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THE BUILDING AND OTHER CONSTRUCTION WORKERS' WELFARE CESS
ACT, 1996
No.28 OF 1996
[19th August,
1996]
An act to provide for the levy and collection of a cess
on the cost of construction incurred by employers with a view to
augmenting the resources of the Building and Other Construction
Workers' Welfare Boards constituted under the Building and Other
Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of
Service) Act, 1996.
Comment: The aim of this Act is to
provide for the levy and collection of a cess on the cost of
construction incurred by employers with a view to augmenting the
resources of the Building and Other Construction Workers' Welfare
Boards constituted under the Building and Other Construction Workers
(Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the
Forty-seventh year of the Republic of India as follows:---
1.Short title, extent and
commencement.- (1) This Act may be called the Building and Other
Construction Workers' Welfare Cess Act, 1996.
(2) It extends
to the whole of India.
(3) It shall be deemed to have come
into force on the 3rd day of November, 1995.
2.Definitions.- In this
Act, unless the context otherwise requires,----
(a) "Board"
means a Building and Other Construction Workers' Welfare Board
constituted by a State Government under sub-section (1) of section
18 of the Building the Other Construction Workers (Regulation of
Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996;
(b) "Fund"
means the Building and Other Construction Workers' Welfare Fund
constituted by a Board;
(c) "prescribed" means prescribed by
rules made under this Act;
(d) words and expressions used
herein but not defined and defined in the Building and Other
Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of
Service) Act, 1996 shall have the meanings respectively assigned to
them in that Act.
3.Levy and collection of
cess.- (1) There shall be levied and collected a cess for the
purposes of the Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation
of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996, at such rate not
exceeding two per cent.but not less than one per cent, of the cost
of construction incurred by an employer, as the Central Government
may, by notification in the Official Gazette, from time to time
specify.
(2) The cess levied under sub-section (1) shall be
collected from every employer in such manner and at such time,
including deduction at source in relation to a building or other
construction work of a Government or of a public sector undertaking
or advance collection through a local authority where an approval of
such building or other construction work by such local authority is
required, as may be prescribed.
(3) The proceeds of the cess
collected under sub-section (1) shall be paid by the local authority
or the State Government collecting the cess to the Board after
deducting the cost of collection of such cess not exceeding one per
cent.of the amount collected.
(4) Notwithstanding anything
contained in sub-section (1) or sub-section (2), the cess leviable
under this Act including payment of such cess in advance may,
subject to final assessment to be made, be collected at a uniform
rate or rates as may be prescribed on the basis of the quantum of
the building or other construction work involved.
4.Furnishing of returns.-
(1) Every employer shall furnish such return to such officer or
authority, in such manner and at such time as may be
prescribed
(2) If any person carrying on the building or
other construction work, liable to pay the cess under section 3,
fails to furnish any return under sub-section (1), the officer or
the authority shall give a notice requiring such person to furnish
such return before such date as may be specified in the
notice.
5.Assessment
of cess.- (1) The officer or authority to whom or to which the
return has been furnished under section 4 shall, after making or
causing to be made such inquiry as he or it thinks fit and after
satisfying himself or itself that the particulars stated in the
return are correct, by order, assess the amount of cess payable by
the employer.
(2) If the return has not been furnished to the
officer or authority under sub-section (2) of section 4, he or it
shall, after making or causing to be made such inquiry as he or it
thinks fit, by order, assess the amount of cess payable by the
employer.
(3) An order of assessment made under sub-section
(1) or sub-section (2) shall specify the date within which the cess
shall be paid by the employer.
6.Power to exempt.-
Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the Central
Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, exempt any
employer or class of employers in a State from the payment of cess
payable under this Act where such cess is already levied and payable
under any corresponding law in force in that State.
7.Power of entry.- Any
officer or authority of the State Government specially empowered in
this behalf by that Government may----
(a) with such
assistance, if any, as he or it may think fit, enter at any
reasonable time any place where be or it considers it necessary to
enter for carrying out the purposes of this Act including
verification of the correctness of any particulars furnished by any
employer under section 4;
(b) do within such place anything
necessary for the proper discharge of his or its duties under this
Act; and
(c) exercise such other powers as may be
prescribed.
8.Interest payable on delay in
payment of cess.- If any employer fails to pay any amount of
cess payable under section 3 within the time specified in the order
of assessment, such employer shall be liable to pay interest on the
amount to be paid at the rate of two per cent.for every month or
part of a month comprised in the period from the date on which such
payment is due till such amount is actually paid.
9.Penalty
for non-payment of cess within the specified time.- If any amount of
cess payable by any employer under section 3 is not paid within the
date specified in the order of assessment made under section 5, it
shall be deemed to be in arrears and the authority prescribed in
this behalf may, after making such inquiry as it deems fit, impose
on such employer a penalty not exceeding the amount of
cess;
Provided that, before imposing any such penalty, such
employee shall be given a reasonable opportunity of being heard and
if after such hearing the said authority is satisfied that the
default was for any good and sufficient reason, no penalty shall be
imposed under this section.
10.Recovery of amount due under
the Act.- Any amount due under this Act (including any interest
or penalty) from an employer may be recovered in the same manner as
an arrear of and revenue.
11.Appeals.- (1) Any
employer aggrieved by an order of assessment made under section 5 or
by an order imposing penalty made under section 9 may, within such
time as may be prescribed, appeal to such appellate authority in
such form and in such manner as may be prescribed.
(2) Every
appeal preferred under sub-section (1) shall be accompanied by such
fees as may be prescribed.
(3) After the receipt of any
appeal under sub-section (1), the appellate authority shall, after
giving the appellant an opportunity of being heard in the matter,
dispose of the appeal as expeditiously as possible.
(4) Every
order passed in appeal under this section shall be final and shall
not be called in question in any court of law.
12.Penalty.- (1) Whoever,
being under an obligation to furnish a return under this Act,
furnishes any return knowing, or having reason to believe, the same
to be false shall be punishable with imprisonment which may extend
to six months, or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees,
or with both.
(2) Whoever, being liable to pay cess under
this Act, wilfully or intentionally evades or attempts to evade the
payment of such cess shall be punishable with imprisonment which may
extend to six months, or with fine, or with both.
(3) No
court shall take cognizance of an offence punishable under this
section save on a complaint made by or under the authority of the
Central Government.
13.Offences by companies.-
(1) Where an offence under this Act has been committed by a company,
every person who, at the time the offence was committed, was in
charge of, and was responsible to, the company for the conduct of
the business of the company, as well as the company, shall be deemed
to be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded
against and punished accordingly:
Provided that nothing
contained in this sub-section shall render any such person liable to
any punishment if he proves that the offence was committed without
his knowledge or that he had exercised all due diligence to prevent
the commission of such offence. |
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in
sub-section (1), where an offence under this Act has been committed
with the consent or connivance of, or is attributable to any neglect
on the part of, any director, manager, secretary or other officer of
the company, such director, manager, secretary or other officer
shall also be deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall be
liable to be proceeded against and punished
accordingly.
Explanation.---For the purposes of this
section,----
(a) "company" means any body corporate and
includes a firm or other association of individuals; and
(b)
"director" in relation to a firm, means a partner in the
firm.
14.Power to
make rules.- (1) The Central Government may, by notification in
the Official Gazette, make rules for carrying out the provisions of
this Act.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the
foregoing power, such rules may provide for all or any of the
following matters, namely:----
(a) the manner in which and
the time within which the cess shall be collected under sub-section
(2) of section 3;
(b) the rate or rates of advance cess
leviable under sub-section (4) of section 3;
(c) the
particulars of the returns to be furnished, the officer or authority
to whom or to which such returns shall be furnished and the manner
and time of furnishing such returns under sub-section (1) of section
4;
(d) the powers which may be exercised by the officer or
authority under section 7;
(e) the authority which may impose
penalty under section 9;
(f) the authority to which an appeal
may be filed under sub-section (1) of section 11 and the time within
which and the form and manner in which such appeal may be
filed;
(g) the fees which shall accompany an appeal under
sub-section (2) of section 11; and
(h) any other matter which
has to be, or may be, prescribed.
(3) Every rule made under
this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before
each House of Parliament, while it is in session for a total period
of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or
more successive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session
immediately following the session or the successive sessions
aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule
or both Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule
shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of no
effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification
or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything
previously done under that rule.
15.Repeal and saving.- (1)
The Building and Other Construction Workers' Welfare Cess Third
Ordinance, 1996 (Ord.26 of 1996), is hereby repealed.
(2)
Notwithstanding such repeal, anything done or any action taken under
the said Ordinance shall be deemed to have been done or taken under
or taken under the corresponding provisions of this
Act.
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