Harbours Act, 1996

Pilotage bye-laws.

71.—(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, a company may, in relation to pilotage in its pilotage district, make bye-laws for all or any of the purposes mentioned in Part II of the Sixth Schedule .

(2) (a) If a company proposes to make bye-laws under subsection (1) it shall—

(i) serve a notice of the proposal on each pilot for its pilotage district, and

(ii) publish a notice of the proposal in one or more newspapers circulating in the vicinity of its pilotage district.

(b) A notice under paragraph (a) shall contain a statement, in general terms, of the purposes for which the proposed bye-laws are to be made and an intimation—

(i) that the company concerned shall furnish, on request, to a person, free of charge, a draft of the proposed bye-laws, and

(ii) that a person may, within the appropriate periods specified in subsection (4)

(I) request the company concerned to submit a draft of the proposed bye-laws to the Minister for his or her approval, and

(II) if a request as aforesaid is made by him or her or any other person, submit to the Minister objections in writing to the approval of the bye-laws.

(3) A company shall furnish, on request, to a person, free of charge, a draft of bye-laws that it proposes to make under subsection (1).

(4) (a) A person may within the period mentioned in paragraph (b) request a company to submit to the Minister for his or her approval a draft of bye-laws that it proposes to make under subsection (1).

(b) The period referred to in paragraph (a) is—

(i) in case the person making the request is a pilot for the pilotage district concerned, the period of 21 days beginning on the date of service on him or her of a notice under paragraph (a) (i) of subsection (2) with respect to the bye-laws concerned, or

(ii) in any other case, the period of 21 days beginning on the date of the publication of a notice under paragraph (a) (ii) of subsection (2) with respect to the bye-laws concerned, or, in case more than one such notice is published, of the last such notice.

(c) If a request referred to in paragraph (a) is made of a company the company shall (unless it has already complied with such a request made of it by another person in relation to the same bye-laws) submit to the Minister for his or her approval a draft of the bye-laws to which the request relates.

(d) Any person may, within the period of one month beginning on the date of the submission of a draft of bye-laws under paragraph (c) to the Minister for his or her approval, submit to the Minister objections in writing to the approval of the bye-laws.

(5) Where under paragraph (c) of subsection (4) a draft of bye-laws is submitted to the Minister for his or her approval, the Minister, having considered any objections in writing to the approval of the bye-laws submitted in accordance with paragraph (d) of that subsection, shall, as he or she may think proper, refuse to approve of the bye-laws or approve thereof without modifications or make such modifications therein as he or she may think proper and approve of the bye-laws as so modified and the company concerned shall, accordingly, not make the bye-laws or, as the case may be, make them in the terms as so approved of.

(6) (a) Subsections (2) to (5) shall not apply to a company that organises and ensures the provision of pilotage services in its pilotage district by the means specified in paragraph (a) of section 56 (1).

(b) Subsections (2) to (5) are subject to paragraph (b) of section 80 (1).

(7) Notwithstanding the repeal of the Pilotage Act, 1913 , by section 5 , bye-laws made by the former pilotage authority for a company's pilotage district under that Act and which are in force immediately before the commencement of this section shall, save to the extent that they are inconsistent with a provision of this Act, continue in force as if made by the said company under subsection (1) and may be amended or revoked by it accordingly.

(8) A person who contravenes a provision of bye-laws made under this section shall be guilty of an offence.