EXTRAORDINARY
PART II --Section 1
PUBLISHED BY AUTHORITY
No.381  New Delhi Tuesday August 11, 1998/ SHRAVANA 20, 1920

Separate paging is given to this Part in order that it may be field as a separate compilation.

MINISTRY OF LAW, JUSTICE AND COMPANY AFFAIRS

(Legislative Department)

New Delhi, the 11th August,1998/Shravana 20,1920 (Saka)

The following Act of Parliament received the assent of the President on  the 10th August 1998 and is hereby published for general information:-

THE INTEREST ON DELAYED PAYMENTS TO SMALL SCALE AND ANCILLARY INDUSTRIAL UNDERTAKINGS
(AMENDMENT) ACT,1998

No.23 OF 1998

[10th August,1998]

An Act to amend the Interest on Delayed Payments to Small Scale and Ancillary Industrial Undertakings Act,1993.

Be it enacted by Parliament in the Forty-ninth Year of the Republic of India as follows:-

1. This Act may be called the Interest on Delayed Payments to Small Scale and Ancillary Industrial Undertakings (Amendment) Act. 1998 (Short title)

2. In the Interest on Delayed Payments to Small Scale and Ancillary Industrial Undertakings Act,1993 (hereafter referred to as the principal Act), in section 2, in clause(f) for the words "or Union territory", the following shall be substituted, namely:-

"or Union territory and includes,-

(i)  The National Small Industries Corporation, being a company, registered under the Companies Act,1956,

(ii) The Small Industries Development Corporation of a State or a Union territory, by whatever name called, being a company registered under the Companies Act,1956"

Amendment of Section 3

1. 3.      In section 3 of the principal Act, the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:

"Provided that in no case the period agreed upon between the supplier and the buyer in writing shall exceed one hundred and twenty day s from  the day of acceptance or the day of deemed acceptance."

Substitution of new section for Section 4

4.   For section 4 of the principal Act the following section shall be substituted, namely:-

Date from which and rate at which interest is payable

4.Where any buyer fails to make payment of the amount to the supplier, as required under section3, the buyer shall not with standing any thing contained in any agreement between the buyer and the supplier or in any law for the time being in force, be liable to pay interest to the supplier on that amount from the appointment day or as the case may be from the date immediately following the date agreed upon, at one and half time to Prime Lending Rate chaged by the State Bank of India

Explanation:_ For the purposes of this section, "Prime Leading Rate" means the Prime Lending Rate of the State Bank of India which is available to the best borrowers of the bank.

Amendment of Section 3

1. 5.      Section 6 of the principal Act shall be renumbered as sub-section (I) thereof and after sub-session(i) as so renumbered, the following sub-section shall be inserted, namely:-

"(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section(i) any party to a dispute may make a reference to the Industry Facilitation Council for acting as an arbitrator or conciliator in respect of the matters referred to in that sub-section and the provisions of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act ,1996 shall apply  to such dispute as if the arbitration or conciliation were pursuant  to an arbitration agreement referred to in sub-section (i) of section 7 of that Act."

Insertion of new sections 7A, 7B and 7C

6. After section 7 of the principal Act, the following sections shall be inserted, namely:-

Establishment of Industry Facilitation Council

7A. The State Government may, be notification in the Official Gazett, establish one or more Industry Facilitation Councils at such places exercising such jurisdiction and for such areas, as may be specified in the notification.

Composition of Industry Facilitation Council

7B(1) The Industry Facilitation Council shall consist of one or more members to be appointed from amongst the following categories:-

(i) Director of Industries by whatever name called or any other officer not below the rank of such  Director, of the State Government.

(ii) representatives of banks and financial institutions.

(iii) Office-bearers of representatives of State Industry Associations and

(iv) persons having special knowledge in the field of Industry, Finance Law Trade and Commerce.

(2) The person appointed under clause(i) of sub-section(i) shall be the Chair person of the Industry Facilitation Council.

(3) The composition of the Industry Facilitation Council the manner of filling vacancies among, and the procedure to be followed in the discharge of their functions by the members shall be such as may be prescribed by rules by the State Government

7C  Every notification issued and every rule made by the State Government under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is issued or made before the State Legislature." (Laying of rules before State Legislature)

RAGHBIR SINGH
Secretary to the Government of India.