Bombay Suburban Division.-One hundred and thirteen correction cases and 801 miscellaneous cases affecting 915 survey numbers were disposed of by the District Survey Office during the year.

REVENUE SURVEYS

Northern Division.-Five field-party surveyors were employed in Gujarat during the year. They examined the classification of rice lands in Sanand taluka of Ahmedabad; surveyed and classed lands in the Talukdari estates of Panch Mahals which had been brought under cultivation since the last settlement, etc. In Thana two field-party surveyors were employed who carried out work in connection with land acquired for District Local Board roads, village site surveys, etc.

Central Division. One field party consisting at first of 41 hands under a head surveyor was employed on the survey of inam villages in Satara, Poona and Nagar districts.

Southern Division.-Ten permanent and eleven temporary surveyors were employed during the year.

Bombay Suburban Division. The surveying staff, consisting of 1 District surveyor, 4 circle inspectors and 5 surveyors from the Salsette Development Office carried out 312 measurement cases in 681 survey numbers and 8 classification cases in 11 survey numbers.

CITY SURVEYS

Northern Division.-City surveys of Surat, Prantij, Hansot, Bassein, Halol and revision of Rander city survey were completed. New city surveys of Kalol, Vejalpur, Jhalod, Umbergaon and Nargol were taken up and completed. Twenty-three city surveys are under regular maintenance.

Central Division.-During the year the city surveys of Trimbak and Raver were completed, and those of Yaval, Malegaon, Lonavla and Mahabaleshwar are in progress. Twenty-eight city surveys are under regular maintenance.

Southern Division. Enquiry work at Panvel was completed. City survey and enquiry in Uran, Nargund, Indi, Roha and Alibag were completed. No new city surveys were taken up. Thirteen city surveys are under regular maintenance.

General Remarks.—City-survey maintenance staff in large towns earn sufficient revenue to pay their cost; but in smaller towns such is not the case. To remedy this to some extent in small towns the maintenance surveyor is put in charge of two or more towns, transferring some of the routine work to the sub-registrars of those towns. The scheme is being tried in 14 towns of Northern Division, 6 towns of Central Division and 10 towns of Southern Division.

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REVISION SETTLEMENTS

Temporary revised rates sanctioned by the Settlement Commissioner for inam villages of Newasa Budruk, Usthal Dumala, Ranjangaon, Dongaon, Kolegaon and Miri in Newasa taluka and Tarkhede, Abhanpur Khurd, Abhanpur Budruk and Kakarde in Shahada taluka and Gondegaon in Pachora taluka were confirmed by Government. Government also passed orders on the revision settlement of Government lands in the inam village of Karade Budruk in Panvel taluka.

WASTE LANDS

The following table shows the area under cultivation in the Province :

T

CHAPTER III

LAW AND JUSTICE

HE passing of the Government of India Act of 1919 and the inauguration of the Reforms radically changed the procedure with regard to legislation. The power of making laws "for the peace and good government of the Bombay Presidency Presidency" is still vested in the Legislative Council of the Governor of Bombay. But that body, as now constituted, is very different, both in its composition and its powers from the old Council, which consisted of 47 members, of whom only 21 were elected, not as now directly but by local bodies or by special classes. It now consists of 111 members. The four Members of the Executive Council are ex-officio members, and of the remaining 107, 86 are elected and 21 nominated. Of the nominated members not more than 18 may be officials, but the present number of officials is 13 only. The elected members are elected as follows:

Of the members of the non-Mahomedan constituencies 7 must be Marathas.

All British subjects of either sex who are over the age of 21 years and possess the necessary property qualification are, subject to certain minor exceptions, entitled to vote in general contituencies. The Government of Bombay has also power to permit subjects of Indian States to be enrolled as electors. The property qualification is fixed by Rules under the Government of India Act and is based, in the case of land, upon the amount of land revenue, and in the case of houses upon the annual rental; in each case tenants as well as landlords are qualified to vote. Besides these all income tax payers and all retired soldiers of His Majesty's regular

forces are enfranchised by the same Rules. A general election ordinarily takes place every three years. Before taking his seat every member must make an oath or affirmation of his allegiance to the Crown.

Legislative. The extent of the power of the Council to make laws is defined by section 80A of the Government of India Act. Generally it may make laws for the peace and good government of the territories constituting the Presidency of Bombay, but certain bills cannot be introduced without the previous sanction of the Governor General. The most important of these are :

(a) Bills imposing new taxes, except certain taxes specified in Rules made under the Act such as taxes on non-agricultural land and on amusements, succession duties and judicial stamp duties;

(b) Bills affecting the public debt of India or any taxes the proceeds of which go to the Government of India;

(c) Bills affecting the navy, army or air force;

(d) Bills affecting the relations of Government with foreign princes

or states;

(e) Bills regulating a "central" subject.

Central subjects are subjects of vital importance or subjects on which it is desirable that policy should be uniform throughout India. Some of the most important are external relations, defence of India, shipping, railways, posts and telegraphs, currency, civil and criminal law, commerce, all sources of all-India revenue and the all-India services. Again under section 80-C of the Government of India Act a bill affecting the public revenue of the province of Bombay or imposing any charge upon it, cannot be introduced without the previous sanction of the Governor.

THE BUDGET

The annual Budget is presented to the Council during February. Previous to presentation it has been examined by the Finance Committee of the Council. This committee, which consists at present of 12 elected members, 4 nominated members and the Members of the Executive Council and Ministers, is not statutory but is constituted annually by motion made in the Council. The elected members are elected by the Council immediately after motion is carried and its functions are advisory only.

The Budget is divided into voted and non-voted items. All items under the following heads are, under section 72-D of the Government of India Act, non-voted :

(i) contributions payable by the local government to the GovernorGeneral in Council;

(ii) interest and sinking fund charges on loans ;

(iii) expenditure of which the amount is prescribed by or under any law;

(iv) salaries and pensions of persons appointed by or with the approval of His Majesty or by the Secretary of State in Council; and

(v) salaries of judges of the High Court of the province and of the Advocate-General.

All other items are voted. But if the Governor certifies that any demand relating to a reserved subject, which has been either reduced or refused by vote of the Council, is essential to the discharge of his responsibility for that subject the reduction or refusal of the Council becomes void.

By Rule 33 of the Rules of the Legislative Council a Committee on Public Accounts is constituted to deal with the audit and appropriation accounts of the province. The committee consists of 12 members of whom 8 are elected by the non-official members of the Council, and the remainder nominated. The Finance Member is ex-officio chairman.

RESOLUTIONS AND QUESTIONS

After non-official bills and motions to amend Standing Orders have been disposed of, any member may during the remaining time allotted to non-official business move a resolution on a matter of general public interest. Fifteen clear days' notice of such resolut.on must be given before moving.

Every resolution must be in the form of a recommendation to Government. The Governor may disallow a resolution on the ground that it cannot be moved without detriment to the public interest or that it is not primarily the concern of the local Government.

No resolution may be moved on any matter which affects the relations of Government with any foreign or Indian State, or relates to the internal administration of any Indian State, or is sub-judice.

Questions for the purpose of obtaining information on a matter of public concern may be asked provided that 10 clear days' notice of the question is given. A question may be disallowed on any of the grounds on which a resolution on the subject might have been disallowed, and also on certain other grounds of which the most important are that it must not contain a suggestion for particular action, nor ask for an opinion.

COURSE OF LEGISLATION

Acts passed. In the period between the 1st of April 1924 and the 31st March 1925 fourteen Acts were passed by the Legislative Council of the Government of Bombay and having received the assent of their Excellencies the Governor and Governor General became law.

The Acts were as follows:

(1) Act No. I of 1924 (An Act to amend the Bombay Village Panchayats Act, 1920) was passed with the object of making the necessary provision for the working of the panchayat in the case of a vacancy occurring among