Government, on the recommendation of the Commissioner, in the case of any person or class of persons may sanction a reduced rate, or no interest.

RULE 12: PERIOD AND MINIMUM AMOUNT OF REPAYMENT

(1) All loans shall be repayable within a maximum period of twenty years. The minimum annual repayment shall be Rs. 10.

(2) When any installment due by the borrower is not paid on the date fixed for its repayment, the grantor shall recover the unpaid installment together with interest at the rate equal to double the rate of interest fixed in the order of granting the loan subject to a minimum of 8 per cent and 10 per cent per annum from the date of the default until the whole of the amount of the said installment together with interest thereon shall have been paid.

RULE 13: PROCEDURE ON FAILURE OF THE BORROWER

The officer granting the loan, if at any time satisfied that a borrower has failed to comply with any of the conditions of the loan-

(a) shall, if the failure appears to be due to the misapplication of the loan, and

(b) may, if the failure is due to any other cause, after recording in writing the grounds of his decision forthwith proceed to recover under the provisions of section 5 of the Act any sum still remaining unpaid by such persons. In the case of misapplication of the loan, interest at 12 per cent per annum may be charged on the whole of the amounts for the time being outstanding from the date of the advancement of the loan.

RULE 14: POWER OF STATE GOVERNMENT TO APPOINT PERSONS TO PERFORM DUTIES OF CERTAIN OFFICERS

For the purposes of these rules the State Government may. by general or special order, appoint any person to exercise the powers or to perform the duties of a Commissioner, Collector, Assistant or Deputy Collector, Mamlatdar, or Tahsildar, or Aval Karkun or Naib- Tahsildar.

RULE 15: FORM OF ACCOUNTS

The accounts of all loans shall be kept in such form as the State Government may from time to time sanction.

RULE 16: REPEAL

The following rules are hereby repealed, namely:-

(a) the Bombay Non- Agriculturists' Loans Rules, 1930, published in the Government of Bombay, Finance Department,

Notification No. 6004-E, dated the 1st December 1930.

(b)the Saurashtra Non-Agriculturists' Loans Rules, 1953, published in the Government of Saurashtra, Revenue Department.

Notification No. RD/VI/4-C-2, dated the 22nd September 1953.

(c) the Kutch Non-Agriculturists' Loans Rules, 1950 published in the Government of Kutch, Notification No. B-l 52/50, dated the

29th December 1950.