THE OIL AND NATURAL GAS COMMISSION (TRANSFER 
OF UNDERTAKING AND REPEAL) ACT, 1993 
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ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS 
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SECTIONS 

1.  Short title and commencement. 
2.  Definitions. 
3.  Undertaking of Commission to vest in Corporation. 
4.  General effect of vesting of undertaking in Corporation. 
5.  Licences, etc., to be deemed to have been granted to Corporation. 
6.  Tax exemption or benefit to continue to have effect. 
7.  Guarantee to be operative. 
8.  Provisions in respect of officers and other employees of Commission. 
9.  Power of entry. 
10.  Power to make rules. 
11.  Repeal of Act 48 of 1959. 
12.  Repeal and saving. 

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THE OIL AND NATURAL GAS COMMISSION (TRANSFER 
OF UNDERTAKING AND REPEAL) ACT,1993 

ACT NO. 65 OF 1993 

[4th September, 1993.] 

An  Act  to  provide  for  the  transfer  and  vesting  of  the  undertaking  of  the  Oil  and  Natural  Gas 
Commission to and in the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited, a company incorporated 
under  the  Companies  Act,  1956,  and  for  matters  connected  therewith  or  incidental  thereto 
and also to repeal the Oil and Natural Gas Commission Act, 1959. 

BE it enacted by Parliament in the Forty-fourth Year of the Republic of India as follows:— 

1.  Short  title  and  commencement.—(1)  This  Act  may  be  called  the  Oil  and  Natural  Gas 

Commission (Transfer of Undertaking and Repeal) Act, 1993. 

(2) It shall be deemed to have come into force on the 2nd day of July, 1993. 

2. Definitions.—In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,— 

(a)  “appointed  day”  means  such  date  as  the  Central  Government  may,  by  notification  in  the 

Official Gazette, appoint under section 3; 

(b)  “Corporation”  means  the  Oil  and  Natural  Gas  Corporation  Limited,  a  company  registered 

under the Companies Act, 1956 (1 of 1956); 

(c) “Commission” means the Oil and Natural Gas Commission established under sub-section (1) 

of section 3 of the Oil and Natural Gas Commission Act, 1959 (43 of 1959); 

(d) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act. 

3. Undertaking of Commission to vest in Corporation.—On such date1as the Central Government 
may,  by  notification  in  the  Official  Gazette,  appoint,  the  undertaking  of  the  Commission  shall  stand 
transferred to, and vest in, the Corporation. 

4. General effect of vesting of undertaking in Corporation.—(1) On and from the appointed day, 

the entire capital of the Commission shall, by virtue of this Act, stand vested in the Corporation. 

(2) The undertaking of the Commission which is transferred to, and which vests in, the Corporation 
under  section  3  shall  be  deemed  to  include  all  assets,  rights,  powers,  authorities  and  privileges  and  all 
properties,  movable  and  immovable,  real  and  personal,  corporeal  or  incorporeal,  in  possession  or 
reservation, present or contingent of whatever nature and wheresoever situate including lands, buildings, 
works, workshops, vehicles, oil rigs, oil platforms, cash balances, deposits, foreign currencies, reserves, 
reserve  funds  or  any  other  investments,  securities,  tenancies, leases  and  book  debts  and all  other  rights 
and  interests  arising  out  of  such  properties  as  were  immediately  before  the  appointed  day  in  the 
ownership,  possession  or  power  of  the  Commission  in  relation  to  its  undertaking,  whether  within  or 
outside India, all books of account and registers, records and documents relating thereto and shall also be 
deemed  to  include  all  liabilities  and  obligations  of  whatever  kind,  within  or  outside  India,  of  the 
Commission in relation to its undertaking subsisting immediately before the appointed day. 

(3)  All  contracts,  deeds,  bonds,  guarantees,  powers  of  attorney,  other  instruments  and  working 
arrangements subsisting immediately before the appointed day and affecting the Commission shall cease 
to have effect or to be enforceable against the Commission and shall be of as full force and effect against 
or in favour of the Corporation and enforceable as fully and effectually as if, instead of the Commission 
the Corporation had been named therein or had been a party thereto. 

(4) Any proceeding or cause of action pending or existing immediately before the appointed day by or 
against the Commission, in relation to its undertaking may, as from the appointed day, be continued and 

1. 1st February, 1994, vide notification No. G.S.R. 44(E), dated 28th January 1994, see Gazette of India, Extraordinary,           

Part I, sec. 3(i) 

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enforced by or against the Corporation as it might have been enforced by or against the Commission, if 
this Act had not been in force, and shall cease to be enforceable by or against the Commission. 

5.  Licences,  etc.,  to  be  deemed  to  have  been  granted  to  Corporation.—With  effect  from  the 
appointed  day,  all  licences,  leases,  concessions,  permits,  quotas,  benefits,  privileges  and  exemptions 
granted to the Commission in connection with the affairs of the Commission under any law for the time 
being in force, shall be deemed to have been granted to the Corporation. 

6. Tax exemption or benefit to continue to have effect.—(1) Where any exemption from, or any 
assessment with respect to, any tax has been granted or made or any benefit by way of set off or carry 
forward  of  any  unabsorbed  depreciation  or  investment  allowance  or  other  allowance  or  loss  has  been 
extended  or  is  available  to  the  Commission  under  the  Income-tax  Act,  1961  (43  of  1961),  such 
exemption, assessment or benefit shall continue to have effect, in relation to the Corporation. 

(2) Where any payment made by the Commission is exempt from deduction of the tax at source under 
any  provision  of  the  Income-tax  Act,  1961  (43  of  1961),  the  exemption  from  tax  will  continue  to  be 
available  as  if  the  provisions  of  the  said  Act  made  applicable  to  the  Commission  were  operative  in 
relation to the Corporation. 

(3) The transfer and vesting of the undertaking or any part thereof in terms of section 3 shall not be 
construed as a transfer within the meaning of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961), for the purpose of 
capital gains. 

7.  Guarantee  to  be  operative.—Any  guarantee  given  for  or  in  favour  of  the  Commission  with 
respect to  any  loan  or  lease  finance  or  other assistance  shall continue  to  be  operative  in relation  to  the 
Corporation. 

8.  Provisions  in  respect  of  officers  and  other  employees  of  Commission.—(1)  Every  officer  or 
other  employee  of  the  Commission  (except  a  member  or  the  chairman)  serving  in  its  employment 
immediately before the appointed day shall, in so far as such officer or other employee is employed in 
connection  with the undertaking  which  has  vested  in the  Corporation by  virtue of  this  Act,  become,  as 
from the appointed day, an officer or, as the case may be, other employee of the Corporation and shall 
hold his office or service therein by the same tenure, at the same remuneration, upon the same terms and 
conditions  with  the  same  obligations  and  with  the  same  rights  and  privileges  as  to  leave,  passage, 
insurance,  superannuation  scheme,  provident  fund,  other  funds,  retirement,  pension,  gratuity  and  other 
benefits as he would have held under the Commission if its undertaking had not vested in the Corporation 
and  shall  continue  to  do  so  as  an  officer  or  other  employee  of  the  Corporation  or  until  the  expiry  of  a 
period of one year from the appointed day if such officer or other employee opts not to be the officer or 
other employee of the Corporation within such period. 

(2) Where an officer or other employee of the Commission opts under sub-section (1) not to be in the 
employment  or  service  of  the  Corporation  such  officer  or  other  employee  shall  be  deemed  to  have 
resigned. 

(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (14 of 1947) or in any 
other law for the time being in force, the transfer of the service of any officer or other employee of the 
Commission  to  the  Corporation  shall  not  entitle  such  officer  or  other  employee  to  any  compensation 
under this Act or under any other law for the time being in force and no such claim shall be entertained by 
any court, tribunal or other authority. 

(4) The officers and other employees who have retired before the appointed day from the service of 
the Commission and are entitled to any benefits, rights or privileges shall be entitled to receive the same 
benefits, rights or privileges from the Corporation. 

(5) The trusts of the provident fund, gratuity fund or the superannuation scheme of the Commission 
and  any  other bodies created  for  the  welfare of  officers  or  other  employees  shall continue  to  discharge 
their functions in the Corporation as was being done hitherto in the Commission and any tax exemption 
granted to the provident fund, gratuity fund and the superannuation scheme or any other bodies created 
for the welfare of officers or other employees shall continue to be applied to the Corporation. 

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(6) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or in the Companies Act, 1956 (1 of 1956) or in 
any other law for the time being in force or in the regulations of the Commission, no member or chairman 
of the Commission shall be entitled to any compensation against the Commission or the Corporation for 
the  loss  of  office  or  for  the  premature  termination  of  any  contract  of  management  entered  into  by  him 
with the Commission. 

9. Power of entry.—(1) For the purposes of ascertaining the availability of any oil or natural gas, the 
Central  Government  may,  on  the  request  being  made  by  the  Corporation,  authorise  any  officer  or 
employee of the Corporation, by general or special order,— 

(a) to enter and inspect any land; 

(b) to survey and take measurements of such land; 

(c) to dig holes or perform any other functions for the purposes of measuring or prospecting for 

the availability of oil and natural gas; and 

(d) to examine any document, book, register or record in the possession or power of any person 
having the control of or connected with any such land and place marks of identification thereon and 
take extracts from and make copies of any such document, book, register or record. 

(2) Every person authorised by the Central Government under sub-section (1) shall be deemed to be a 

public servant within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860). 

(3) The Corporation shall be liable to pay  compensation for any loss or damage caused to the land 
caused by its officers or employees in performing the functions under sub-section (1) in such manner as 
may be prescribed to the occupier of the land. 

(4) The amount of compensation payable under sub-section (3) shall be determined by the competent 

authority appointed by the Central Government in the manner prescribed. 

10. Power to make rules.—(1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, 

make rules for carrying out the provisions of this Act. 

(2)  In  particular,  and  without  prejudice  to  the  generality  of  the  foregoing  power,  such  rules  may 
provide for the amount and the manner of paying compensation for any loss or damage caused to the land 
by the officers and employees of the Corporation under sub-sections (3) and (4) of section 9. 

(3) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each House 
of  Parliament,  while  it  is  in  session,  for  a  total  period  of  thirty  days  which  may  be  comprised  in  one 
session  or  in  two  or  more  successive  sessions,  and  if,  before  the  expiry  of  the  session  immediately 
following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification 
in the rule or both Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only 
in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or 
annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule. 

11.  Repeal  of  Act  48  of  1959.—(1)  On  the  appointed  day,  the  Oil  and  Natural  Gas  Commission  

Act, 1959 shall stand repealed. 

(2) Notwithstanding such repeal, the Corporation shall, so far as may be, comply with the provisions 
of sections 22 and 23 of the said Act so repealed for any of the purposes related to the annual accounts of 
the Commission. 

12.  Repeal  and  saving.—(1)  The  Oil  and  Natural  Gas  Commission  (Transfer  of  Undertaking  and 

Repeal) Ordinance, 1993 (Ord. 28 of 1993) is hereby repealed. 

(2) Notwithstanding the repeal of the Oil and Natural Gas Commission (Transfer of Undertaking and 
Repeal) Ordinance, 1993 (Ord. 28 of 1993), anything done or any action taken under the said Ordinance, 
shall be deemed to have been done or taken under the corresponding provision of this Act. 

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