(1)Every person who exercises any right in a Reserved Forest or who is permitted to take any forest produce from, or to cut and remove timber, or to pasture cattle in, such forest, and every person who is employed· by any such person in such forest, and every Village Officer or person in any village contiguous to such forest who is employed by the Government shall be bound to furnish without unnecessary delay to the nearest Forest Officer or Police Officer, any information he may possess respecting the occurrence of a fire in or near such forest, or the commission of, or intention to commit any forest offence, and shall forthwith take steps, whether required by any Forest Officer or Police Office or not-(a)to extinguish any fire in such forest of which he has know· ledge or information ;(b)to prevent by any lawful means in his power any fire in the vicinity of such forest of which he has knowledge or information from spreading to such forest and shall assist any Forest Officer or Police Officer demanding his aid;(c)in preventing the commission in such forest of any forest offence ; and(d)when there is reason to believe that any such offence has been committed in such forest in discovering and arresting the offender.
