PRESIDENT’S ASSENT
TO SIX MORE BILLS
The President has
given his assent to the Unit Trust of India (Transfer of Undertaking
and Repeal) Bill, 2002, the Securities and Exchange Board of India
(Amendement) Bill, 2002, the Delhi Metro Railway (Operation and
Maintenance) Bill, 2002, the Constitution (Schedule Castes) Orders
(Second Amendment) Bill, 2002, the Consumer Protection (Amendment)
Bill, 2002 and the Merchant Shipping (Amendment) Bill, 2002. With
this, these six Bills as passed by the Parliament in its Winter
Session ending December 20, 2002, have been notified in the gazette
of India as Act Nos. 58, 59, 60, 61, 62 and 63 respectively of
the year 2002.
The Unit Trust of
India (Transfer of Undertaking and Repeal) Act, 2002, which replaces
an Ordinance promulgated to this effect earlier in October 2002,
seeks to provide for, transfer and vest the undertaking excluding
the specified undertaking of the Unit Trust of India to the specified
company to be formed and registered under the Companies Act, 1956.
It also seeks to transfer and vest the specified undertaking of
the Unit Trust of India in the Administrator besides repealing
the Unit Trust of India Act, 1963 in order to corporatise the
UTI and let it compete in the free market economy.
The Securities and
Exchange Board of India (Amendment ) Act, 2002, which replaces
an Ordinance promulgated to this effect earlier in October , 2002,
seeks to amend the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act,
1992 by enlarging its Board of Directors, besides conferring power
of search and seizure with the approval of court and enhancing
the fine for a better and hassle-free regulation of the capital
market and, above all, avoid recurrence of scams and other malpractices
in the capital market by building confidence of investors.
The Delhi Metro Railway
(Operation and Maintenance) Act, 2002, which replaces an Ordinance
promulgated to this effect earlier in October 2002, seeks to provide
a legal frame and mechanism for regulation of the Delhi Metro
Rail Corporation (DMRC), under the joint control of the Government
of India in the Ministry of Urban Development and the National
Capital Territory Government of Delhi, on the pattern of Indian
Railways Act, 1989. It also provides a mechanism for operation
and maintenance of DMRC and its security.
The Constitution
(Scheduled Castes) Orders (Second Amendment) Act, 2002, seeks
to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Orders, 1950, the
Constitution (Scheduled Castes) (Union Territories) Orders, 1951,
the Constitution (Jammu and Kashmir) Scheduled Castes Orders,
1956, the Constitution (Dadra and Nagar Haveli) Scheduled Castes
Orders, 1962, and the Constitution (Pondicherry) Scheduled Castes
Orders, 1964 to include, exclude and expand the list of Scheduled
Castes in States and Union Territories.
The Consumer Protection
(Amendment) Act, 2002 which amends the Consumer Protection Act,
1986, seeks to enable the State Governments to set up District
Consumer Council on their own, make the compliance of the orders
of the National Consumer Council, State Consumer Council and District
Consumer Council meaningful and effective. It also provides for
attachment of the assets of persons not complying with the orders
of the Consumer Councils, courts and Commissions besides streamlining
the provisions of the 1986 Act. The amended Act will be enforced
from a date to be notified by the Government.
The Merchant Shipping
(Amendment) Act, 20023, seeks to amend the Merchant Shipping Act,
1958, and the Major Port Trusts Act, 1963 to streamline their
provisions in order to enable them to meet the challenges of globalised
economy in the form of quality of services and competition besides
streamlining corporatisation of major ports, their expansion and
services. The amended Act will be enforced from a date to be notified
by the Government.
