Anil Kumar Sen, J. - (1.)Two notifications under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (hereinafter referred to as the said Act) and two consequent declarations under Section 6 of the said Act are the subject-matter of challenge in this Rule.
(2.)It would be necessary to set out the facts in short which are as follows. On May 5, 1959 a notification was issued by the State Government under Section 4 of the said Act. This notification merely recited that some land in the District of Midnapore is likely to be needed for a public purpose viz., establishment of a subsidiary port at the mouth of Haldia river. This notification further authorised the Engineers of the Commissioners for the port of Calcutta and the Local Officers for the time being engaged on the undertaking to enter upon and survey land and do all further acts required for the proper execution of their work. The notification further laid down the route for the survey through the sixty-eight villages chronologically set out in the said notification. One of such villages is mouja Hatiberia Police Station Sutahata, District Midnapore. This notification was issued in terms of paragraph 13 and in form 2 of the executive instructions contained in the West Bengal Land Acquisition Manual, 1951 Part I. Obviously, the notification was made to authorise local survey on a preliminary investigation for drawing up the scheme of a proposed project of establishment of a port subsidiary to the port of Calcutta.
(3.)As a result of the said investigation a proposed scheme was drawn up which was divided into five phases contemplated for its completion. Acquisitions were being made of lands covered by respective phases as and when works on those phases were being taken up by the requiring authority viz., the Commissioners for the port of Calcutta. Accordingly, on August 25, 1967 two notifications were issued again under Section 4 of the said Act. The first bearing No. 13998 L. A. was in respect of several plots set out in the notification in mouja Hatiberia Police Station Sutahata covering an area of 101.42 acres. The second one bearing No. 13991 L. A. was in respect of several other plots of the same mouja covering an area of 89.75 acres. Both these two notifications recited that the plots notified were likely to be needed for a public purpose viz., for the establishment of Haldia Dock at the expense of the Commissioners for the port of Calcutta.