Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority Act, 1985

Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority Act, 1985

Act No. 2 of 1986

[8th January, 1986]

An Act to provide for the establishment of an Authority for the development and promotion of exports of certain agricultural and processed food products and for matters connected therewith

Be it enacted by Parliament in the Thirty-sixth Year of the Republic of India as follows:—

Chapter I

PRELIMINARY

1. Short title, extent and commencement.

1. Short title, extent and commencement.—(1) This Act may be called the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority Act, 1985.

(2) It extends to the whole of India.

(3) It shall come into force on such date[i] as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint, and different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act.

2. Definitions.

2. Definitions.— In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—

(a) “Authority” means the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority established under Section 4;

(b) “Chairman” means the Chairman of the Authority;

(c) “export” means taking out of India by land, sea or air;

(d) “exporter” means a person registered as an exporter of Scheduled products under Section 12;

(e) “member” means a member of the Authority and includes the Chairman;

(f) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act;

(g) “processing” in relation to [ii][Scheduled products or, as the case may be, Special products] includes the process of preservation of such products such as canning, freezing, drying, salting, smoking, peeling or filleting and any other method of processing which the Authority may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify in this behalf;

(h) “regulations” means regulations made under this Act;

(i) “Scheduled product” means any of the agricultural or processed food products included in [iii][the First Schedule].

[iv][(j) “Special product” means any of the agricultural or processed food products included in the Second Schedule.]

3. Power to amend the Schedule.

[v][3. Power to amend the Schedule.— The Central Government may, having regard to the objects to this Act, and if it considers necessary or expedient so to do, by notification in the Official Gazette, and to, or, as the case may be, omit from, the First Schedule or the Second Schedule any agricultural or processed food product and on such addition, or as the case may be, omission, such product shall be, or shall cease to be, a Schedule product or special product as the case may be.]

Chapter II

AGRICULTURAL AND PROCESSED FOOD PRODUCTS EXPORT DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY

 

Other Contents of Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority Act, 1985

Sections 1 to 11 Sections 12 to 35 and Schedules

 

4. Establishment and constitution of the Authority.

4. Establishment and constitution of the Authority.—(1) With effect from such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint in this behalf, there shall be established for the purposes of this Act, an Authority to be called the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority.

(2) The Authority shall be a body corporate by the name aforesaid, having perpetual succession and a common seal, with power to acquire, hold and dispose of property, both movable and immovable, and to contract, and shall by the said name sue and be sued.

(3) The head office of the Authority shall be at Delhi and the Authority may, with the previous approval of the Central Government, establish offices or agencies at other places in or outside India.

(4) The Authority shall consist of the following members, namely:—

(a) a Chairman, to be appointed by the Central Government;

(b) the Agricultural Marketing Adviser to the Government of India, ex officio;

(c) one member to be appointed by the Central Government to represent the Planning Commission;

(d) three members of Parliament of whom two shall be elected by the House of the People and one by the Council of States;

(e) eight members to be appointed by the Central Government to represent, respectively, the Ministries of the Central Government dealing with—

(i) agriculture and rural development;

(ii) commerce;

(iii) finance;

(iv) industry;

(v) food;

(vi) civil supplies;

(vii) civil aviation;

(viii) shipping and transport;

(f) five members to be appointed by the Central Government by rotation in the alphabetical order to represent the States and the Union Territories:

Provided that an appointment under this clause shall be made on the recommendation of the Government of the State, or as the case may be, the Union Territory concerned;

(g) seven members to be appointed by the Central Government to represent,—

(i) the Indian Council of Agricultural Research;

(ii) the National Horticulture Board;

(iii) the National Agricultural Co-operative Marketing Federation;

(iv) the Central Food Technological Research Institute;

(v) the Indian Institute of Packaging;

(vi) the Spices Export Promotion Council; and

(vii) the Cashewnut Export Promotion Council;

(h) twelve members to be appointed by the Central Government to represent,—

(i) fruit and vegetable products industries;

(ii) meat, poultry and dairy products industries;

[vi][(iii) other Scheduled products or Special products industries];

(iv) packaging industry:

Provided that the number of members appointed to represent any of the groups of industries specified in sub-clauses (i) to (iii) or the industry specified in sub-clause (iv) shall in no case be less than two;

(i) two members to be appointed by the Central Government from amongst specialists and scientists in the field of agriculture, economics and marketing of Scheduled products.

(5) The term of office of the members, other than the member referred to in clause (b) of sub-section (4) and the manner of filling vacancies among, and the procedure to be followed in the discharge of their functions by, the members shall be such as may be prescribed.

(6) Any officer of the Central Government, not being a member of the Authority, when deputed by that Government in this behalf, shall have the right to attend meetings of the Authority and take part in the proceedings thereof but shall not be entitled to vote.

(7) No act or proceeding of the Authority or any committee appointed by it under Section 9 shall be invalid merely by reason of—

(a) any vacancy in, or any defect in the constitution of, the Authority or such committee; or

(b) any defect in the appointment of a person acting as a member of the Authority or such committee; or

(c) any irregularity in the procedure of the Authority or such committee not affecting the merits of the case.

(8) The Authority shall meet at such times and places and shall observe such rules of procedure in regard to the transaction of business at its meetings including the quorum at its meetings) as may be provided by the regulations.

5. Salary and Allowances and other conditions of service of Chairman and allowances of members.

5. Salary and Allowances and other conditions of service of Chairman and allowances of members.—(1) The Chairman shall be entitled to such salary and allowances and shall be subject to such conditions of service in respect of leave, pension, provident fund and other matters as may, from time to time, be fixed by the Central Government.

(2) The other members of the Authority shall receive such allowances as may be fixed by the Central Government.

(3) A member, other than the ex officio member, may resign his office by giving notice thereof in writing to the Central Government and on such resignation being accepted, he shall be deemed to have vacated his office.

6. Chairman to be chief executive.

6. Chairman to be chief executive.— The Chairman shall be the chief executive of the Authority and shall exercise such powers and perform such duties as may be prescribed.

7. Secretary of the Authority and other staff.

7. Secretary of the Authority and other staff.—(1) The Central Government shall appoint a Secretary to the Authority who shall exercise such powers and perform such duties as may be prescribed or as may be delegated to him by the Chairman.

(2) The Secretary shall be entitled to such salary and allowances and shall be subject to such conditions of service in respect of leave, pension, provident fund and such other matters as may, from time to time, be fixed by the Central Government.

(3) Subject to such control and restrictions as may be prescribed, the Authority may appoint such other officers and employees, as may be necessary, for the efficient performance of its functions and the method of appointment, the scale of pay and allowances and other conditions of service of such other officers and employees of the Authority shall be such as may be provided by the Authority by regulations.

(4) The Chairman, the Secretary and other officers and employees of the Authority shall not undertake any work unconnected with their duties under this Act except with the permission of the Central Government.

8. Special provision for transfer of employees to the Authority.

8. Special provision for transfer of employees to the Authority.—(1) On the establishment of the Authority, it shall be lawful for Central Government to transfer to the Authority, by order, and with effect from such date or dates as may be specified in the order, any officer or other employee holding office as such in the Processed Foods Export Promotion Council (hereafter in this section referred to as the Council) immediately before the date on which the Authority is established:

Provided that the scale of pay of the post in the Authority to which such officer or other employee is transferred shall not be lower than the scale of pay of the post he was holding immediately before such transfer and the other terms and conditions of service (including pension, leave, provident fund and medical benefits) of the post to which he is transferred shall not be less favourable than the terms and conditions of service in relation to the post held by him immediately before such transfer.

(2) An order under sub-section (1) may be made so as to have retrospective effect from a date not earlier than the date of the commencement of this Act.

(3) Before any order is issued under sub-section (1), all officers and employees of the Council shall be given an option to express, in such form as may be prescribed, and within such time as may be specified in that behalf by the Central Government, their willingness or otherwise to become employees of the Authority and such option once exercised shall be final:

Provided that no order under sub-section (1) shall be made in relation to any officer or other employees of the Council who has intimated his intention of not becoming an employee of the Authority within the time specified in that behalf:

Provided further that such of the officers and employees of the Council who do not express, within the time specified in that behalf, their intention of becoming the employees of the Authority, shall be dealt with in the same manner and in accordance with the same laws and standing orders as would have applied immediately before the commencement of this Act to the employees of the Council in the event of the reduction of the strength of the officers and employees of the Council.

(4) An officer or other employee transferred by an order made under sub-section (1) shall, on and from the date of transfer, cease to be an employee of the Council and become an officer or other employee of the Authority with such designation as the Authority may determine and shall, subject to the provisions of the proviso to sub-section (1), be governed by the regulations made by the Authority under this Act in respect of remuneration and other conditions of service (including pension, leave, provident fund and medical benefits) and shall continue to be an officer or other employee of the Authority unless and until his employment is duly terminated by the Authority:

Provided that till such time as the regulations referred to above governing the conditions of service of its officers or other employees are framed by the Authority, the relevant laws and standing orders applicable to the officers and employees of the Council shall continue to be applicable to them.

(5) If a question arises whether the terms and conditions of service prescribed in the regulations framed by the Authority in respect of any matter, including remuneration, pension, leave, provident fund and medical benefits, are less favourable than those attached to the post held by an officer or other employee immediately before his transfer to the Authority, the decision of the Central Government in the matter shall be final.

9. Committees of the Authority.

9. Committees of the Authority.—(1) The Authority may appoint such committees as may be necessary for the efficient discharge of its duties and performance of its functions under this Act.

(2) The Authority shall have the power to co-opt as members of any committee appointed under sub-section (1) such number of persons, who are not members of the Authority as it may think fit and the persons so co-opted shall have the right to attend the meetings of the committee and take part in its proceedings but shall not have the right to vote.

(3) The persons co-opted as members of a committee under sub-section (2) shall be entitled to receive such allowances for attending meetings of the committee as may be fixed by the Central Government.

10. Functions of the Authority.

10. Functions of the Authority.—(1) It shall be the duty of the Authority to undertake, by such measures at it, thinks fit, the development and promotion, under the control of the Central Government, of export of Scheduled products.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the provisions of sub-section (1), the measures referred to therein may provide for—

(a) the development of industries relating to the Scheduled products for export by way of providing financial assistance or otherwise for undertaking surveys and feasibility studies, participation in the equity capital through joint ventures and other reliefs and subsidy schemes;

(b) the registration of persons as exporters of the Scheduled products on payment of such fees as may be prescribed;

(c) the fixing of standards and specifications for the Scheduled products for the purposes of export;

(d) the carrying out of inspection of meat and meat products in any slaughterhouse, processing plant, storage premises, conveyances or other places where such products are kept or handled for the purpose of ensuring the quality of such products;

(e) the improving of packaging of the Scheduled products;

(f) the improving of the marketing of the Scheduled products outside India;

(g) the promotion of export oriented production and development of the Scheduled products;

(h) the collection of statistics from the owners of factories or establishments engaged in the production, processing, packaging, marketing or export of the Scheduled products or from such other persons as may be prescribed on any matter relating to the Scheduled products; and the publication of the statistics so collected, or of any portions thereof or extracts therefrom;

(i) the training in various aspects of the industries connected with the Scheduled products;

(j) such other matters as may be prescribed.

10-A. Functions in respect of Special products, etc.

[vii][10-A. Functions in respect of Special products, etc.—Without prejudice to any law for the time being in force, it shall be the duty of the Authority to undertake, by such measures as may be prescribed by the Central Government for registration and protection of the Intellectual Property rights in respect of special products in India or outside India.

Explanation.—For the purpose of this section “Intellectual Property” means any right to intangible property, namely, trade marks, designs, patents, geographical indications or any other similar intangible property, under any law for the time being in force.]

11. Power to supersede the Authority.

11. Power to supersede the Authority.—(1) If the Central Government is of the opinion that the Authority is unable to perform, or has persistently made default in the performance of, the duty imposed on it by or under this Act or has exceeded or abused its powers, or has wilfully or without sufficient cause, failed to comply with any direction issued by the Central Government under Section 20, the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, supersede the Authority for such period as may be specified in the notification:

Provided that before issuing a notification under this sub-section, the Central Government shall give reasonable time to the Authority to show cause why it should not be superseded and shall consider the explanation and objections, if any, of the Authority.

(2) Upon the publication of a notification under sub-section (1) superseding the Authority,—

(a) all the members of the Authority shall, notwithstanding that their term of office has not expired as from the date of supersession, vacate their offices as such members;

(b) all the powers and duties which may, by or under the provisions of this Act, be exercised or performed by or on behalf of the Authority shall, during the period of supersession, be exercised and performed by such person or persons as the Central Government may direct;

(c) all property vested in the Authority shall, during the period of supersession, vest in the Central Government.

(3) On the expiration of the period of supersession specified in the notification issued under sub-section (1), the Central Government may—

(a) extend the period of supersession for such further period as it may consider necessary; or

(b) reconstitute the Authority in the manner provided In Section 4.

References

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