To consolidate the law relating to forests, its development, conservation, protection, sustainable management, governance, trade of forest produce including carbon and the transit of forest-produce and the duty leviable on timber and other forest-produce and regulation of forestry ecosystem services.
Whereas, it is expedient to consolidate the law relating to forests, its development, conservation, protection, sustainable management, governance, trade of forest produce including carbon and the transit of forest-produce and the duty leviable on timber and other forest-produce and regulation of forestry ecosystem services; it is hereby enacted as follows:-
CHAPTER I PRELIMINARY
1. Short title and extent.– (1) This Act may be called “The Sindh Forest Act, 1927 (Amended 2023)”
(2) It shall extend to the whole of the province of Sindh and come into force at once.
2. Interpretation clause.–In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context -
(1) “Afforestation” means the act or process of establishing new forest or stand of tree on state forest land or any other land which was neither under tree cover nor previously forested;
(2) “Authorized Officer” means Forest Officer or a person authorized in writing by Government to exercise any power or to discharge any duty under this Act or any subsidiary legislation made under the Act;
(3) “Aircraft” means any type of Airplane air ship, balloon or kite whether captive navigable or free and whether controlled directed by human agency or not:
(4) “Alien Species” means species accruing in an area outside of its historically known natural range as a result of intentional or accidental dispersal by human activities alien species are necessarily invasive species.
(5) “Animal” means any kind of vertebrate and invertebrate animal and the young and egg there are other then human beings domestic animals and poultry or the young or egg thereof.
(6) “Arrears of land revenue” shall have the same meaning as assigned to it by the west Pakistan land revenue act, 1967 (WP Act XVII of 1967) and includes all moneys payable to government under this act or any rules made there under.
(7) “Authority” means a person, an organization, an institution or body corporate which is vested with powers to implement this act.
(8) “Biodiversity” means the variability among living organisms and genetic material from all sources including inter-alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystem and the complexes of which they are part; this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems;
(9) “Biosphere Reserve” means sites recognized under UNESCO‘s Man and Biosphere
(10) “Brushwood” includes all woody plants, bushes, shrubs and small trees growing on forestlands, rangelands, watershed areas, wetlands, river beds and stream beds and other areas under the management control of Sindh Forest and Wildlife Department and include those fruit and nut trees growing on farm lands which are found in the above mentioned areas.
(11) “Carbon” means an aerosol or a precursor of greenhouse gas from the atmosphere;
(12) “Carbon credit” means a tradable certificate or permit representing the right to emit one ton of carbon dioxide (tCO2) or the mass of another greenhouse gas with a carbon dioxide equivalent to one ton of carbon dioxide;
(13) “Cattle” includes camels, cows, bullocks, buffaloes, horses, mares, geldings, ponies, colts, fillies, mules, asses, pigs, rams, ewes, sheep, lambs, goats and kids;
(14) “Code” means Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 (V of 1898);
(15) “Collector” means the Deputy Commissioner of a District classified as Revenue Officer under the Land Revenue Act, 1967;
(16) “Community” means a group of people who have common economic interest, socially coherent and inhibit a well-defined geographical area;
(17) “Community organization” means a process by which a community identifies its needs or objectives, gives priority to them, develops confidence and have will to work at them, finds resources (internal and external) to deal with them, and in doing so, extends and develops cooperative and collaborative attitudes and practices;
(18) “Compensation” means the sum of money recovered on account of ecological loss which shall not be less than the value of the property of Government;
(19) “Court” means the Court of Senior Civil Judge to try the offences under this Act;
(20) “Carbon” means chemical element present in all organic matter which contributes to climate change in the form of various greenhouse gases, for example carbon dioxide and methane;
(21) “Certificate” means a Certificate issued under this Act or the rules made there under for a period of more than one year;
(22) “Confiscation” means the forfeiture of sub judice case property of offender in favour of Government by a court of law or any officer vested with magisterial power under section 241 of this Act;
(23) “Conservation” in relation to biodiversity, forests and wildlife means the protection, management and sustainable utilization/use of these resources, habitat, ecosystem and the non-living environment supporting such resources, habitat, or ecosystem with actual or potential use or value;
(24) “Conveyance” means any means of transport whether mechanically propelled or otherwise;
(25) “Criteria” criteria are the content level of a standard which set out the conditions which need to be met in order to deliver a principle It can be possible to verify criteria directly but they can also be further elaborated through indicators. In the case of World Bank Methodological Framework, the set of criteria allow the Carbon Fund to judge or decide whether or not the ER Programme meets methodological requirements of the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility Carbon Fund;
(26) “Department” means the Riverine & Inland Forest Department Sindh, Social Forestry Department Sindh and Mangroves & Rangelands Forest Department Sindh, Government of Sindh;
(27) “Divisional Forest Officer” means an officer designated by Government as Incharge of a forest division;
(28) “Discharge” includes spilling, leaking, pumping, depositing, seeping, releasing, flowing out, pouring, emitting, emptying or dumping;
(29) “Dwelling house” means any building or structure which is for the time being kept by the owner or occupier for the residence therein of himself, his family or servants or any of them, irrespective of whether it is not regularly used, and includes a building or structure adjacent to or occupied with dwelling house if there communication between that building or structure and the dwelling house, either immediate or by means of a covered or enclosed passage leading from the one to the other, but not otherwise;
(30) “Ecosystem” means a dynamic complex of plants, animals and micro-organism communities and their non-living environment interacting as functional unit;
(31) “Encroachment” means intrusion and change of land use of state forest land without any lawful right or permission;
(32) “Environment” means-(a) air, water and land; (b) all layers of the atmosphere; (c) all organic and inorganic matter and living organisms; (d) the ecosystem and ecological relationships; (e) buildings, structures, roads, facilities and works; (f) all social and economic conditions affecting community life; and (g) the interrelationships between any of the factors specified in sub- clauses (a) to (f);.
(33) “Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)” means an environmental study comprising collection of data; prediction of qualitative and qualitative impacts; comparison of alternatives; evaluation of the preventive, mitigation and compensatory measures; formulation o environmental management and training plans and monitoring arrangements; and framing of recommendations and such other components as may be prescribed;
(34) “Exotic” refers to a species, both floral and faunal, which does not occur in an area naturally and is introduced or intended to be introduced from outside of its natural occurrence;
(35) “Export” means to take or cause any forest produce, wild animal, trophy or other biodiversity product to be taken from Sindh to any place outside of Pakistan;
(36) “Fine” means the amount imposed as penalty for committing an offence under this Act;
(37) “First offence report (FOR)” means a report on the printed form issued by the forest official or officer on detection of the forest offence committed;
(38) “Forest” means a minimum area of land of 0.5 hectares with a tree crown cover of more than 10% comprising trees with the potential to reach a minimum height of two meters;
(39) “Forest carbon” means the carbon stored in forest biomass and forest soil (forest carbon sinks), and the carbon to be sequestered in them over time, and includes above ground biomass (both live and dead); below ground biomass (both live and dead); small twigs, leaves, herbs, grasses and litter; organic forest soil carbon and carbon stored in harvested wood products (HWP);
(40) “Forest carbon stock” means the amount of carbon stored in the world’s forest ecosystem mainly in the living biomass and soil;
(41) “Forest Offence Papers” includes FOR, inquiry report and musheernama;
(42) “Forest property” means a movable or immovable assets belonging to a forest;
(43) “Forest officer” means any person whom Government or any officer empowered by it in this behalf, may appoint to carry out all or any of the purposes of this Act or to do anything required by this Act or any rule made there-under to be done by a forest officer;
(44) “Forest water” means sanctioned forest water from irrigation canal network or other water stored in or flowing from any part of the forest;
(45) “Forestland” means a piece of land notified by Government as the forest land to develop, protect and conserve forest and includes a rangeland and wasteland;
(46) “Forest offence” means an offence punishable under this Act or rules;
(47) “Forest produce” includes –
(a) whether found in or brought from, a forest or not, that is to say, timber, firewood, charcoal, catoutchouc, wood-oil, resin, natural varnish, bark, lac, gugar gum, pods, mahua flowers, mahaua seeds (kuth) and myrobolam; and
(b) when found in or brought from, a forest, that is to say -
(i) trees and leaves, flowers, seeds and fruits, and all other parts or produce not hereinbefore mentioned, of a tree;
(ii) plant not being a tree (including grass, herbs, shrubs, creepers, reeds, moss, mushroom and medicinal plant), and all other parts or produce of such plants;
(iii) fish, wild animals and skins, tusks, horns, bones, silk, cocoons, honey and wax, and all other parts or produce of animals;
(iv) peat, carbon stored in tree biomass or soil, surface soil, water, natural spring, rock and minerals (including limestone, laterite, mineral oil, and all other products of mines or quarries); and
(v) any other produce which may be notified as forest produce by Government;
(48) “Forest Settlement Officer” means a person appointed by under clause (c) of section 4;
(49) “Fish” shall have the same meaning assigned to it under the Sindh Fisheries (Amendment) Act 2011 and Rules applicable to Sindh;
(50) “Government” means the Government of Sindh;
(51) “GPS” mean Global Positioning System;
(52) “Informer” means a person who brings or provides specific information in writing or any other suitable and actionable way to the concerned member of Forest Service regarding an offence under this Act;
(53) “Land” means the terrestrial bio-productive system that comprises soil, vegetation, other biota, and the ecological and hydrological processes that operate within the system;
(54) “Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF)” means the impact of the type of land use by humans, and changes in such land use, on greenhouse gas emissions;
(55) “License” means a License issued under this Act for a period of calendar year;
(56) “Mechanically propelled vehicle” means all vehicles, including aircraft and watercraft, which receive their motive power from internal combustion, steam, reaction or electrical propulsion;
(57) “Owner” includes a court of wards in respect of property under this superintendence or charge of such courts;
(58) “Offence” means an act punishable under this Act or the rules made there under;
(59) “Officer” means any person appointed as such under this Act;
(60) “Protected Forest” means a forest notified as protected forest under this Act;
(61) “Protected Areas” means areas that aim to protect particular species or habitats and management reflects this priority. Many category IV protected areas will need regular, active interventions to address the requirements of particular species or to maintain habitats, but this is not a requirement of the category;
(62) “Person” means any natural person or legal entity and includes an individual, firm, body or association of persons, partnership. society, group, company, corporation, co-operative society, trust, non-governmental organization, community-based organization, village development committee, village council, local council or local authority, women organization, and in the case of a vessel, the master or the person having for the time being the charge or control of the vessel, a public servant or an employee of Forest Service or Government Agency or the Government Agency itself;
(63) “Prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(64) “Product” means any articles, trophies and any other derivatives of wild floral or faunal species in the context of Forests, Protected Areas, wastelands or riverbeds;
(65) “Project” means any activity, plan, scheme, proposal or undertaking aimed at achieving specific objectives;
(66) “Province” means any of the Provinces of Pakistan;
(67) “Reserved Forest” means a forest notified as reserved forest under this Act;
(68) “River” includes any stream, canal, creek or other channel, natural or artificial;
(69) “Resumed land” means any land resumed under land reforms by Land Commission or any other body constituted by Government in this behalf and assigned to the Forest Department for managing as forest;
(70) “Right of Way” means the legal right, established by usage or grant, to pass along a specific route through grounds or property belonging to another;
(71) “Rules” means the rules made under this Act;
(72) “Regulations” means regulations made under this Act;
(73) “Sale Depot” means any building, place, premises or enclosures registered with Divisional Forest Officer concerned where timber or forest produce is brought and stored for sale;
(74) “Sawing unit” means a saw mill or a saw machine registered with the Divisional Forest Officer concerned where timber is cut, sawn or fashioned;
(75) “Service” means the Sindh Forest Service;
(76) “Schedule” means a Schedule appended to this Act;
(77) “Section” means a section of this Act;
(78) “Seizure” means taking into possession of case property of the offender by the forest staff or other competent and authorized entity under the relevant sections of this Act or Rules made there under
(79) “Settlement” means the first regular settlement or subsequent regular settlement of land; provided wherever the rights of Government or the right holder have been alienated or wherever boundaries of forest have been altered during subsequent settlements without written consent of Government and right holders, the rights, concessions or privileges and the boundaries for forests recorded during the first regular settlement shall have precedence over the subsequent settlements;
(80) “Species” means any species, subspecies or geographically separate population thereof;
(81) “Survey” means the act of taking topographic surveying measurements and collection of spatial and non-spatial data for preparing geospatial database, its processing and analysis;
(82) “Timber” includes trees when they have fallen or have been felled, and all wood (firewood, brushwood, branch, twig, sawdust, chips, roots & stumps) whether obtained by falling of a tree or plant or without it;
(83) “Tree” includes a woody plant, palms, bamboos, stumps, brush-wood and canes;
(84) “Trespass” means a person or persons entering a forest with tools and equipment helpful in commission of a forest offence;
(85) “Tampering “or “tamper” includes breaking the seals, damaging, destructing or in any way changing or interfering in or creating hindrance in the original condition or use of any record, produce, wildlife product, trophy, tool, instrument, or any other material object or intangible property mark, seal or trade mark;
(86) “Trade” means export, re-export, import and introduction from another place;
(87) “Unclassed forest” means a forest other than reserved; protected and/ or wasteland notified as unclassed forest under this Act;
(88) “Urban Forest” means plantations, within cities, Talukas, Union Councils, Towns, along main Roads or in Urban Centers.
(89) “Village forests” means a forest notified as the village forest under this Act;
(90) “Vehicle” means a vehicle of any description whatsoever and howsoever drawn or propelled, and includes a vessel and an aircraft;
(91) “Vessel” means a ship, boat, dhow, submarine and every other kind of watercraft used in navigation, either on the sea or in inland waters and includes a seaplane and any amphibious craft;
(92) “Wasteland” includes an uncultivated or uncultivable land notified as the wasteland by Government;
(93) “Waste” means any substance or object which has been, is being or is intended to be, discarded or disposed of, and includes liquid waste, solid waste, waste gases, suspended waste, industrial waste, agricultural waste, nuclear waste, municipal waste, hospital waste, used polythene bags and residues from the incineration of all types of wastes;
(94) “Weapon” means any firearm, ammunition, dart-gun, missile, explosive, poison, poisoned bait, spear, bow and arrow, knife, axe, hoe, pick, club, stakes, pitfall, net, gin, trap, snare, or any combination of these and any other device, method, technology whatsoever capable of killing or capturing an animal; CHAPTER-II RESERVED FORESTS
3. Powers to reserve forest. ― Government may constitute a forest-land or waste-land which is the property of Government, or over which Government has proprietary rights, or to the whole or any part of the forest produce of which Government is entitled, a reserved forest in the manner hereinafter provided.
4. Notification by Provincial Government.― (1) Whenever it has been decided to constitute any land a reserved forest, Government shall issue a notification in the official
Gazette –
(a) declaring that it has been decided to constitute such land a reserved forest;
(b) specifying, as nearly as possible, the situation and limits of such
land; and
(c) appointing an officer (hereinafter called “the Forest Settlement-Officer”) to inquire into and determine the existence, nature and extent of any rights alleged to exist in favour of any person in or over any land comprised within such limits, or in or over any forest-produce, and to deal with the same as provided in this Chapter.
Explanation.– For the purpose of clause (b), it shall be sufficient to describe the limits of the forest by roads, rivers, bridges or other well-known or readily intelligible boundaries.
(2) The officer appointed under clause (c) of sub-section (1) shall ordinarily be a person not holding any forest office except that of Forest Settlement Officer.
(3) Nothing in this section shall prevent, Government from appointing any number of officers not exceeding three, not more than one of whom shall be a person holding any forest office except as aforesaid, to perform the duties of a Forest Settlement Officer under this Act.
5. Bar of accrual of forest-rights.― After the issue of a notification under section 4, no right shall be acquired in or over the land comprised in such notification, except by succession or under a grant or contract in writing made or entered into by or on behalf of Government or some person in whom such right was vested when the notification was issued; and no fresh clearing for cultivation or for any other purpose shall be made in such land except in accordance with such rules as may be made by Government in this behalf.
6. Proclamation by Forest Settlement Officer.― (1) When a notification has been issued under section 4, the Forest Settlement Officer shall publish in the local vernacular in every town and village in the neighbourhood of the land comprised therein, a proclamation –
(a) specifying, as nearly as possible, the situation and limits of the proposed forest;
(b) explaining the consequences which, as hereinafter provided, will ensue on the reservation of such forest; and
(c) fixing a period of not less than three months from the date of such proclamation, and requiring every person claiming any right mentioned in section 4 or section 5 within such period either to present to the Forest Settlement-Officer a written notice specifying or to appear before him and state, the nature of such right and the amount and particulars of the compensation (if any) claimed in respect thereof.
7. Inquiry by Forest Settlement Officer.― The Forest Settlement Officer shall take down in writing all statements made under section 6, and shall at some convenient place inquire into all claims duly preferred under that section, and the existence of any rights mentioned in section 4 or section 5 and not claimed under section 6 so far as the same may be ascertainable from the records of Government and the evidence of any persons likely to be acquainted with the same.
8. Powers of Forest Settlement Officer. ― (1) For the purpose of such inquiry, the Forest Settlement Officer may exercise the following powers, that is to say:-
(a) power to enter, by himself or any officer authorized by him for the purpose, upon any land, and to survey, demarcate and make a map of the same; and
(b) The powers of a Civil Court in the trial of suits.
9. Extinction of rights.― Rights in respect of which no claim has been preferred under section 6, and of the existence of which no knowledge has been acquired by inquiry under section 7, shall be extinguished, unless, before the notification under section 20 is published, the person claiming them satisfies the Forest Settlement Officer that he had sufficient cause for not preferring such claim within the period fixed under section 6.
10. Treatment of claims relating to practice of shifting cultivation. ― (1) In the case of a claim relating to the practice of shifting cultivation, the Forest Settlement Officer shall record a statement setting forth the particulars of the claim and of any local rule or order under which the practice is allowed or regulated, and submit the statement to Government, together with his opinion as to whether the practice should be permitted or prohibited wholly or in part.
(2) On receipt of the statement and opinion, Government may make an order permitting or prohibiting the practice wholly or in part.
(3) If such practice is permitted wholly or in part, the Forest Settlement Officer may arrange for its exercise:–
(a) by altering the limits of the land under settlement so as to exclude land of sufficient extent, of a suitable kind, and in a locality reasonably convenient for the purposes of the claimants; or
(b) by causing certain portions of the land under settlement to be separately demarcated, and giving permission to the claimants to practice shifting cultivation therein under such conditions as he may prescribe.
(4) All arrangements made under sub-section (3) shall be subject to the previous sanction of Government.
(5) The practice of shifting cultivation shall in all cases be deemed a privilege subject to control, restriction and abolition by Government.
11. Power to acquire land over which right is claimed. ― (1) In the case of a claim to a right in or over any land other than a right of way or right of pasture, or a right to forest produce or a water course, the Forest Settlement Officer shall pass an order admitting or rejecting the same in whole or in part.
(2) If such claim is admitted in whole or in part, the Forest Settlement Officer shall either:-
(a) exclude such land from the limits of the proposed forest; or
(b) come to an agreement with the owner thereof for the surrender of his rights; or
(c) proceed to acquire such land in the manner provided by the Land Acquisition Act, 1894.
(3) For the purpose of so acquiring such land:–
(a) the Forest Settlement-Officer shall be deemed to be a Collector proceeding under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894;
(b) the claimant shall be deemed to be a person interested and appearing before him in pursuance of a notice given under section 9 of that Act;
(c) the provisions of the preceding sections of that Act shall be deemed to have been complied with; and
(d) the Collector, with the consent of the claimant, or the Court, with the consent of both parties, may award compensation in land, or partly in land and partly in money.
(4) If such claim is neither pointed out nor settled at the time of settlement, then the land falling within the limits of reserved forest shall be either;
(a) acquired under the provision of the land Acquisition Act, 1894; or
(b) obtained through collector with the consent of the parties by providing equal piece of land to the owner along the boundary of said forest; or
(c) the Collector with the consent of the claimant, or the court, with the consent of both parties may award compensation in land, or partly in land and partly in money.
12. Order on claims to rights of pasture or to forest produce. ― In the case of a claim to rights of pasture or to forest produce, the Forest Settlement Officer shall pass an order admitting or rejecting the same in whole or in part.
13. Record to be made by Forest Settlement Officer. ― (1) The Forest Settlement Officer, when passing any order under section 12, shall record, so far as may be practicable:–
(a) the name, father’s name, caste, residence and occupation of the person claiming the right; and
(b) the designation, position and area of all fields or groups of fields, if any, and the designation and position of all buildings, if any, in respect of which the exercise of such rights is claimed.
14. Record where he admits claim.― If the Forest Settlement Officer admits in whole or in part any claim under section 12, he shall also record the extent to which the claim is so admitted, specifying the number and description of the cattle which the claimant is, from time to time, entitled to graze in the forest, the season during which such pasture is permitted, the quantity of timber and other forest produce which he is, from time to time, authorized to take or receive, and such other particulars as the case may require. He shall also record whether the timber or other forest produce obtained by the exercise of the rights claimed may be sold or bartered.
15. Exercise of rights admitted.― (1) After making such record the Forest Settlement Officer shall, to the best of his ability, and having due regard to the maintenance of the reserved forest in respect of which the claim is made, pass such orders as will ensure the continued exercise of the rights so admitted.
(2) For this purpose the Forest Settlement Officer may:–
(a) set out some other forest-tract of sufficient extent, and in a locality reasonably convenient, for the purposes of such claimants, and record an order conferring upon them a right of pasture or to forest produce, as the case may be, to the extent so admitted; or
(b) so alter the limits of the proposed forest as to exclude forest land of sufficient extent, and in a locality reasonably convenient, for the purposes of the claimants; or
(c) record an order, continuing to such claimants a right of pasture or to forest produce, as the case may be, to the extent so admitted, at such seasons, within such portions of the proposed forest, and under such rules, as may be made in this behalf by Government.
16. Commutation of rights.― In case the Forest Settlement Officer finds it impossible, having due regard to the maintenance of the reserved forest, to make such settlement under section 15 as shall ensure the continued exercise of the said rights to the extent so admitted, he shall, subject to such rules as Government may make in this behalf, commute such rights, by the payment to such persons of a sum of money in lieu thereof, or by the grant of land, or in such other manner as he thinks fit.
17. Appeal from order passed under sections 11, 12, 15 or 16.― Any person who has made a claim under this Act, or any Forest Officer or other person generally or specially empowered by Government in this behalf, may, within three months from the date of the order passed on such claim by the Forest Settlement Officer under section 11, section 12, section 15 or section 16, present an appeal from such order to such officer of the Revenue Department, not below the rank of a Collector, as Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, appoint to hear appeals from such order:
Provided that Government may establish a Court, hereinafter called the Forest Court, composed of three persons to be appointed by Government, and, when the Forest Court has been so established, all such appeals shall be presented to it.
18. Appeal under section 17.― (1) Every appeal under section 17 shall be made by petition in writing, and may be delivered to the Forest Settlement Officer, who shall forward it without delay to the authority competent to hear the same.
(2) If the appeal be to an officer appointed under section 17, it shall be heard in the manner prescribed for the time being for the hearing of appeals in matters relating to land revenue.
(3) If the appeal be to the Forest Court, the Court shall fix a day and a convenient place in the neighbourhood of the proposed forest for hearing the appeal, and shall give notice thereof, to the parties, and shall hear such appeal accordingly.
(4) The order passed on the appeal by such officer or Court, or by the majority of the members of such Court, as the case may be, shall, subject to revision by the Government, be final.
19. Pleaders.― Government or any person who has made a claim under this Act, may appoint any person to appear, plead an act on its or his behalf before the Forest Settlement Officer, or the Appellate Officer or the Court in the course of any inquiry or appeal under this Act.
20.Notification declaring forest reserved.― (1) When the following events have occurred, namely:-
(a) section 6 for preferring claims has elapsed, and all claims, if any, made under that section or section 9, have been disposed of by the Forest Settlement Officer;
(b) if any such claims have been made, the period limited by section 17 for appealing from the orders passed on such claims has elapsed, and all appeals, if any, presented within such period, have been disposed of by the appellate officer or Court, Tribunal; and
(c) all lands, if any, to be included in the proposed forest, which the Forest Settlement Officer has, under section 11, elected to acquire under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, have become vested in Government under section 16 of that Act; Government shall publish a notification in the official gazette, specifying definitely, according to boundary marks erected or GPS Coordinates provided by Survey of Pakistan or otherwise, the limits of the forest which is to be reserved, and declaring the same to be reserved from a date fixed by the notification;
(2) From the date so fixed under clause (c) of sub-section (1), such forest shall be deemed to be a reserved forest.
21. Publication of translation of such notification in neighbourhood of forest.― The Forest Officer shall, before the date fixed by such notification, cause a translation thereof into the local vernacular to be published in every town and village in the neighbourhood of the forest.
22. Power to revise arrangement made under section 15 or section 18.― Government may, within five years from the publication of any notification under section 20, revise any arrangement made under section 15 or section 18, and may for this purpose rescind or modify any order made under section 15 or section 18, and direct that any one of the proceedings specified in section 15, may be taken in lieu of any other of such proceedings, or that the rights admitted under section 12, may be commuted under section 16.
23. No right acquired over reserved forest, except as here provided.― No right of any description shall be acquired in or over a reserved forest except by succession or under a grant or contract in writing made by or on behalf of Government or some person in whom such right was vested when the notification under section 20 was issued.
24. Rights not to be alienated without sanction.― (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in section 23, no right continued under clause (c) of sub-section (2) of section 15 shall be alienated by way of grant, sale, lease, mortgage or otherwise, without the sanction of Government:
Provided that, when any such right is appendant to any land or house, it may be sold or otherwise alienated with such land or house.
(2) No timber of other forest produce obtained in exercise of any such right shall be sold or bartered except to such extent as may have been admitted in the order recorded under section 14.
25. Power to stop ways and watercourses in reserved forests. ― The Forest Officer may, with the previous sanction of Government or of any officer duly authorised by it in this behalf, stop any public or private way or watercourse in a reserved forest, provided that a substitute for the way or water-course so stopped, which Government deems to be reasonably conveniently, already exists, or has been provided or constructed by the Forest Officer in lieu thereof.
26. Offences relating to reserved forests and penalties.― (1) A person, who in a reserved forest: –
(a) makes any fresh clearing which is prohibited under section 5;
(b) clears or breaks up or encroaches upon any forest land for cultivation of agricultural crops or for any other purposes including construction of any building, hutment, or cattle pen or any other structure;
(c) cause damage or tampers with forest boundary pillar, barbed wire, mud wall, any other fence erected in or around the forest, water channels, culvert, wetland, check dam, embankment, reservoir or pond;
(d) sets fire to a reserved forest, or, in contravention of any rules made by Government in this behalf, kindles any fire, or leaves any fire burning in such manner as to endanger such a forest;
(e) kindles, keeps or carries any fire except at such seasons as the Forest Officer may notify in this behalf;
(f) trespasses or pastures cattle, or permits cattle to trespass;
(g) causes any damage by negligence in felling any tree or cutting or dragging any timber;
(h) fells, girdles, lops, taps or burns a tree or strips off a bark or leaves from, or otherwise damages the same;
(i) quarries stones, mines, minerals, burns lime or charcoal, or collects or removes any forest produce;
(j) contravenes any rule made in this behalf by the Provincial Government hunt, shoot wild animals or birds, fishes, poisons or steals water or sets traps or snares;
(k) cuts, destroys or damages any tender and young tree growth, in newly regenerated, afforested and reforested areas;
(l) commits fraud, attempt to or assist in forgery and tampering in forest land record title;
(m) removes or causes damage to the forest soil, water, natural vegetation (herbs, grasses, bushes and shrubs), fish, wild animals and wild birds;
(n) pollutes soil or water by sewerage, sewage, domestic or industrial waste or through any other pollutants or means.
(2) The above mentioned offences shall be punished with imprisonment for a term or fine or with both as provided under sub-section (2) (a and b) in addition to such compensation for damage done to the forest property and forest produce as assessed by authorized forest officer and as the Court may direct to be paid, provided further that any person who commits;
(a) offences under clause (a to d) of sub-section (1), shall be cognizable and non-bailable and punished for the imprisonment which may extend to three years but shall not be less than six months or a fine which may extend to seventy-five thousand rupees per acre but shall not be less than twenty five thousand rupees per acre, and
(b) any offence except the offences mentioned in clauses (a to d) of sub-section (1), in respect of reserved forest, timber, tree or forest produce, where the damage of property in respect of which offence is committed shall be punishable with fine or imprisonment or with both in addition to recovery of the value of damage:-
(i) Does not exceed twenty-five thousand rupees, the term of imprisonment may extend to three months and a fine which may extend to fifty thousand rupees but shall not be less than one and half times of the value of the damage done to the property or with both;
(ii) Exceeds twenty-five thousand rupees but does not exceed one hundred thousand rupees, the term of imprisonment may extend to three months but shall not be less than one month and a fine which may extend to two hundred thousand rupees but shall not be less than two times of the value of the damage done to the property or with both;
(iii) Exceeds one hundred thousand rupees shall be cognizable and non-bailable offence and punished for the term of imprisonment that may extend to six months but shall not be less than two months and fine which may extend to triple of the value of damage but shall not be less than one and half times of the value of the damage done to the property or with both;
Provided also that the double of the penalties described under sub-section (2)(a) and (b), may be inflicted where the offence is committed after sunset and before sunrise or where the offender has been previously convicted of a like offence; and all timber, tree or forest produce together with any tool, carriage, wagon, cart or other vehicle or thing used in committing any such offence, shall be liable to confiscation.
(3) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to prohibit any act:-
(a) done by permission in writing of the forest officer, or under any rule made by the Government; and
(b) in exercise of any right continued under section-15 (2)(c) or created by grant or contract under the provisions of section-23.
(4) Whenever, fire is caused willfully or by gross negligence in a reserved forest, Government may (notwithstanding that any penalty has been inflicted under this section) direct that in such forest or any portion thereof the exercise of all rights of pasture or to forest produce, shall be suspended for such period as it thinks fit.
(5) The Court shall have powers to sanction reward out of the fine realized, to any person providing information in respect of an offence or help in apprehending the offender.
(6) A person convicted for offences under sub-section(1) (a and b), shall deliver possession of the land to the prescribed Forest Officer, and also remove any structure or crop existing on the said land, within such period but not exceeding thirty days, as the Court may fix in this behalf; and in case the convicted person fails to deliver possession of encroached forestland or to remove the structure or crop existing on the said land within the period specified by the Court, the convicted person-
(a) may, by the order of the Court, be ejected from such land and any structure or crop raised by the convicted person may be removed, demolished or confiscated by force as may be necessary and in such manner as may be prescribed;
(b) shall also be liable to a fine which may extend to three hundred rupees per acre per day but shall not be less than one hundred rupees per acre per day, after the period fixed by the Court has expired and the convicted person still remains in possession or occupation of the encroached forestland and fails to demolish or remove the structure or crop on such land; and
(c) the expenditure incurred by Government on removal of encroachment or demolishing of structure and crop, involved in the offence, shall be recovered as arrears of land revenue under The Sindh Land Revenue Act, 1967; or in case of default shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to six months but shall not be less than one month.
27. Power to declare forest no longer reserved.― (1)Government shall not declare or notify reserved forest or any part of the reserved forest as being no longer reserved forest nor allow change in the land use of a reserved forest,
(2) That, if any Government Organization whether Provincial or Federal requesting for the land, satisfies Government with cogent reasons that there is no other option but to use the specified reserved forest land only for purposes of a public interest projects of strategic importance including right of way for power lines, gas lines, exploration of oil, gas, construction of roads, railway tracks, bridges, the government may allow change in land use of a reserved forest subject to following provisions:-
(a) a committee comprised of Natural Resource Management Expert, Representative of Revenue Department (Collector of respective District), Forest Officer, Environmental Impact Assessment Expert and Representative of Finance Department, Government of Sindh, is constituted to ascertain the necessity of the request and furnish the opinion;
(b) in case the committee recommends the request and Government agrees with the recommendation, a substitute plantable land, which is equal to or bigger than the de-notified area of reserved forest, preferably in a compact form and is, as far as possible, situated close to the reserved forest land, is notified as reserved forestland and transferred in the name of Department in lieu thereof, and funds for its immediate forestation and maintenance as may be assessed are made available as compensation and for ecosystem restoration; or
(c) the annual rental value as prescribed, is paid by the borrowing organization in lieu of right of way in addition to compensation and value of forest produce (trees, shrubs, herbs) or property affected or damaged due to the execution of a project.
(3) Exchange of reserved forest land is prohibited and shall not be allowed by the government to any private person, companies, government and non-government organization for any purpose, other than specified under sub-section (2) above.
CHAPTER III VILLAGE FORESTS
28. Formation of village forests.― (1) Government may assign to any village-community or community based organization the rights of Government to or over any land which has been constituted a reserved forest or protected forest, and may cancel such assignment. All forests so assigned shall be called village-forests.
(2) Government may make rules for the management of a village-forest, prescribing the conditions under which the village community may use the non-timber forest produce and other ecosystem services and define duties of village community for the protection and improvement of such forest.
(3) All the provisions of this Act relating to the reserved forests shall (so far as they are not inconsistent with the rules so made) apply to village-forests.
CHAPTER IV PROTECTED FORESTS
29. Protected forests.― (1) Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, declare the provisions of this Chapter applicable to any forest-land or waste-land or other state lands, municipal lands which is not included in a reserved forest, but which is the property of Government, or over which Government has proprietary rights, or to the whole or any part of the forest produce of which Government is entitled.
(2) The forest-land, waste-lands or other state lands and municipal lands comprised in any such notification shall be called a “protected forest”.
(3) No such notification shall be made unless the nature and extent of the rights of Government and of private persons in or over the forest-land or waste-land comprised therein have been inquired into and recorded at a survey or settlement, or in such other manner as Government thinks sufficient. Every such record shall be presumed to be correct until the contrary is proved:
Provided that, if, in the case of any forest-land or wasteland, Government thinks that such inquiry and record are necessary, but that they will occupy such length of time as in the meantime to endanger the right of Government, it may, pending such inquiry and record, declare such land to be a protected forest, but so as not to bridge or affect any existing rights of individuals or communities.
30. Power to issue notification reserving trees, etc.― (1) Government may, by notification in the official Gazette:–
(a) declare any trees or class of trees in a protected forest to be reserved from a date fixed by the notification;
(b) declare that any portion of such forest specified in the notification shall be closed for such term, not exceeding thirty years, as Government thinks fit, and that the rights of private persons, if any, over such portion shall be suspended during such term, provided that the remainder of such forest be sufficient, and in a locality reasonably convenient, for the due exercise of the rights suspended in the portion so closed; or
(c) prohibit, from a date fixed as aforesaid, the quarrying of stone, or the burning of lime or charcoal, or the collection or subjection to any manufacturing process, or removal of any forest produce in any such forest, and the breaking up or clearing for cultivation, for building, for herding cattle or for any other purpose, of any land in any such forest.
31. Publication of translation of such notification in neighbourhood.― The Collector shall cause a translation into the local vernacular of every notification issued under section 32 to be affixed in a conspicuous place in every town and village in the neighbourhood of the forest comprised in the notification.
32. Power to make rules for protected forests.― (1) Government may make rules to regulate the following matters, namely:-
(a) the cutting, sawing, conversion and removal of trees and timber, and the collection, manufacture and removal of forest-produce, from protected forests;
(b) the granting of licenses to the inhabitants of towns and villages in the vicinity of protected forests to take trees, timber or other forest produce for their own use, and the production and return of such licenses by such persons;
(c) the granting of licenses to persons felling or removing trees or timber or other forest produce from such forests for the purposes of trade and the production and return of such licenses by such persons;
(d) the payments, if any, to be made by the persons mentioned in clauses (b) and (c) for permission to cut such trees, or to collect and remove such timber or other forest produce;
(e) the other payment, if any, to be made by them in respect of such trees, timber and produce, and the places where such payment shall be made;
(f) the examination of forest-produce passing out of such forests;
(g) the clearing and breaking up of land for cultivation or other purposes in such forests;
(h) the protection from fire of timber laying in such forests and of trees reserved under section 30;
(i) the cutting of grass and pasturing of cattle in such forests;
(j) the hunting, shooting, fishing, poisoning water and setting traps or snares in such forests;
(k) the protection and management of any portion of a forest closed under section 30; and
(l) the exercise of rights referred to in section 29.
33. Offences relating to protected forests and penalties.― (1) A person, who in a protected forest :–
(a) contrary to any prohibition under section 30, clears or breaks up or encroaches upon any forest land for cultivation of agricultural crops or for any other purposes including construction of any building, hutment, or cattle pen or any other structure;
(b) contrary to any prohibition under section 30, quarries any stone, burns any lime or charcoal, removes surface soil or collects, subjects to any manufacturing process, or removes any forest produce;
(c) fells, girdles, lops, taps or burns any trees reserved under section 30, or strips off the bark or leaves from, or otherwise damages, any such tree;
(d) sets or kindles fire without taking reasonable precautions to prevent its spreading to any tree reserved under section 30, whether standing, fallen or felled, or to any closed portion of the forest;
(e) leaves burning any fire kindled by him in the vicinity of any such reserved tree or closed portion of the forest;
(f) fells any tree or drags any timber so as to damage any tree reserved as aforesaid;
(g) permits cattle to damage any reserved tree;
(h) contrary to any prohibition under section 30, hunts, shoots wild animals, wild birds, fishes, poisons or steals forest water or sets traps or snares in any protected forest; and
(i) infringes any rule made under section 32.
(2) The above mentioned offences shall be punished with imprisonment for a term or fine or with both as provided under sub-section (3) and sub-section (4) in addition to such compensation for damage done to the forest property and forest produce as assessed by authorized forest officer and as the Court may direct to be paid;
(3) The offence under clause (a) of sub-section (1), shall be cognizable and non-bailable and punishable with imprisonment which may extend to three years but shall not be less than six months or a fine which may extend to seventy five thousand rupees per acre but shall not be less than twenty five thousand rupees per acre; and
(4) Offences except under clause (a) of sub-section (1) shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term or fine or with both, in addition to recovery of the value of damage:-
(a) does not exceed twenty-five thousand rupees, the term of imprisonment may extend to three months and a fine which may extend to fifty thousand rupees but shall not be less than one and half times of the value of the damage done to the property or with both;
(b) exceeds twenty-five thousand rupees but does not exceed one hundred thousand rupees, the term of imprisonment may extend to three months but shall not be less than one month and a fine which may extend to two hundred thousand rupees but shall not be less than two times of the value of the damage done to the property or with both;
(c) exceeds one hundred thousand rupees shall be cognizable and non-bailable offence and punished for the term of imprisonment that may extend to six months but shall not be less than two months and fine which may extend to triple of the value of damage but shall not be less than one and half times of the value of the damage done to the property or with both;
Provided also that the double of the penalties described under sub-section (3) and (4), may be inflicted where the offence is committed after sunset and before sunrise or where the offender has been previously convicted of a like offence; and all timber, tree or forest produce together with any tool, carriage, wagon, cart or other vehicle or thing used in committing any such offence, shall be liable to confiscation.
(5) Whenever fire is caused willfully or by gross negligence in a protected forest, Government may, notwithstanding that any penalty has been inflicted under this section, direct that in such forest or any portion thereof the exercise of any right of pasture or to forest-produce shall be suspended for such period as it thinks fit.
(6) All timber, tree or forest produce in respect of which an offence is committed together with any tool, carriage, wagon, cart or other vehicle or thing used in committing any such offence, shall be liable to confiscation;
(7) A person convicted for offences under sub-section (1) (a), shall deliver possession of the land to the prescribed Forest Officer, and also remove any structure or crop existing on the said land, within such period but not exceeding thirty days, as the Court may fix in this behalf; and in case the convicted person fails to deliver possession of encroached forestland or to remove the structure or crop existing on the said land within the period specified by the Court, the convicted person;
a) may, by the order of the Court, be ejected from such land and any structure or crop raised by the convicted person may be removed, demolished or confiscated by force as may be necessary and in such manner as may be prescribed;
(b) shall also be liable to a fine which may extend to three hundred rupees per acre per day but shall not be less than one hundred rupees per acre per day, after the period fixed by the Court has expired and the convicted person still remains in possession or occupation of the encroached forestland and fails to demolish or remove the structure or crop on such land; and
(c) the expenditure incurred by Government on removal of encroachment or demolishing of structure and crop, involved in the offence, shall be recovered as arrears of land revenue under The Sindh Land Revenue Act, 1967; or in case of default shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to six months but shall not be less than one month.
34. Nothing in this Chapter to prohibit acts done in certain cases. ― (1) Nothing in this chapter shall be deemed to prohibit any act done with the permission in writing of the Forest Officer, or in accordance with rules made under section 32, or except as regards any portion of a forest closed under section 30, or as regards any rights the exercise of which has been suspended under section 33, in the exercise of any right recorded under section 29.
(2) Government shall not declare or notify a protected forest or part thereof as being no longer protected nor allow change in land use of a protected forest except being inevitable and for the purposes of a public interest project of strategic importance, Government shall -
(a) constitute a committee comprising of natural resource management experts, forest and revenue officers one representative of civil society and international environmental group to evaluate the proposal and submit recommendations;
(b) proceed further in view of committee’s recommendation s being in affirmative and declare it as no longer protected forest;
(c) provide equal to or bigger than the said land in a compact form, notify it as protected forest and enter it in revenue record as forest land.
(3) Exchange of protected forestland is prohibited and shall not be allowed by the government to any private person, companies, government and non-government organizations for any purpose, other than that of specified in sub-section (2) above.
CHAPTER V OF THE CONTROL OVER FORESTS AND LANDS NOT BEING THE PROPERTY OF GOVERNMENT
35. Protection of forests for special purposes,― (1) Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, regulate or prohibit in any forest or waste-land:–
(a) the breaking up or clearing of land for cultivation;
(b) the pasturing of cattle; or
(c) the firing or clearing of the vegetation;
when such regulation or prohibition appears necessary for any of the following purposes:-
(i) the protection against storms, winds, rolling stones, floods and avalanches;
(ii) the preservation of the soil on the ridges and slopes and in the valleys of hilly tracts, the prevention of land-slips or of the formation of ravines and torrents, or the protection of land against erosion, or the deposit thereon of sand, stones or gravel;
(iii) the maintenance of a water-supply in springs, rivers and tanks;
(iv) the protection of roads, bridges, railways and other lines of communication;
(v) the preservation of the public health.
(2) Government may, for any such purpose, construct at its own expense, in or upon any forest or waste-land, such work as it thinks fit.
(3) No notification shall be made under sub-section (1) nor shall any work be begun under sub-section (2), until after the issue of a notice to the owner of such forest or land calling on him to show cause, within a reasonable period to be specified in such notice, why such notification should not be made or work constructed, as the case may be, and until his objections, if any, and any evidence he may produce in support of the same, have been heard by an officer duly appointed in that behalf and have been considered by Government.
36. Power to assume management of forests. ― (1) In case of neglect of, or willful disobedience to, any regulation or prohibition under section 35, or if the purposes of any work to be constructed under that section so require, Government may, after notice in writing to the owner of such forest or land and after considering his objections, if any, place the same under the control of a Forest-Officer, and may declare that all or any of the provisions of this Act relating to reserved forests shall apply to such forest or land.
(2) The net profits, if any, arising from the management of such forest or land shall be paid to the said owner.
36 A. Power to deal unclassed Forest. – (1) Government may, by notification -
(a) declare existing unclassed forest, resumed land, waste land controlled and managed by Department, not being a reserved forest or protected forest, as protected forest or reserved forest;
(b) declare any state waste land as unclassed forest and transfer its management to the Department for establishment of forest;
(c) direct and notify that all or any provisions of this Act relating to a reserved forest or protected forest, shall apply to an unclassed forest;
37. Expropriation of forests in certain cases. ― (1) In any case under this Chapter in which Government considers that, in lieu of placing the forest or land under the control of a Forest-Officer, the same should be acquired for public purposes, Government may proceed to acquire it in the manner provided by the Land Acquisition Act, 1894.
(2) The owner of any forest or land comprised in any notification under section 35 may, at any time not less than three or more than twelve years from the date thereof, require that such forest or land shall be acquired for public purposes, and Government shall acquire such forest or land accordingly.
38. Protection of forests at request of owners.― (1) The owner of any land or, if there is more than one owner thereof, the owners of shares therein amounting in the aggregate to at least two-thirds thereof, may, with a view to the formation / development or conservation and protection of forests thereon, represent in writing to the Collector or Forest Officer their desire:–
(a) that such land may be managed on their behalf by the Forest Officer on such terms as may be mutually agreed upon; or
(b) that all or any of the provisions of this Act may be applied to such land.
(2) In either case, Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, apply to such land such provisions of this Act, as it thinks suitable to the circumstances thereof and as may be desired by the applicants. CHAPTER VI OF THE DUTY ON TIMBER AND OTHER FOREST-PRODUCE 39. Power to impose duty on timber and other forest-produce. ― (1) Government may levy a duty in such manner, at such places and at such rates as it may declare by notification in the official Gazette on all timber or other forest produce:-
(a) which is produced in Pakistan, and in respect of which Government has any right;
(b) which is brought from any place outside Pakistan; or is transported from or to any place within Pakistan.
(2) In every case in which such duty is directed to be levied ad valorem, Government may fix by like notification the value on which such duty shall be assessed.
(3) All duties on timber or other forest produce which, at the time when this Act comes into force, are levied by Government, shall be deemed to be and to have been duly levied under the provisions of this Act.
40. Limit not to apply to purchase-money or royalty. ― Noting in this Chapter shall be deemed to limit the amount, if any, chargeable as purchase-money or royalty on any timber or other forest produce, although the same is levied on such timber or produce while in transit, in the same manner as duty is levied.
CHAPTER VII OF THE CONTROL OF TRADE, POSSESSION AND TRANSIT OF TIMBER AND OTHER FOREST-PRODUCE IN TRANSIT
41. Power to make rules to regulate trade and transit of forest-produce. ― (1) The control of all rivers and their banks as regards the floating of timber, as well as the control of all timber and other forest produce in transit by land or water, is vested in Government, and it may make rules to regulate the trade and transit of all timber and other forest-produce, including forest carbon.
(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may:–
(a) prescribe the routes by which alone timber or other forest produce may be traded, imported, exported or moved into, from or within the Province;
(b) prohibit the import or export or moving of such timber or other produce without a pass from an officer duly authorized to issue the same, or otherwise than in accordance with the conditions of such pass;
(c) provide for the issue, production and return of such passes and for the payment of fees thereof;
(d) provide for the stoppage, reporting, examination and marking of timber or other forest-produce in transit, in respect of which there is reason to believe that any money is payable to the Government on account of the payment of or on account of any duty, fee, royalty or charge due when for the purposes of this Act affix a mark;
(e) provide for establishment and regulation of depots to which such timber or other produce shall be taken by those incharge of it for examination, or for the payment of such money, or in order that such marks may be affixed to it; and the conditions under which such timber or other produce shall be brought to, stored at and removed from such depots;
(f) prohibit the closing up to obstructing of the channel or banks of any river used for the transit of timber or other forest produce, and the throwing of grass, brushwood, branches or leaves into any such river or any act which may cause such river to be closed or obstructed;
(g) provide for the prevention or removal of any obstruction of the channel or banks of any such river, and for recovering the cost of such prevention or removal from the person whose acts or negligence necessitated the same;
(h) prohibit absolutely or subject to conditions, within specified local limits of two kilometers radius, the establishment of sawpit, sawmill, charcoal kiln, timber, firewood depot, converting, cutting, burning, concealing or making of timber, altering or effacing of any mark on the same, or possession or carrying of marking hammers or other implements used for marking timber;
(i) regulate the use of property marks for timber, and the registration of such marks; prescribe the time for which such registration shall hold good; limit the number of such marks that may be registered by any one person, and provide for the levy of fee for such registration.
(j) No wood or wood product sale depot or a sawing unit shall be established, unless the same is registered with Forest Officer not below the rank of Sub-Divisional Forest Officer on payment of such fee and fulfilling terms and conditions as may be prescribed;
(k) Forest Officer not below the rank of Sub-Divisional Forest Officer, for reasons to be recorded in writing, may refuse to register a sale depot or cancel the registration of an existing sale depot or a sawing unit to ensure proper protection and management of the forest.
(3) Government may direct that any rule made under this section shall not apply to any specified class of timber or other forest produce or to any specified local area.
(4) Notwithstanding anything in section 41, Federal Government may make rules to prescribe the route by which alone timber or other forest produce may be imported, exported or moved into or from Pakistan across any customs frontier as defined by Government, and any rules made under section 41 shall have effect subject to the rules made under this section.
(5) Marketing of forest carbon and ecosystem services shall be done in a manner to ensure highest values from such trade in national or international market and by complying with the prescribed conditions, policies, standards and guidelines in this regard.
42. Penalty for breach of rules made under section 41.― (1) Government may, by such rules prescribe as penalties for the contravention thereof imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year but shall not be less than six months and or fine which may extend to one hundred thousand rupees, but not less than fifty thousand rupees or both.
(2) Such rules may provide that penalties which are double of those mentioned in sub-section (1) may be inflicted in cases where the offence is committed after sunset and before sunrise, or after preparation for resistance to lawful authority, or where the offender has been previously convicted of a like offence.
43. Government and Forest-Officers not liable for damage to forest-produce. ― Government shall not be responsible for any loss or damage which may occur in respect of any timber or other forest produce while at a depot established under a rule made under section 41, or while detained elsewhere, for the purposes of this Act; and no Forest Officer shall be responsible for any such loss or damage, unless he causes such loss or damage negligently, maliciously or fraudulently.
44. All persons bound to aid in case of accident at depot.― In case of any accident or emergency involving danger to any property at any such depot, every person employed at such depot, whether by Government or by any private person, shall render assistance to any Forest-Officer or Police-Officer demanding his aid in averting such danger or securing such property from damage or loss. CHAPTER VIII OF THE COLLECTION OF DRIFT AND STRANDED TIMBER
45. Certain kinds of timber to be deemed property of Government until title thereto proved, and may be collected accordingly.― (1) All timber found a drift, beached, stranded or sunk:-
all wood or timber bearing marks which have not been registered in accordance with the rules made under section 41, or on which the marks have been obliterated, altered or defaced by fire or otherwise; and in such areas as Government directs, all unmarked wood and timber, shall be deemed to be the property of Government, unless and until any person establishes his right and title thereto, as provided in this Chapter.
(2) Such timber may be collected by any Forest Officer or other person entitled to collect the same by virtue of any rule made under section 51, and may be brought to any depot which the Forest Officer may notify as a depot for the reception of drift timber.
(3) Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, exempt any class of timber from the provisions of this section.
46. Notice to claimants of drift timber.― Public notice shall from time to time be given by the Forest Officer of timber collected under section 45. Such notice shall contain a description of the timber, and shall require any person claiming the same to present to such officer, within a period not less than two months from the date of such notice, a written statement of such claim.
47. Procedure on claim preferred to such timber.– (1) When any such statement is presented as aforesaid, the Forest Officer may, after making such inquiry as he thinks fit, either reject the claim after recording his reasons for so doing, or deliver the timber to the claimant.
(2) If such timber is claimed by more than one person, the Forest Officer may either deliver the same to any of such persons whom he deems entitled thereto, or may refer the claimants to the Civil Courts, and retain the timber pending the receipt of an order from any such Court for its disposal.
(3) Any person whose claim has been rejected under this section may, within three months from the date of such rejection, institute a suit to recover possession of the timber claimed by him; but no person shall recover any compensation or costs against Government, or against any Forest Officer, on account of such rejection, or the detention or removal of any timber, or the delivery thereof to any other person under this section.
(4) No such timber shall be subject to process of any Civil, Criminal or Revenue Court until it has been delivered, or a suit has been brought, as provided in this section.
48. Disposal of unclaimed timber.– If no such statement is presented as aforesaid, or if the claimant omits to prefer his claim in the manner and within the period fixed by the notice issued under section 46, or on such claim having been so preferred by him and having been rejected, omits to institute a suit to recover possession of such timber within the further period fixed by section 47, the ownership of such timber shall vest in Government, or, when such timber has been delivered to another person under section 47, in such other person free from all encumbrances not created by him.
49. Government and its officers not liable for damage to such timber.– Government shall not be responsible for any loss or damage which may occur in respect of any timber collected under section 45, and no Forest Officer shall be responsible for any such loss or damage, unless he causes such loss or damage negligently, maliciously or fraudulently.
50. Payments to be made by claimant before timber is delivered to him.― No person shall be entitled to recover possession of any timber collected or delivered as aforesaid until he has paid to the Forest Officer or other person entitled to receive it such sum on account thereof as may be due under any rule made under section 51.
51. Power to make rules and prescribe penalties.― (1) Government may make rules to regulate the following matters, namely:-
(a) the salving, collection and disposal of all timber mentioned in section 45;
(b) the use and registration of boats and other vehicles used in salving and collecting timber;
(c) the amounts to be paid for salving, collecting, moving, storing or disposing of such timber; and
(d) the use and registration of hammers and other instruments to be used for marking such timber.
(2) If a person contravenes any rule made under this section, Government may prescribe, as penalties for the contravention of any rules made under this section, imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year but shall not be less than six months or fine which may extend to one hundred thousand rupees but shall not be less than fifty thousand rupees or with both.
CHAPTER IX PENALTIES AND PROCEDURE
52. Seizure of property liable to confiscation.― (1) When there is reason to believe that a forest offence has been committed in respect of any forest produce, such produce, together with all tools, boats, carts, cattle, mechanically propelled vehicle, machinery, equipment, weapon or any other article used in committing any such offence, may be seized by any Forest-Officer or Police-Officer.
(2) Every officer seizing any property under this section shall place on such property a mark indicating that the same has been so seized, and shall as soon as may be, make a report of such seizure to the District and Sessions Judge having jurisdiction to try the offence summarily under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 on account of which the seizure has been made:
Provided that, when the forest produce with respect to which such offence is committed, is the property of Government, and the offender is unknown, it shall be sufficient if the officer makes, as soon as may be, a report of the circumstances to his official superior.
53. Power to release property seized under section 52.― Any Forest Officer of a rank not inferior to that of a Range Forest Officer, who, or whose subordinate, has seized any tools, boats, carts, vehicles or cattle under section 52, may release the same on the execution by the owner thereof on a bond for the production of the property so released, if and when so required, before the Court having jurisdiction to try the offence on account of which the seizure has been made.
54. Procedure thereupon.― Upon the receipt of case papers, the Court shall, with all convenient despatch, take such measures as may be necessary for the arrest and trial of the offender and the disposal of the seized property according to law.
55. Forest produce, tools, etc., when liable to confiscation.― (1) All timber or forest produce which is not the property of Government and in respect of which a forest offence has been committed, and all tools, boats, carts, vehicles and cattle used in committing any forest offence, shall be liable to confiscation.
(2) Such confiscation may be in addition to any other punishment prescribed for such offence.
56. Disposal, on conclusion of trial for forest offence of produce in respect of which it was committed. ― When the trial of any forest offence is concluded, any forest produce in respect of which offence has been committed shall, if it is the property of Government or has been confiscated, be taken charge of by a Forest Officer; and, in any other case, may be disposed of in such manner as the Court may direct.
57. Procedure when offender not known, or cannot be found.― When the offender is not known or cannot be found, the Court may, if he finds that an offence has been committed, order the property in respect of which the offence has been committed to be confiscated and taken charge of by the Forest Officer, or to be made over to the person whom the Court deems to be entitled to the same:
Provided that no such order shall be made until the expiration of one month from the date of seizing such property, or without hearing the person, if any, claiming any right thereto, and the evidence, if any, which he may produce in support of his claim.
58. Procedure as to perishable property seized under section 52.― The Court may, notwithstanding anything hereinbefore contained, direct the sale of any property seized under section 52 and subject to speedy and natural decay, and may deal with the proceeds as it would have dealt with such property if it had not been sold.
59. Appeal from orders under section 55, section 56, or section 57.― The officer who made the seizure under section 52, or any of his official superiors, or any person claiming to be interested in the property so seized, may, within one month from the date of any order passed under section 55, section 56 or section 57, appeal therefrom to the Appellate Court to which orders made by such concerned Court are ordinarily appealable, and the order passed on such appeal shall be final.
60. Property when to vest in Government.― When an order for the confiscation of any property has been passed under section 55 or section 57, as the case may be, and the period limited by section 59 for an appeal from such order has elapsed, and no such appeal has been preferred, or when, on such an appeal being preferred, the Appellate Court confirms such order in respect of the whole or a portion of such property, such property or portion thereof, as the case may be, shall vest in Government free from all encumbrances.
61. Saving of power to release seized property.― Nothing hereinbefore contained shall be deemed to prevent any officer empowered in this behalf by Government from directing at any time the immediate release of any property seized under section 52.
62. Punishment for wrongful seizure.― Any Forest Officer or Police Officer who vexatiously and unnecessarily seizes any property on pretence of seizing property liable to confiscation under this Act, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or fine which may extend to fifty thousand rupees, or with both.
63. Penalty for counterfeiting or defacing marks on trees and timber and for altering boundary marks.― (1) Whoever, with intent to cause damage or injury to the public or to any person, or to cause wrongful gain as defined in the Pakistan Penal Code:-
(a) knowingly counterfeits upon any timber or standing tree a mark used by Forest Officers to indicate that such timber or tree is the property of Government or of some person, or that it may lawfully be cut or removed by some person; or
(b) alters, defaces or obliterates any such mark placed on a tree or on timber by or under the authority of a Forest Officer; or
(c) alters, moves, destroys or defaces any boundary mark as identified by the Survey of Pakistan along with GPS Coordinates of any forest, resumed land or waste-land to which the provisions of this Act are applied;
shall be cognizable and non-bailable offence and punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years but shall not be less than six months or with fine which may extend to five hundred fifty thousand rupees but shall not be less than two hundred thousand rupees or with both; provided that in addition to a fine, the offender shall also be liable to pay such compensation for damage done to the forest boundary, timber or other forest property marks as the Court may direct.
(2) Further, that double fine for above offences may be inflicted where the offence is committed after sunset and before sunrise or where the offender has been previously convicted of like offence.
64. Power to arrest without warrant.― (1) Any Forest Officer or Police Officer may without orders from a competent court and without a warrant, arrest any person against whom a reasonable suspicion exists of his having been concerned in any forest-offence punishable with imprisonment for one month or upwards.
(2) Every officer making an arrest under this section shall, without unnecessary delay and subject to the provisions of this Act as to release the arrested person on bond, take or send the person arrested before the Court having jurisdiction in the case, or to the officer in charge of the nearest police-station.
(3) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to authorize such arrest for any act is an offence under Chapter IV unless such act has been prohibited under clause (c) of section 30.
65. Power to release an arrested person on bond.― Any Forest Officer of a rank not inferior to that of a Range Forest Officer, who, or whose subordinate has arrested any person under the provisions of section-64, may release such person on his executing a bond to appear, if and when so required; before the court having jurisdiction in the case, or before the officer in charge of the nearest police-station.
66. Power to prevent commission of offence.― Every Forest Officer and Police-Officer shall prevent, and may interfere for the purpose of preventing, the commission of any forest-offence.
67. Power to try offences summarily.― Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code, offences mentioned in Section-26(1) (a to d), section-26(2)(b) (iii), section-33(1)(a), section-33(4)(c) and section-63(1)(c) of this Act shall be tried summarily by Court of District and Sessions Judge or the special forest court of the district as assigned by him, on receipt of forest offence papers along with criminal prosecution sanction issued by Forest Officer not below the rank of Sub-Divisional Forest Officer.
68. Power to compound offences.―
(1) The Forest Officer not below the rank of Range Forest Officer is empowered to compound offences and–
(a) accept from a person against whom a reasonable suspicious exists that he has committed any forest offence, other than an offence specified in section 26 (1) (a to d), section 33 (1) (a), section 62 or section 63, a sum of money which is not less than the value of loss to the property of the Government, as compensation for the offence;
(b) when any property has been seized, as liable to confiscation, to release the same on payment of the value thereof as estimated by such officer, or according to schedule of fine and compensation as issued by Administrative Department from time to time;
(c) when any property has been seized, not being the property of the Government, to release the property on payment or without payment of compensation, as the case may be.
(d) on the payment of such sum of money, or such value, or both, as the case may be, to such officer, the suspected person, if in custody, shall be discharged, the property, if any seized, shall be released, and no further proceedings shall be taken against such person or property.
(2) to sanction reward in forest cases.– (a) the forest officer not below the rank of Sub-Divisional Forest Officer is empowered to allow the sanction a reward to subordinate forest officer or official from the compensation recovered under section 68; which shall not exceed fifty percent of the amount realized.
(b) the Department may by issuing notification revise the rate of reward and schedule of fine, compensation and penalties from time to time and to be recovered thereof.
68-A Power to take cognizance and submission of offence papers before the competent court for prosecution of forest offences under this Act.―
(1) The Forest official from the rank of Forest Guard and above is conferred with the powers to take cognizance of forest offences mentioned in this Act–
(a) by issuing First Offence Report (FOR) against the offence committed in contravention of any section of this Act, and after completing enquiry, submit Forest offence papers, including FOR, enquiry report and musheernama, with forest officer not below the rank of Range Forest Officer. On receipt of forest offence papers and being satisfied with the finding of enquiry, the Range Forest Officer -
(b) shall recommend the case to Sub-Divisional Forest Officer or Divisional Forest Officer, as the case may be, for issue of criminal prosecution sanction and submit forest offence papers before the competent court for further trial;
(c) upon receipt of offence papers from forest officer not below the rank of Sub -Divisional Forest Officer, or from Police Officer; the Court of District and Sessions Judge or the special forest court of the district as assigned by him, shall in accordance with the provision of this Act, prosecute the case.
(d) the Public Prosecutor of the jurisdiction shall be bound to assist the forest officer/official in forest offence cases during trial to protect the interest of Government.
(e) government may hire the services of special prosecutor for important cases as and when needed.
(f) when any offence takes place at a time and a place that nobody could have witness, the onus of proof of not committing such offence shall lie on the accused.
69. Presumption that forest-produce belong to Government.― When in any proceedings taken under this Act, or in consequence of anything done under proceedings taken this Act, or in consequence of anything done under this Act, a question rises as to whether any forest produce is the property of the Government, such produce shall be presumed to be the property of the Government until the contrary is proved.
CHAPTER X CATTLE-TRESPASS 70. Cattle-trespass Act, 1871, to apply.― Cattle trespassing in a reserved forest or in any portion of a protected forest which has been lawfully closed to grazing shall be deemed to be cattle doing damage to a public plantation within the meaning of section 11 of the Cattle-Trespass Act, 1871, and may be sized and impounded as such by any Forest-officer or Police-officer.
71. Powers to alter fines fixed under that Act.― Government may, by notification, direct that in lieu of the fines fixed under section 12 of the Cattle-trespass Act, 1871 (I of 1871), the owner or occupant of the cattle, shall pay the fines for each head of cattle impounded under section 70 of this Act and such fine as it thinks fit, not exceeding the following, that is to say:-
For each buffalo or camel One thousand five hundred rupees
For each goat or kid Seven hundred fifty rupees
For each horse, mare, gelding, pony, colt, filly, mule, bull, bullock, cow or heifer, sheep, lamb Six hundred rupees
For each calf, ass, pig, ram, ewe three hundred rupees
CHAPTER XI FOREST OFFICERS
72. Government may invest Forest-officers with certain powers.–(1) Government may invest any Forest officer with all or any of the following powers, that is to say:-
power to enter upon any land and to survey, demarcate and make a map of the same;
power to enter any depot, sawing unit, sale depot or any premises, any enclosure, or any building other than a dwelling house, to make a search and seizure of timber or forest produce and arrest offender, or break /open the lock of any door, fixture or conveyance for the purpose of search and seizure of timber, any other forest produce or case property or arrest of offender.
the powers of a Civil Court to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of documents and material objects;
power to issue a search-warrant under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 (V of 1898); and
power to hold an inquiry / investigation into forest-offences, and in the course of such inquiry / investigation, to receive and record evidence / statement.
(2) Any evidence recorded under clause (d) of sub-section (1) shall be admissible in any subsequent trial before a competent court; provided that it has been taken in the presence of the accused person.
73. Forest officers deemed to be public servants.― All Forest officers shall be deemed to be public servants within the meaning of section 21 of the Pakistan Penal Code 1860 (Act XLV of 1860).
74. Indemnity for acts done in good faith.― No suit shall lie against any public servant for anything done by him in good faith under this Act.
75. Forest officers not to trade.― Except with the permission in writing of the Government, no Forest Officer shall, as principal or agent, trade in timber or other forest produce, or be or become interested in any lease of any forest or in any contract for working any forest, whether in or outside Pakistan.
CHAPTER XII SUBSIDIARY RULES 76.Additional powers to make rules.– (1)Government may make rules.―
(a) to prescribe and limit the powers and duties of any Forest-Officer under this Act;
(b) to regulate the rewards to be paid to officers and informers out of the proceeds of fines, and compensations under this Act;
(c) for the preservation, reproduction and disposal of trees and timber belonging to Government, but grown on lands belonging to or in the occupation of private persons;
(d) to provide for the compensation to be paid to the forest officers, officials, functionaries and helpers in case of death, injury or other physical and financial damages sustained by them in the course of duty.
(e) generally, to carry out the provisions of this Act.
77. Penalties for breach of rules.― If a person contravenes any rule made under this Act and for which no penalty is provided under the Act, the person shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months but shall not be less than one month or fine which may extend to fifty thousand rupees but shall not be less than ten thousand, or with both, in addition to such compensation for damage done to the forest produce or property as assessed by the forest officer or the court may direct to be paid.
78. Rules when to have force of law.― All rules made by Government under this Act shall be published in the official Gazette, and shall thereupon, so far as they are consistent with this Act, have effect as if enacted therein.
CHAPTER XIII MISCELLANEOUS 79. Persons bound to assist Forest officers and Police officers.― (1) Every person who exercises any right in a reserved, protected or unclassed forests, or who is permitted, to take any forest produce from, or to cut and remove timber or to pasture cattle in such forest, and every person who is employed by any such person in such forest, and;
every person in any village contiguous to such forest who is employed by Government, or who receives emoluments from Government for services to be performed to the community;
shall be bound to furnish without unnecessary delay to the nearest Forest Officer or Police officer any information he may possess respecting the commission of, or intention to commit, any forest offence, and shall forthwith take steps, whether so required by any Forest-Officer or Police-Officer or not :–
(a) to extinguish any forest fire in such forest of which he has knowledge or information;
(b) to prevent by any lawful means in his power any fire in the vicinity of such forest of which he has knowledge or information from spreading to such forest, and shall assist any Forest-Officer or Police-Officer demanding his aid –
(i) in preventing the commission in such forest of any forest-offence; and
(ii) when there is reason to believe that any such offence has been committed in such forest, in discovering and arresting the offender.
(2) Any person who, being bound so to do without lawful excuse (the burden of proving which shall lie upon such person) fails :–
(a) to furnish without unnecessary delay to the nearest Forest-Officer or Police-Officer any information required by sub-section (1);
(b) to take steps as required by sub-section (1) to extinguish any forest fire in a reserved or protected forest;
(c) to prevent, as required by sub-section (1), any fire in the vicinity of such forest from spreading to such forest; or
(d) to assist any Forest-Officer or Police-Officer demanding his aid in preventing the commission in such forest of any forest-offence, or, when there is reason to believe that any such offence has been committed in such forest, in discovering and arresting the offender;
shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months but shall not be less than one month or with fine which may extend to one hundred thousand rupees but shall not be less than twenty thousand rupees or with both.
80. Management of forests the joint property of Government and other persons.― (1) If Government and any person be jointly interested in any forest or waste land, or in the whole or any part of the produce thereof, Government may either :-
(a) undertake the management of such forest, wasteland or produce, accounting to such person for his interest in the same; or
(b) issue such regulations for the management of the forest, waste-land or produce by the person so jointly interested as it deems necessary for the management thereof and the interests of all parties therein.
(2) When Government undertakes under clause (a) of sub-section (1) the management of any forest, waste land or produce, it may, by notification in the official Gazette, declare that any of the provisions contained in Chapters II and IV shall apply to such forest, waste-land or produce, and thereupon such provisions shall apply accordingly.
80-A. Public private partnership for development of forests.― (1) Subject to any other law, the Government may invite proposals from the private sector for the development of a forest, forest land or wasteland.
(2) The Government may enter into public private partnership for the development, preservation and conservation of a forest.
(3) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the Government may permit any person to use a forest land or wasteland for:
(a) Increase in the productivity of the forest;
(b) Developing the forest park without disturbing the natural features of the forest;
(c) Developing a forest on a forest land or wasteland; or
(d) Developing forest based industry without disturbing the natural features of the forest.
(4) The Government shall not permit use of forest land or wasteland for:
(a) Construction of a permanent structure; or
(b) Change of land use for the purpose other than forest related activities; or (c) a housing project development of forest or
(5) Subject to any other law, the Government shall enter into a detailed contractual
Arrangement with any person in accordance with the provision of this section
(6) If, in the opinion of the Government, the person has violated any provision of this Act or the contractual arrangement, the Government may, in addition to any other penalty prescribed under this Act, recover possession of the forest land or wasteland from the person.
(7) Nothing in this section shall be construed to allow the Government or any person to permit or to do an act, which is prohibited or punishable under this Act."
81. Failure to perform service for which a share in produce of Government forest is enjoyed.― If any person be entitled to a share in the produce of any forest which is the property of Government or over which Government has proprietary rights or to any part of the forest produce of which Government is entitled, upon the condition of duly performing any service connected with such forest, such share shall be liable to confiscation in the event of the fact being established to the satisfaction of Government that such service is no longer so performed:
Provided that no such share shall be confiscated until the person entitled thereto, and the evidence, if any, which he may produce in proof of the due performance of such service, have been heard by an officer duly appointed in that behalf by Government.
82. Recovery of money due to Government.― All money payable to the Government under this Act, or under any rule made under this Act, or on account of the price of any forest produce, or of expenses incurred in the execution of this Act in respect of produce, may, if not paid when due, be recovered under the law for the time being in force as if it were an arrear of land revenue under The Sindh Land Revenue Act, 1967.
83. Lien on forest-produce for such money.― (1) When any such money is payable for or in respect of any forest produce, the amount thereof shall be deemed to be a first charge on such produce, and such produce may be taken possession of by a Forest Officer until such amount has been paid.
(2) If such amount is not paid when due, the Forest Officer may sell such produce by public auction, and the proceeds of the sale shall be applied first in discharging such amount.
(3) The surplus, if any, if not claimed within two months from the date of the sale by the person entitled thereto, shall be forfeited to Government.
84. Land required under this Act to be deemed to be needed for a public purpose under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894.― Whenever it appears to Government that any land is required for any of the purposes of this Act, such land shall be deemed to be needed for a public purpose within the meaning of section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894.
85. Recovery of penalties due under bond.― When any person, in accordance with any rule made there-under, binds himself by any bond or instrument to perform any duty or act, or covenants by any bond or instrument that he, or that he and his servants and agents will abstain from any act, the whole sum mentioned in such bond or instrument as the amount to be paid in case of a breach of the conditions thereof may, notwithstanding anything in section 74 of the Contract Act, 1872; be recovered from him in case of such breach as if it were an arrears of land revenue under The Sindh Land Revenue Act, 1967.
CHAPTER XIV ESTABLISHMENT AND MANAGEMENT OF TREES ON NON-FOREST LANDS 86. Establishment and Management of Trees on non-forest lands.- (1) The Government (Social Forestry Wing of Sindh Forest Department) may carryout afforestation, reforestation and maintenance activities on non-forestlands which may be the property of Government or over which Government has proprietary rights that specifically includes roadside, canal side and municipal lands, without taking the possession, proprietary rights or modifications of title of that land which shall remain with the respective custodian departments;
(a) provided further the provisions of Chapter IV, Section 29-33 of the Act shall apply ibid;
(2) The Government may in the prescribed manner promote growing of trees on non-forest, non-state lands or agricultural lands to increase tree cover for climate change mitigation & adaptation, in Sindh;
(3) When need be the Government may enforce / enact the provisions of THE SINDH COMPULSORY, GROWING AND MAINTAINING OF TREES BILL (Bill No. 9 of 1975) published in the Sindh Government Gazette, Karachi Wednesday, April, 2, 1975 as a whole or particular sections thereof.
CHAPTER XV CONSTITUTION OF THE SINDH FOREST FORCE 87. Constitution of the Sindh Forest Force. ― (1) The entire forest establishment under Government, excluding ministerial staff, for the purposes of this Act, shall deemed to be a Sindh Forest Force. Government may make rules to regulate the Sindh Forest Force establishment.
88. Establishment of check posts. ― The Department may, for the purpose of safeguard and checking the forest offences under this Act, establish check posts at suitable places.
CHAPTER XVI ESTABLISHMENT OF FOREST FUND 89. Establishment of Forest Fund.― A fund shall be established to be known as “Forest Fund” vested in the Department. The Fund shall be raised and administered in a manner as may be prescribed.
90. Sources of Fund.― (1) The fund established under section-88 shall consist of –
(a) single line annual grant by Government as it may determine;
(b) grants and funds received from the Federal, Provincial and Local Governments;
(c) grants, funds and donations received from the national and international organizations and donor agencies;
(d) grants from philanthropists, conservationists, nature lovers;
(e) grants received from private sector;
(f) sums realized from sale of carbon credits and carbon financing projects in national or international market;
(g) receipts from visitor fees and rental value of various facilities such as rest houses, transmission lines, pipelines, ecotourism activities in forest areas, and hunting fees;
(h) sums realized on account of charges from exploration of gas, oil, minerals and other relevant things within the forest in the prescribed proportion as the Government may prescribe;
(i) other sums realized from resource extraction in forest areas such as, soil, other minor and non-timber forest produce (NTFP) and sale of container plants.
(j) sums realized on account of fines, compensations and value of forest offences;
(k) any percentage of royalty from oil and gas reservoirs within forest areas, as may be prescribed by Government.
91. Management of Fund.― (1) The Fund shall be managed by a Fund Management Committee which shall be headed by the Administrative Secretary, Forest & Wildlife Department, Government of Sindh including the following members:-
(a) Representative of Finance Department, Government of Sindh,
(b) Representative of Planning and Development Department, Government of Sindh,
(c) Chief Conservators of Forests, Government of Sindh.
(2) The Fund Management Committee may meet bi-annually or on need basis.
(3) All money credited to the Fund shall be kept in a separate account as may be prescribed by the Fund Management Committee in line with government rules and policies.
(a) The Fund shall be non-lapsable.
(b) The accounts of the Fund vested in the Fund Management Committee shall be audited by the Auditor General of Pakistan or such external auditors as may be appointed by the Management Committee for observing transparency.
(c) The funds shall be managed and utilized in a manner as may be prescribed by the Fund Management Committee.
92. Uses of Fund.―(1) The Fund shall inter alia be utilized for :-
(a) Development and management of Forests, Forest Ecosystems, Forest Protected Areas, forest nurseries and other conservancy and works;
(b) preparation of forest management plans;
(c) forest surveys and forest inventories;
(d) hiring of consultant services/resource person for any specific purpose such as research studies, project development as may be approved by the Fund Management Committee;
(e) forestry extensions, conservation education and awareness and on-service capacity building of forest officials;
(f) meeting of exigencies like forest fire, floods, other natural or man- made disasters, calamities, degradation losses etc. in a manner as may be prescribed;
(g) incentives or rewards for forest officials and communities for outstanding contribution or help towards conservation and development of forests, detection and preventing forest offences as may be approved by the Fund Management Committee; and
(h) any other relevant activity as may be approved by the Fund Management Committee.
CHAPTER XVII ESTABLISHMENT OF FOREST PROTECTED AREAS
93. Forest protected areas.― (1) Government may designate any suitable forest area that fulfills the prescribed criteria of the protected areas management categories listed in Schedule (Annexed hereunder) as Forest Protected Area, by notification in the official Gazette, with set objectives of management.
(2) The Department shall -
(a) demarcate boundaries of the Forest Protected Area clearly in such a manner as deems appropriate;
(b) maintain an updated map with clear boundaries in the office of the respective Forest Officer; and
(c) develop, update and implement a management plan of such Forest Protected Area through participatory planning and management, especially involving local communities.
(3) The designated Forest Protected Area may be re-designated in another management category listed in Schedule-I, purely in the interest of enhanced forest biodiversity conservation.
(4) The Department shall not lease out the designated forestland falling within jurisdiction of Forest Protected Area for any purpose which contradicts its management objectives.
(5) The provision for access roads, construction of any building or developing any infrastructure and provision of any facilities and amenities for the local communities and visitors within or near a Forest Protected Area may be so made, as not to impair its conservation value or management objectives.
(6) In all Forest Protected Areas, no person shall:-
(a) introduce any exotic, invasive or alien species of flora or fauna or Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO).
(b) re-introduce any wild plant or animal species without a credible feasibility study and approval of the designated experts;
(c) carry out any act prohibited in a reserved forest.
(7) Any person who carries out any of the acts prohibited under sub-section (6) shall be punished with the same penalties as prescribed under sub-section (2) (b) of section 26.
(8) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to prohibit any act done with permission in writing of the forest officer or under any rule made by Government.
94. Biosphere Reserve.― Government may, by notification in the official gazette, declare any forest area to be a “biosphere reserve”, comprising of a core zone, a buffer zone and multiple-use zone, and manage it in the prescribed manner.
95. Co-management of forest protected areas.― (1) Government may declare any designated forest protected area as co-managed forest and assign any of its rights of management to any private sector entity or consortium, and may cancel such assignment; if such revocation is in the interest of Government.
(2) The situation and limits of such co-managed forest shall be specified, as nearly as possible, by well-known and permanent boundary pillars and proper map shall be prepared and maintained.
(3) The Department may, for the purpose of this section, make rules for regulating the management of such forests, prescribing the terms and conditions under which any such assignment is made.
(4) No assignment under sub-section (1) shall be cancelled or modified by the Department unless the partnering entity concerned has been given an opportunity of being heard. The authorized Forest Officer shall record his reasons for such cancellation.
96. Repeal and Saving. (1) The Forest Act, 1927, in its application to the Province of Sindh, is hereby repealed.
(2) Notwithstanding the repeal under sub-section (1), anything done, proceedings or action taken, rules or regulations made, notification or order issued there-under shall, so far as it is not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, be deemed to have been done, taken, made or issued, under this Act and shall have effect accordingly.
.png)
