52. Government's power to require waste or forest lands to be leased.
(1)The State Government or such officer as they may authorize in this behalf may, by order, require the landlord of any waste or forest land to lease it for agricultural purposes to such person, for such term, subject to such conditions and within such time as may be specified in the order:Provided that no such order shall be passed without giving the landlord a reasonable opportunity either to cultivate such land himself or to lease it out for agricultural purposes.(2)Where the landlord fails to lease the land in accordance with, and within the time specified in the order issued under sub-section (1), the authority or officer issuing the order may execute a lease deed on behalf of the landlord in favour of the person, for the term, and subject to the conditions specified in such order; and the lease deed so executed shall, for all purposes, have the same effect as if it had been executed by the landlord himself.
