Section 34. (1) Whoever obstructs the Chief Inspector, an Inspector or any person authorised under section 7 in

CHAPTER VIII. 34. (1) Whoever obstructs the Chief Inspector, an Inspector or any person authorised under section 7 in the discharge of his duties under this Act, or refuses or wilfully neglects to afford the Chief Inspector, an Inspector or such person any reasonable facility for making any entry, inspection, examination or inquiry authorised by or under this Act in relation to any, mine, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which m'ay extend to three months, or with fine which may extiend to five hundred rupees, or with both. Obstruction. `(2)` Whoever refuses to produce on the demand of the Chief Lnspector or Inspector any registers or other documents kept in pursuance of this Act, or prevents or attempts to prevent or does anything which he has reason to believe to be likely to prevent, any person from appearing before or being examined by an inspecting officer acting in pursuance of his duties under this Act, shall be punishable with fine which may extend to three hundred rupees. (a) countcirfeits, or knowingly makes a false statement in, any certificate, or any official copy of a certificate, granted under this Act, or (b) knowingly uses as true any such counterfeit or false certificate, or (6) makes . . . . I OF `1923.1` Inda'an Mines. . ! . I i (c) makes or produces or uses any fals'e declaration, statement or evidence knowing the same to be false, for the purpose of obtaining for himself or for any. other person a certificate, or the renewal of a certificate, under this Act, or any employment in a mine, or (d) falsifies any plan or register or record the maintenance of which is required by or under this Act, or (e) makes, gives or delivers any plan, return, notice, record or report containing a statement, Bdtry or detail which is not to the best of his knowledge or beli'ef true, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three months, or with fine whdch may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both. 36. Any person who, without reasonable excuse omission to the burden of proving which shall lie upon him, omits zFh p 1 ~ to make or furnish in the prescribed form or manner or at or within the prescribed time any plan, return, notice, register, record or report required by or under this Act to be made or furnished shall he punishable with fine which may extend to two hundred ru.pees. 37. Whoever, save as permitted by section 25, contravenes any provision o:f this A.ct or of any regulation, rule orsbye-law or of any order made there- ing under prohibiting, restricting or regulating the employmbn't or presence of persons in or about a- mine shall be punishable with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees. |OF|1923.1|Inda'an|Inda'anMines.| |---|---|---|---| 38. Whoever, in contravention of the provisions ~ o t i c e o of section 20, fails to give notice of any accidental accidents occurrence shall, if the occurrence results in serious bodily injury, be punishable with fine which may extend Fo five hundred rupees, or, if the occurrence results in loss of lif-e, be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to three months or with fine which `a` B i ,- ! Indian Min'es. which may extend to five hundred rup'ees, or with both. ' 39. Whoever contravenes any provision of this Act or of any regulation, rule or bye-law or of any order made thereunder for the contravention of which no p,enalty is hereinbefore provided shall be punishable with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees, and, in the case of a continuing contravention, with a further fine which may extend to one hundred rupees for 'every day on which the offender is proved to have persisted in the contraveiltion after the date of the first conviction. of orders. tion of law Contraven40. (11) Notwithsta.nding anything hereinbefore with danger- contained, whoever contrav'enes any provision of this ous results. ,4ct or of anv regnlntion, rule or bye-law or of any order made thereunder, shall be punishable, if such col~travention results in loss of life, with imprisonment which inay extend to one year, or with fine which may extend to two thousand rupees, or with both; or, if such contravention results in serious bodily injury, with imprisonment which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees, or with both ; or, if such contrav'ention otherwise causes injury or danger to workers or other persons in or about the mine, with imprisonment which may extend to one month, or with fine which may extend to fi~fe hundred rupees, or with both. , (2) Where a person having been convicted under . , this section is again convicted thereunder, he shall be punisha.ble with double the punishment provided by sub-section (I). (3) Any Court imposing, or confirming in appeal, revision or otherwise, a sentence of fine passed under this section may, when passing judgment, order the whole or any part of the fine recovered to be paid as compensation to the person injured, or, in thc case of his death, to his legal representactive : Provided that,, if the fine is imposed in a case which is subject to appeal, no such payment shall be `24` ||GF1923.]<br>Indian_&fines._|I| |---|---|---| ||be made before the period allowed for presenting the|1<br>I| ||appeal has elapsed, or, if an appeal has been pres'ent-|| ||ed, before the decision of the appeal.|| ||41.Noprosecution shall be instituted against any<br>owner, agent or manager for any offence under this.,,&<br>,,<br>Act except at the instance of the Chief Inspector orman&geL|| ||of the District Magistrate or of an Inspector autho-|| ||rised in this behalf by general or special order in|| ||writing by the Ch?ef Inspector.|| ||42.No Court shall take cognizance of any offenceLimit<br>under this Act unless complaint thereof has beenprose|| ||made within six months of the date on which the|| ||offence is alleged to have been committed.|| ||48.No Court inferior to that ofaPresidency cogniza<br>Magistrate or Magistrate of the first class shall try|| ||any offence under this Act which is alleged to have|| ||been committed by any owner, agent or manager ofa|| ||mine or any offence which is by this Act made punish-|| ||able with imprisonment.|| ||44._(1)_If the Court trying any case instituted at|| ||the instance of the Chief Inspector or of the District|| ||Magistrate or of an Inspector under this Act isof|| ||opinion that the case is one which should, in lieu ofproBeauti|| ||aprosecution, be referred to a Mining Board orsinoert|| ||Committee,itmay stay the criminal proceedings,|| ||and report the matter to the Local Government with|| ||aview to such reference being made.|| |,|,<br>(2)On receipt ofareport under sub-section(I),|| ||the Local Government may refer the case to a ~ i n ' i n ~|| ||Board oraCommittee, or mav direct the Court to|| ||proceed with the trial.|| ||CHAPTERIX.|| ||45.If any question arises as to whether anyDeoisiono<br>excavation or working isamine within the meaninggiEa<br>of this Act, the Local Government may decide themineisunder|| ||question,|| Indian Mines. `[ACT` IV question, and a certificate signed by a Secretary to the Local Government shall be conclusive on the point.