RADIOACTIVE MINERALS

(1) Any public officer authorized by the Secretary may, by written notice served on any person, require such person to make such returns, at such times, and containing such particulars as may be specified in the notice, of all or any of the following:-

(2) If any person-

(1) Any person authorized by the Secretary in that behalf may, on producing, if so required, a document signed by the Secretary and showing that such person is so authorized, enter at all reasonable hours, for the purpose of inspection, any premises where such person has reasonable grounds for believing that work is being carried out for the mining, production or treatment of radioactive minerals and substances.

(2) If any person willfully obstructs any other person exercising powers conferred on that other person by subsection (1), he shall be guilty of an offence.

(1) Subject to the other provisions of this section, any person authorized by the Minister in that behalf may on producing, if so required, a document signed by the Minister and showing that such person is so authorized, do on, over or below the surface of any land such work as the Minister considers necessary for the purpose of discovering whether there is present in or on the land any minerals from which in the opinion of such person any prescribed substance can be obtained, and the extent to which any such mineral is so present.

(2) Before any powers are exercised under subsection (1) in relation to any land, the Minister shall cause to be served on every owner, lessee and occupier of the land a written notice specifying the nature of the work proposed to be done and the time, not being less than twenty-eight days, within which and the manner in which objections can be made thereto, and no such power shall be exercised otherwise than in pursuance of the notice or before the expiry of the time prescribed therein for making objections.

(3) If any person on whom a notice under subsection (2) is served makes an objection and does not withdraw it, the Minister shall, before the person authorized in that behalf by the Minister under subsection (1) exercises any powers under that subsection, afford an opportunity to the person making the objection of appearing before and being heard by a person appointed by the Minister for the purpose and, if the person making the objection avails himself of that opportunity, the Minister may afford to any other person, to whom it appears to the Minister expedient to afford it, an opportunity of appearing and being heard on the same occasion.

(4) The Minister may, after considering the objections, if any, made by any of the persons on whom a notice under subsection (2) is served and the report made on such objections by the person appointed under subsection (3), cause to be served on the persons on whom that notice was served a further written notice withdrawing or confirming the original notice, or modifying the terms thereof, and, in the case of modification, no power shall be exercised under subsection (1) otherwise than in pursuance of the original notice as so modified.

(5) The powers conferred by subsection (1) shall be deemed to include the power to remove any work constructed or other thing placed on, over or below the surface of the land in the course of the exercise of those powers, and to do such work as the Minister or any person authorized in that behalf by the Minister thinks fit for the purpose of restoring the land wholly or partly to the condition in which it would have been but for the exercise of those powers.

(6) For the purpose of exercising the powers conferred by the preceding provisions of this section, any person authorized in that behalf by the Minister may pass, with or without animals or vehicles, over any land.

(7) If any person willfully obstructs or interferes with the exercise of powers under this section, he shall be guilty of an offence.

(8) Compensation shall be determined and paid by the Minister in accordance with the First Schedule to this Act in respect of any land on which powers under this section are exercised.

(1) Where it appears to the Minister that any minerals from which in his opinion any prescribed substance can be obtained are present in or on any land, the Minister may, subject to the provisions of section 6, by Order published in the Gazette compulsorily acquire the exclusive right in respect of that land, so long as the Order remains in force, to prospect for, mine and remove all minerals from which in his opinion any prescribed substance can be obtained.

(2) Where an Order under subsection (1) is in force in respect of any land, the Minister shall have all the rights ancillary to the exclusive right acquired by him by that Order. Such ancillary rights shall, without prejudice to the generality of the preceding provisions of this subsection, include-

(3) An Order made under this section shall provide for the payment of compensation by the Minister in such cases and subject to such conditions as may be specified in the Order or determined thereunder, in respect of loss suffered as the result of the exercise of rights under such Order including rights under subsection (2), but in calculating such compensation no account shall be taken of the value of any minerals present in or on the land affected by such Order, being minerals from which in the opinion of the Minister any prescribed substance can be obtained.

(4) Compensation in respect of any minerals removed by the Minister from a land, other than land disposed of by the State with an express or implied reservation to minerals in favour of the State, in pursuance of an Order under subsection (1) which is in force in respect of that land shall be paid by the Minister in accordance with the Second Schedule to this Act.

(1) Before an Order is made and published under subsection (1) of section 5, notice of the Order as proposed to be made shall be caused by the Minister to be published in the Gazette and in at least one Sinhala, one Tamil and one English newspaper circulating in Sri Lanka.

(2) For the purpose of subsection (1), a notice shall be sufficient notice of a proposed Order if it sets out the purport of such Order and specifies a place where copies of such Order may be inspected free of charge at all reasonable hours,

(3) A notice under subsection (1) shall contain a statement to the effect that objections may be made to the proposed Order within such time, not being less than twenty-eight days, and in such manner as shall be specified in the notice, and if any such objection is duly made and is not withdrawn, the Minister shall afford an opportunity to the person making the objection of appearing before and being heard by a person appointed by the Minister for the purpose. The person so appointed shall make a report on such objections to the Minister.

(4) The Minister shall consider the objections duly made in consequence of a notice under subsection (1) and the report made on such objections under subsection (3).

(1) The Minister may, subject to and in accordance with the Third Schedule to this Act, compulsorily acquire all or any of the following:-

(2) In the case of any such plant affixed to any land as is compulsory acquired by the Minister under subsection (1), the Minister may cause it to be severed from the land, and shall, if such severance is made, cause any damage caused by such severance to be made good.

(3) Compensation in respect of the acquisition of any article under this section shall be paid by the Minister in accordance with the Second Schedule to this Act.

(1) The Minister may by Order published in the Gazette provide for prohibiting except under the authority of a licence granted by the Minister and subject to such conditions as may be specified in the licence, the mining, production, treatment and transport of minerals specified in the Order, being minerals from which in the opinion of the Minister any prescribed substances can be obtained. Any such Order may contain such incidental and supplementary provisions as the Minister considers necessary.

(2) An Order under subsection (1) may provide for the seizure of any article in respect of which there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that a contravention of the Order has been committed, and for the retention of any such article pending the institution and final determination of proceedings in respect of the contravention, and for the disposal, if the proceedings lead finally to a conviction, of any such article.

(3) Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with an Order under subsection (1) or any condition subject to which a licence was granted under such an Order shall be guilty of an offence.

(a) by delivering it to that person; or

(b) by leaving it, or sending it by post in a registered letter addressed to him, at his usual or last known residence or place of business; or

(c) in the case of a corporation, by delivering it to the secretary or any other officer of that corporation at its registered or principal office, or by sending it by post in a registered letter addressed to him at that office; or

(d) in the case of a notice to be served on an owner, lessee, or occupier of land, if it is not practicable after reasonable inquiry to ascertain his name or address, by addressing it to him by the description ” owner” , ” lessee ” or ” occupier ” of the land (describing it) to which it relates, and by delivering it to some person on the premises, or, if there is no person on the premises to whom it may be delivered, by affixing it, or a copy of it, to some conspicuous part of the premises.

(1) Any person who is guilty of an offence under this Act shall, on conviction after summary trial before a Magistrate, be liable to imprisonment of either description for a term not exceeding three months or to a fine not exceeding one thousand rupees or to both such imprisonment and such fine.

(2) Where any offence under this Act has been committed by a body corporate, every person who at the time of the commission of the offence was a director, general manager, secretary or other similar officer of that body, or was purporting to act in any such capacity, shall be deemed to be guilty of the offence unless he proves that the offence was committed without his consent or connivance and that he exercised all such diligence to prevent the commission of the offence as he ought to have exercised having regard to the nature of his functions in that capacity and to all the circumstances.

(1) The Minister may make regulations generally for the purpose of giving effect to the principles and provisions of this Act and particularly in respect of any matter which is stated or required by this Act to be prescribed or for which regulations are required by any provision of this Act to be made.

(2) No regulation made under this section shall have effect until it is approved by Parliament and notice of such approval is published in the Gazette.