5. Appointment of Executive Authorities and their powers and functions.—(1) The State
Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, appoint a District Magistrate or a
Sub-Divisional Magistrate, as an Executive Authority to exercise jurisdiction within such area as may be
specified in the order and confer such powers and impose such duties on him, as may be necessary to
ensure that the provisions of this Act are properly carried out and the Executive Authority may specify the
officer or officers, subordinate to him, who shall exercise all or any of the powers, and perform all or any
of the duties, so conferred or imposed and the local limits within which such powers or duties shall be
carried out by the officer or officers so specified.
(2) The Executive Authority appointed under sub-section (1) and the officer or officers specified
under that sub-section shall, as far as practicable, try to rehabilitate and promote the welfare of the
persons who were engaged in or employed for as manual scavengers in any area in respect of which a
notification under sub-section (1) of section 3 has been issued by securing and protecting their economic
interests.
6. Power of State Government to make schemes.—(1) The State Government may, by notification,
make one or more schemes for regulating conversion of dry latrines into, or construction and maintenance
of, water-seal latrines, rehabilitation of the persons who were engaged in or employed for as manual
scavengers in any area in respect of which a notification under sub-section (1) of section 3 has been
issued in gainful employment and administration of such schemes and different schemes may be made in
relation to different areas and for different purposes of this Act:
Provided that no such scheme as involving financial assistance from the HUDCO shall be made
without consulting it.
(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such schemes may
provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:—
(a) time-bound phased programme for the conversion of dry latrines into water-seal latrines;
(b) provision of technical or financial assistance for new or alternate low cost sanitation to local
bodies or other agencies;
(c) construction and maintenance of community latrines and regulation of their use on pay and
use basis;
(d) construction and maintenance of shared latrines in slum areas or for the benefit of socially and
economically backward classes of citizens;
(e) registration of manual scavengers and their rehabilitation;
(f) specification and standards of water-seal latrines;
(g) procedure for conversion of dry latrines into water-seal latrines;
(h) licensing for collection of fees in respect of community latrines or shared latrines.
7. Power of State Government to issue directions.—Notwithstanding anything contained in any
other law but subject to the other provisions of this Act, the State Government may, in the exercise of its
powers and performance of its functions under this Act, issue directions in writing to any person, officer
or local or other authority and such person, officer or a local or other authority shall be bound to comply
with such directions.
8. Executive Authorities, inspectors, officers and other employees of such authorities to be
public servants.—All Executive Authorities, all officers and other employees of such authorities
including the officers authorised under sub-section (1) of section 5, all inspectors appointed under
sub-section (1) of section 9 and all officers and other employees authorised to execute a scheme or order
made under this Act, when acting or purporting to act in pursuance of any provisions of this Act or the
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rules or schemes made or orders or directions issued thereunder, shall be deemed to be public servants
within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).
9. Appointment of inspectors and their powers of entry and inspection.—(1) The State
Government may, by notification, appoint such persons as it may think fit to be inspectors for the
purposes of this Act, and define the local limits within which they shall exercise their powers under this
Act.
(2) Every inspector within the local limits of jurisdiction of an Executive Authority shall be
subordinate to such authority.
(3) Subject to any rules made in this behalf by the State Government, an inspector may, within the
local limits of his jurisdiction, enter, at all reasonable times, with such assistance as he considers
necessary, any place for the purpose of—
(a) performing any of the functions of the Executive Authority entrusted to him;
(b) determining whether and if so in what manner, any such functions are to be performed or
whether any provisions of this Act or the rules, orders or schemes made thereunder or any notice,
order, direction or authorisation served, made, given or granted under this Act is being or has been
complied with;
(c) examining and testing any latrine or for conducting an inspection of any building in which he
has reason to believe that an offence under this Act or the rules, orders or schemes made thereunder
has been or is being or is about to be committed and to prevent or mitigate environmental pollution.
10. Power of Executive Authority to prevent environmental pollution in certain cases.—(1) On
receipt of information with respect to the fact or apprehension of any occurrence of contravention of the
provisions of section 3, whether through intimation by some person or on a report of the inspector or
otherwise, the Executive Authority shall, as early as practicable, besides taking any other action under this
Act, direct the owner or occupier of the premises to take such remedial measures, as may be necessary,
within such reasonable time as may be specified therein and in case the owner or occupier, as the case
may be, fails to comply with such directions, cause such remedial measures to be taken as are necessary
to prevent or mitigate the environmental pollution at the cost of such owner or occupier of the premises.
(2) The expenses, if any, incurred by the Executive Authority with respect to the remedial measures
referred to in sub-section (1), together with interest at such rate as the State Government may specify
from the date when a demand for the expenses is made until it is paid, may be recovered by such authority
or agency from the person concerned as arrears of land revenue or of public demand.
11. Duty of HUDCO to extend financial assistance in certain cases.—(1) Notwithstanding
anything contained in its Memorandum of Association or Articles of Association or schemes for the grant
of loans for housing and urban development, it shall be the duty of HUDCO to extend, in suitable cases,
financial assistance for the implementation of such schemes for the construction of water-seal latrines as
may be made under section 6.
(2) The financial assistance referred to in sub-section (1) may be extended by HUDCO on such terms
and conditions (including on easy and concessional rates of interest) and in such manner as it may think
fit in each case or class of cases.
12. Power to levy fee.—Any order or scheme which the State Government is empowered to make
under this Act may, notwithstanding the absence of any express provision to that effect, provide for levy
of fees in respect of—
(a) community latrines constructed under a scheme on pay and use basis; or
(b) shared latrines constructed under a scheme; or
(c) supply of copies of documents or orders or extracts thereof; or
(d) licensing of contractors for construction of water-seal latrines; or
(e) any other purpose or matter involving rendering of service by any officer, committee or
authority under this Act or any rule, direction, order or scheme made thereunder:
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Provided that the State Government may, if it considers necessary so to do, in the public interest, by
general or special order published in the Official Gazette, grant exemption on such grounds as it deems fit
from the payment of any such fee either in part or in full.
13. Constitution of committees.—(1) The Central Government may, by notification, constitute—
(a) one or more Project Committees for appraising of the schemes for the construction of waterseal latrines in the country;
(b) one or more Monitoring Committees to monitor the progress of such schemes;
(c) such other committees for such purposes of the Act and with such names as the Central
Government may deem fit.
(2) The composition of the committees constituted by the Central Government, the powers and
functions thereof, the terms and conditions of appointment of the members of such committees and other
matters connected therewith shall be such as the Central Government may prescribe.
(3) The members of the committees under sub-section (1) shall be paid such fees and allowances for
attending the meetings as may be prescribed.
(4) The State Government may, by notification, constitute—
(a) one or more State Co-ordination Committees for coordinating and monitoring of the
programmes for the construction of water-seal latrines in the State and rehabilitation of the persons
who were engaged in or employed for as manual scavengers in any area in respect of which a
notification under sub-section (1) of section 3 has been issued;
(b) such other committees for such purpose of the Act and with such names as the State
Government may deem fit.
(5) The composition of the committees constituted by the State Government the powers and functions
thereof, the terms and conditions of the members of such committees and other matters connected
therewith shall be such as the State Government may prescribe.
(6) The members of the committees under sub-section (4) shall be paid such fees and allowances for
attending the meetings as may be prescribed.