37. Property, assets, rights, liabilities, obligations, etc.—(1) All such property and assets within the
existing Union territory of Himachal Pradesh as are held immediately before the appointed day by the
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Union for purposes of governance of that Union territory shall, on and from that day, pass to the State of
Himachal Pradesh, unless the purposes for which such property and assets are so held are Union
purposes:
Provided that the cash balances in the treasuries in the Union territory of Himachal Pradesh before the
appointed day shall, as from that day, vest in the State of Himachal Pradesh.
(2) All rights, liabilities and obligation (other than those relatable to, or in connection with, a Union
purpose), whether arising out of any contract or otherwise, which are, immediately before the appointed
day,—
(a) the rights, liabilities and obligations of the Central Government arising out of, or in
connection with, the governance of the Union territory of Himachal Pradesh; or
(b) the rights, liabilities and obligations of the Administrator of the existing Union territory of
Himachal Pradesh in his capacity as such, or of the Government of that Union territory,
shall, on and from the appointed day, be the rights, liabilities and obligations of the Government of the
State of Himachal Pradesh.
(3) The right to recover arrears of—
(a) any tax or duty being a tax or duty enumerated in the State List in the Seventh Schedule to the
Constitution, or
(b) any duty referred to in article 268, or
(c) any tax under the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 (74 of 1956),
which have fallen due in the existing Union territory of Himachal Pradesh shall pass to the State of
Himachal Pradesh.
(4) The provisions of this section shall not apply to or in relation to,—
(a) any benefit or burden of any assets, rights, liabilities or obligations of the Union under the
Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966 (31 of 1966) attributable to the transferred territories as defined in
the said Act;
(b) any institution, undertaking or project the expenditure in relation to which is immediately
before the appointed day met from out of the Consolidated Fund of India;
(c) any property which has been placed by the Union at the disposal of the Administration of the
existing Union territory of Himachal Pradesh subject to the condition that the ownership thereof will
continue to vest in the Union.
Explanation.—For the purposes of this section—
(a) “liability” includes liability in respect of any civil deposit, local fund deposit, charitable or
other endowment, provident fund account, pension or actionable wrong;
(b) “Union purposes” mean the purposes of Government relatable to any of the matters mentioned
in the Union List.
38. Special provision as to transfer of assets, rights, liabilities, etc., of Union in relation to
transferred territories under Act 31 of 1966.—(1) In this section, the expression “successor States” and
“transferred territories” have the meaning respectively assigned to them in the Punjab Reorganisation Act,
1966.
(2) The Central Government may, by order, transfer to the State of Himachal Pradesh the benefit or
burden of any assets rights, liabilities or obligations of the Union under the Punjab Reorganisation Act,
1966, in so far as such benefit or burden is, in the opinion of the Central Government, attributable to the
transferred territories.
(3) An order made under sub-section (2) may provide that the State of Himachal Pradesh shall be
successor State in relation to the transferred territories for all or any of the purposes of the Punjab
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Reorganisation Act, 1966, or confer or impose on the State of Himachal Pradesh rights and obligations
which correspond so far as may be to the rights and obligations conferred or imposed on the successor
States by or under that Act.
(4) Without prejudice to the provisions of section 49, the Central Government may, for the purpose of
giving effect to the provisions of this section, by order, direct that the provisions of Part VI, Part VII, Part
VIII and Part IX and connected provisions of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966, shall have effect
subject to such exceptions and modifications as may be specified in the order.