Assessment of Commercial Crops

Original Issue, dated 24-9-1974

Revised issue dated November 12, 1979.

1.  Definition. (i) The Act means the Punjab Commercial Crops Cess Act, 1974.

(ii)  The ‘Rules’ means the Punjab Commercial Crops Cess Rules, 1974.

(iii)  Commercial Crops are those crops mentioned in the Punjab Commercial Crops Cess Act, 1974 and include orchards.

2.  Rates of Cess. All irrigated land under a commercial crop or an orchard is liable to cess @ Rs. 6 per acre and all other lands under these crops will be assessed @ Rs. 3 per acre.

3.  Levy of cess. The Commercial crops cess is payable by the owner. For this purpose mortgagees with possession and lessees of Govt. land should be treated as owners.

4.  Inspection of Girdawari work in respect of commercial crops- The special Girdawari made by the patwari in respect of commercial crops or orchards (Form ‘A’ appended to the Rules) should be inspected by the Field Kanungo and the Circle Revenue Officer. The former shall inspect 100% of the field numbers under commercial crops or orchards and the latter 50%. All numbers in which kharaba has been recorded by the patwari should be checked 100% by the Circle Revenue Officer. Necessary entries in columns No.8 and 9 of the Form ‘A’ (Appended to Rules) will be filled in by the respective Inspecting Staff. The Girdawari Kanungo will also make out a certificate to the effect that Form ‘B’ has been correctly prepared on the basis of the entries in Form ‘A’.

5.  Determination of Kharaba - Kharaba shall be determined in accordance with the rules.

6.  Preparation of Demand Notice - Three copies of the notice of demand in Form ‘B’ (appended to the Rules) are to be sent to the Tahsil Office within 10 days of the completion of the Girdawari by the Patwari for his entire circle and a report to this effect should be made by the Patwari in Roznamcha Waqiati.

7.  Authentication of list of Demand - On receipt of the notice of demand in Form ‘B’ the Assessing Authority (A.C. IInd Grade) will satisfy itself that the particulars therein are correct where after all the three copies will be authenticated by him. Thereafter one copy will be retained by the Office Kanungo as a part of the tehsil record.

8.  Objections against Assessment - Land owners are entitled to file objections in respect of cess specified in Form ‘B’. Such objections should be entered by the Assessing Authority in a register to be maintained in Proforma  ‘A’ appended to this Standing Order.

9.  Disposal and communication of decisions on the objections - Objections filed under section 5(1) of the Act should normally be disposed of within 2 weeks of their receipt and as far as possible be heard on the spot. A gist of the orders passed should be recorded in the remarks column of the register referred to in the above para.

10.  Incorporation of change in the Assessment - In case of any change in the assessment, a copy should be sent to the Patwari concerned and the Office Kanungo for giving a note in red ink about that change in the remarks column in form ‘B’ and in the Tehsil copy of the same.

11.  Incorporation of Demand in Tehsil Accounts - The total Estate-wise demand of commercial crops cess calculated on the basis of figures in Form ‘B’ will be entered by the Wasil Baqi Nawis in an appropriate column of the Khatauni of the same Estate.

12.  Completion of work in respect of collection of Demand of Commercial Crops cess - The work relating to the preparation of demand notice in Form ‘B’, obtaining necessary sanction of the Assessing Authority, and service of demand notice to the Landowners concerned is to be done during the period from 1^st November to 30 ^th November of each year in respect of commercial crops and orchards of Kharif harvest and from 1^st April to 30 ^th April in respect of crops and orchards of the Rabi harvest.

13.  Collection charges - The Lambardar responsible for the Collection of cess shall be entitled to collection charges in respect of this cess in the same manner as is admissible for the recovery of land revenue.

PROFORMA ‘A’
Register containing a gist of objections against the Assessment of Commercial Crops filed by the Assesses