CHAPTER XIV
RIGHT OF WAY FOR LAYING CABLES AND ERECTION OF POSTS
Rights of facility providers in public
59 .(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, any person entitled under the provisions of this Act, services or facilities (hereinafter referred to as facility provider) may from time to time lay, and establish cables and erect posts under, over, along, across, in or upon any immovable property vested in or under the control or management of a public authority.
2) Any public authority under whose control or management, any immovable property is vested shall, on receipt of a request from a facility provider permit the facility provider to do all or any of the following acts namely :
(a) to place and maintain underground cables or posts; and
(b) to enter on the property from time to time, in order to place, examine, repair, alter or remove such cables or posts.(3) The permission mentioned in sub-section (2) above shall be promptly given and shall not be unreasonably withheld or denied:
Provided that in case of an emergency the facility provider may at any time for the purpose of examining, repairing altering or removing any cable or post enter upon the property for that purpose without first obtaining such permission.
(4) The facility of right of way under this section for laying underground cables or erecting posts, shall be available to all facility providers without discrimination and subject to the obligation of reinstatement or restoration of the property or payment of reinstatement or restoration charges in resect thereof at the public authority.
(5)Where any shifting or alteration in position of the underground cable or post is required due to compulsive causes like widening of highways and construction of flyovers or bridges, the said facility provider shall shift or alter the same at his own cost within the period indicated by concerned authority
(6)For the purposes of speedy clearance of requests for laying cables or erecting posts on any property vested in, or under the control or management of any public authority, high powered committees, or other appropriate mechanisms shall be promptly set up by the Central Government or the State Governments in the manner prescribed, they shall in each State act as a single nodal agency to co-ordinate all activities in this regard; and the Central Government may provide appropriate guidelines in this behalf.
Rights of public authority to grant permission
60. Any permission granted by a public authority under section 59 may be subject to such reasonable conditions as that authority thinks fit to impose as to the time or mode of execution of any work, or as to any other matter connected with or related to any work under taken by the facility provider in exercise of those rights.
Provision for removal or alteration of cable or post
61. When under the foregoing provisions of this Act, any cable or post has been placed by any facility provider under, over, along, across in or upon any property and the public authority having regard to circumstances which have arisen since the cable or post was so placed, considers it necessary and expedient that it should be removed or its position should be altered, it may require the concerned facility provider to remove it or alter its position as the case may be and it shall then be so removed or altered without any delay.
Determination of Disputes
62. (1) If any dispute arises under this Chapter including refusal of permission by the public authority ,the district court within whose local limits of jurisdiction the property concerned is situated shall on application determine the same.
(2) Every such determination shall be in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter and such determination will be deemed to be a decree of the district court and be for all purposes treated as such.
(3) The provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 shall apply to adjudication of all disputes under this section.
(4) Pending disposal of any application, the district court may pass such interim orders preventive or mandatory for the doing of any act under this Chapter on such terms and conditions as may be provided for in such order.
Use of private land by facility provider
63. (1) A facility provider may make use of private land for constructing or laying of cables or erecting posts only with the consent in writing of owner of the land or premises, as the case may be:
Provided that where in the opinion of a facility provider consent to the reasonable use of any land is not forthcoming such facility provider, may, on application to and with the approval of the or premises is not forthcoming, such facility provider may, on an application to and with the approval of the Commission, take steps authorized by the Commission for use of the land or premises for constructing or laying cables or erecting posts on such terms as the Commission may deem fit.
(2) where immediately before the commencement of this Act, a facility provider has made use of private land or premises for constructing or laying of cables or erecting posts without consent of the owner of the land or the premises and despite owner's objection, the facility provider shall, within a period of six months from the date of commencement of this Act, obtain a written consent of the owner, and the proviso to sub-section (1) shall apply mutatesmutandis to this situation
Power of Commission to issue order, regarding use of private land
64. (1) The Commission may, by order, require any network infrastructure facility to be provided, constructed, installed, altered, moved operated, used, repaired or maintained on any private land or premises or any system of method to be adopted by any person interested in or affected by the order, and at or within such time subject to such conditions as to compensation or otherwise and under such supervisions as the Commission may determine to be just.
(2) The Commission may, by order, specify by whom, in what proportion and at or within what time the cost of doing anything required or permitted to be done under sub-section (1) shall be paid.
(3)Any orders of the Commission under Sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) shall be enforceable under Chapter X of this Act as if such order is the order referred to in section 37.
Right of a facility provider.
65.Nothing in this Chapter shall confer any right upon any facility provider other than that of a user for the purpose only of laying cables or erecting posts or maintaining them.