HIMACHAL
PRADESH PUBLIC SERVICES GUARANTEE ACT, 2011 THE HIMACHAL PRADESH PUBLIC SERVICES GUARANTEE ACT, 2011 [Act No. 34 of 2011] An Act to provide for the delivery of services to the people of
the State of Himachal Pradesh within the stipulated time limit and for the
matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. BE it enacted by the
Legislative Assembly of Himachal Pradesh in the Sixty-second Year of the
Republic of India as follows:-- (1)
This Act may be called the Himachal Pradesh Public Services
Guarantee Act, 2011. (2)
It shall extend to the whole of the State of Himachal Pradesh. (3)
It shall come into force on such date as the State Government may,
by notification published in the Official Gazette, appoint In this Act, unless the
context otherwise requires,-- (a)
"designated officer" means an officer notified as such
for providing the services under section 3; (b)
"eligible person" means person who is eligible for the
notified services; (c)
"first appellate authority" means an officer who is
notified as such under section 3; (d)
"notification" means a notification published in the
Official Gazette; (e)
"Official Gazette" means the Rajpatra, Himachal Pradesh; (f)
"prescribed" means prescribed by the rules made under
this Act; (g)
"right to service" means right to obtain the service
within the stipulated time limit under section 4; (h)
"service" or "public service" means any
service notified under section 3; (i)
"second appellate authority" means the State Information
Commission notified as such under section 3; (j)
"State Government" means the Government of Himachal
Pradesh; (k)
"stipulated time limit" means maximum time to the
service by the designated officer or to decide the appeal by the appellate
authorities as notified under section 3; and (l)
"State Information Commission" means the State
Information Commission constituted under sub-section (1) of section 15 of the
Right to Information Act, 2005 (22 of 2001). The State Government may,
from time to time, notify the services, designated officers, first appellate
authority, second appellate authority and stipulated time limits for the
purpose of this Act. The designated officer
shall provide the service notified under section 3 to the person eligible to
obtain the service, within the stipulated time limit. (1)
Stipulated time limit shall start from the date of receipt of
application for notified service by the designated officer or the person
subordinate to him authorized to receive such applications and such application
shall be duly acknowledged by him. (2)
The designated officer on receipt of an application under
sub-section (1) shall, within the stipulated time limit, either provide service
or reject the application and in case of rejection of application, shall record
the reasons in writing and intimate to the applicant. (3)
Where a request has been rejected under sub-section (2), the
designated officer, shall communicate to the person making the request,-- (i)
the reasons for such rejection; (ii)
the period within which an appeal against such rejection may be
preferred; and (iii)
the particulars of the appellate authority. (4)
?If the designated officer
does not comply with sub-section (1), then the applicant aggrieved from such
non-compliance may appeal to the first appellate authority. (1) Any
person, whose application is rejected under sub-section (2) of section 5 or who
is not provided the service within the stipulated time limit, may file an
appeal to the first appellate authority within thirty days from the date of
rejection of application or the expiry of the stipulated time limit, as the
case may be: Provided that the first
appellate authority may admit the appeal after the expiry of the period of
thirty days if he is satisfied that the appellant was prevented by sufficient
cause from filing the appeal in time. (2)
The first appellate authority may order the designated officer to
provide the service within the specified period or may reject the appeal. (3)
An appeal under sub-section (1) shall be disposed of within thirty
days of the receipt of the appeal or within such extended period not exceeding
a total period of forty-five days from the date of filling thereof, as the case
may be, for reasons to be recorded in writing. (4)
?If the designated officer
does not comply with the order of providing the service under sub-section (2),
then the applicant aggrieved from such non-compliance may file a second appeal
to the second appellate authority. (1) A second
appeal against the decision under sub- section (2) of section 6 shall lie
within sixty days from the date of decision to the second appellate authority: Provided that the second
appellate authority may admit the appeal after the expiry of the period of
sixty days, if he is satisfied that the appellant was prevented by sufficient
cause from filing the appeal in time. (2) The
second appellate authority may order the designated officer to provide the
service within such period as he may specify or may reject the appeal: Provided that in addition
to order to provide service, he may impose penalty under section 8. (3)
?The first appellate authority
and the second appellate authority shall, while conducting proceedings under
this section have the same powers as are vested in a civil court while trying a
suit under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (05 of 1908). (4)
In any appeal proceedings, the onus to prove that denial of a
request was justified shall be on the designated officer, who denied the
request or failed to provide the services within stipulated time limit (1) Where the
second appellate authority is of the opinion that the designated officer has
failed to provide service or has caused delay in providing such service without
sufficient and reasonable cause, then he may impose a lump sum penalty which
shall not be less than one thousand rupees but not more than five thousand
rupees: Provided that the
designated officer shall be given a reasonable opportunity of being heard
before any order of penalty is passed against him (2) The
second appellate authority may order to give any amount as compensation to the
appellant from out of the penalty imposed under this section, but the amount of
such compensation shall not exceed the amount of penalty imposed: Provided that any penalty
imposed under this section on the designated officer for delay in providing the
service or refusal to provide service shall be borne by such officer in
personal capacity but not as a functionary of the State Government unless the
second appellate authority directs otherwise: Provided further that the
second appellate authority may, after hearing the designated officer, apportion
the amount of penalty amongst designated officer and any other officer(s) as
may be found to have contributed to such denial or delay in providing the
service. (3) ?If the second appellate authority is satisfied
that the designated officer has failed to discharge the duties under this Act,
without sufficient and reasonable cause, then it may also recommend to the
appointing or disciplinary authority of the designated officer that
disciplinary action under the applicable service rules be also initiated
against such officer. No suit, prosecution or
other legal proceedings shall lie against any person for anything which is in
good faith done or intended to be done under this Act or the rules made
thereunder. Save as otherwise expressly
provided in this Act, every order made by designated officer, first appellate
authority or second appellate authority shall not be called in question by any
court or before any officer or authority. (1)
The State Government may, by notification published in the
Official Gazette, make rules to carry out the provisions of this Act. (2)
Every rule made under this Act, shall be laid, as soon as may be
after it is made, before the State Legislative Assembly, while it is in session
for a total period of ten days which may be comprised in one session or in two
or more successive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session, in which
it is so laid or successive sessions aforesaid, the Legislative Assembly agrees
in making any modification in the rule or agrees that the rule should not be
made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of
no effect, as the case may be, so, however, that any such modification or
annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously
done under that rule. If any difficulty arises in
giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the State Government may by order,
not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, remove the difficulty: Provided that no such order
shall be made after the expiry of a period of two years from the date of
commencement of this Act
Preamble - HIMACHAL PRADESH PUBLIC SERVICES GUARANTEE ACT, 2011PREAMBLE