(2)(a)The costs incurred by the applicant or applicants or by the landholder in connection with the application, shall be in the discretion of the officer to whom the application is made and he shall have full power to determine by whom and to what extent such costs are to be paid:Provided that the amount awarded as costs shall be reasonable and that the amount awarded to the landholder shall in no case exceed two hundred rupees in the case of a major irrigation work and one hundred rupees in the case of a minor irrigation work.(b)Where any security has been deposited under section 138, the officer aforesaid may, if he awards costs to the landholder under clause (a), pay such costs out of the amount of such security and where such officer is satisfied that the application was frivolous, he may also declare the whole or part of the balance, if any, of the said amount to be forfeited to the Government.
