The Telangana (Prevention of Speculation in Immovable Property) Act, 1954.

THE TELANGANA (PREVENTION OF SPECULATION IN 
IMMOVABLE PROPERTY) ACT, 1954. 
(ACT NO. VIII OF 1954.) 
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS 
Sections 
1. Short title and extent. 
2. Definitions. 
2-A. Construction of certain references in the 
application of this Act to the Cities of Hyderabad 
and Secunderabad. 
3. Declaration of notified area by Government. 
4. Restriction on transfer of immovable property. 
5. Standard price of immovable property. 
6. Permitted increase over the standard price. 
7. Power of Government to purchase immovable 
property. 
8. Taking possession of property and reference to 
Subordinate Judge’s Court. 
9. Setting aside of Court sales etc., held in 
contravention of the Act. 
10. Penalty. 
11. Cognizance of offences. 
12. Bar of certain proceedings. 
13. Power to make rules. 
 
THE TELANGANA (PREVENTION OF SPECULATION IN 
IMMOVABLE PROPERTY) ACT, 1954.1 
 
ACT No. VIII OF 1954. 
 
1. (1) This Act may be called  2[the Telangana (Prevention 
of Speculation in Immovable Property) Act, 1954]. 
 
 (2) It extends to the whole of the 2[State of Telangana]. 
 
2. In this Act, unless ther e is anything repugnant in the 
subject or context— 
 
 (a) „Government‟ means the State Government; 
 
 (b) „notified area ‟ means any area declared to be a 
notified area under section 3; 
 
 (c) „notified date ‟ in relation  to immovable property 
situated in any notified area means such date as the 
Government may, by notification, specify in respect of that 
area; 
 
 Explanation.—The date specified in any such 
notification ma y be a date either before or after the 
declaration of the area as a notified area under section 3; 
 
 (d) „notification‟ means a notification published in the 
2[Telangana Gazette]; 
                                                           
1. The Andhra Pradesh (Prevention of Speculation in Immovable 
Property) Act, 1954 (Act No. VIII of 1954) in force in the combined State, 
as on 02.06.2014, has been adapted to the State of Telangana, under 
section 101 of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 201 4 (Central 
Act 6 of 2014) vide. the Telangana Adaptation of Laws Order, 2016, 
issued in G.O. Ms. No. 45, Law (F) Department, dated: 01.06.2016. 
2. Substituted by G.O.Ms.No.45, Law (F) Department, dated 01.06.2016. 
Short title and 
extent. 
Definitions. 
2  [Act No. VIII of 1954] 
 (e) „transfer‟ means a sale, exchange or mortgage with 
possession and includes a sale held in execution of a 
decree or order of a Court or a sale conducted by an officer 
acting under the authority of any statute, decree or order of 
a Court; 
 
 3[2-A. If the whole or any part of the city of Hyde rabad 
or the cit y of Secunderabad is  declared under  sub-section 
(1) of section 3 to be a notified area, then, in the application 
of the provisions of this Act to such area,  references to the 
District Collector and the Subordinate Judge ‟s Court 
wherever they occur in this Act, sh all be deemed to be 
references, respectively, to the District Collector of 
Hyderabad and the Additional Judge of the City Civil Court.] 
 
3. (1) If the Government are satisfied  that owing to any 
action taken or proposed to be taken by them or to any 
other cause, considerable transfe rs of immovable property 
which are of a speculative character are being, or are likely 
to be made in any area in the  State of 4Telangana and that it 
is necessary in the public interest to prevent such transfers, 
they may, by notification, declare such area to be a „notified 
area‟ to which the provisions of this Act shall apply on and 
from such date as may be specified therein. 
 
 (2) The Government may, by notification, withdraw the 
operation of this Act from any such notified area, with effect 
from such date as may be specified in the notification, 
except as respects things done or omitted to be done 
before that date. 
 
4. Notwithstanding anything to  the contrary in any other 
law or in any contract, no immovable property situated i n 
any notified area shall be transfer red for a consideration 
                                                           
3. Inserted by Act XI of 1960. 
4. Substituted by G.O.Ms.No.45, Law (F) Department, dated 01.06.2016.  
Declaration of 
notified area by 
Government. 
 
Construction of 
certain references 
in the application 
of this Act to the 
Cities of 
Hyderabad and 
Secunderabad. 
Restriction on 
transfer of 
immovable 
property. 
 
[Act No. VIII of 1954]  3 
exceeding in value the  standard price  of the  property 
specified in section 5 together with such increase over that  
price as is permissible under section 6. 
 
 Explanation.—Where the consideration for such 
transfer consists partly of money and partly of movable 
property or immovable property or both, the market value of 
such movable or i mmovable property on the date of th e 
transfer, shall, to that extent, be regarded as the price paid 
for such transfer. 
 
5. (1) The standard price of any property referred to  in 
section 4 shall be the price which such property in the  
condition in which it is at the time of the transfer would have 
fetched at the market value prevailing on the notified date: 
 
 Provided as follows:- 
 
 (a) if the property consists of land on which a ne w 
building has been constructed after the notified date, the 
standard price of such property shall be the aggregate of 
the value which the land would have fetched at the market 
value prevailing on the notified date and the actual cost of 
construction of the  new building plus a sum of fifteen per 
cent on such cost of construction; 
 
 (b) if the property consists of land on which a building 
constructed before the notified date has been reconstructed 
after that date, the standard price of such property shall be 
the aggregate of the value which the land and the 
reconstructed building would have fetched at the market 
value prevailing on the notified date plus a sum of fifteen per 
cent on the actual cost of reconstruction. 
 
 Explanation.—5[(1) For the purposes of this Act,-- 
                                                           
5.  Substituted by Act XI of 1960. 
Standard price of 
immovable 
property. 
 
4  [Act No. VIII of 1954] 
 (a) „building‟ includes a house, outhouse, stable, 
latrine, shed, hut, wall, and any such structure, whether of 
masonry, bricks, wood , mud, metal or any other material 
whatever; and 
 
 (b) „reconstruction‟ in relation to a building includes— 
 
  (i) the re-erection wholly or partially of a building after 
more than half of its cubical contents has been taken down 
or burnt down,  or has fallen down whether at o ne time or 
not; 
 
  (ii) the re-erection wholly or partially of any building of 
which an o uter wall has been taken d own or burnt down or 
has fallen down to, or within ten feet of , the ground 
adjoining the lowest st orey of the building , and of any 
framework of a building which has so far been taken down 
or burnt down or has fallen down as to lea ve only the 
framework of the lowest storey; 
 
  (iii) the conversion into a dwelling-house or a place of 
public worship of any building not originally  constructed for 
human habitation or for public worship, as the case may be, 
or the co nversion into more than one dwelling -house of a 
building originally constructed  as one dwelling house only 
or the conversion of a dwelling-house into a factory; 
 
  (iv) the re-conversion into a dwelling-house or a place 
of public worship o r a factory of any building which  has 
been discontinued as, or appropriated for any purpose  
other than, a dwelling-house or a place of public wor ship or 
a factory, as the case may be , and „reconstructed‟ shall be 
construed accordingly.] 
 
 (2) The Go vernment may  authorize any  officer 
subordinate to them to maintain a register of new and 
reconstructed buildings. 
[Act No. VIII of 1954]  5 
 (3) In the case of every new or reconstructed building, 
the officer aforesaid shall, after giving notice to the owner 
and after making such inquiry as he deems necessary, enter 
in the register the date of completion of the construction or 
reconstruction, as the case may be, of the building and the 
cost of such con struction or reconstruction and forward to 
the owner an extract of the entries so made. 
 
 (4) Any owner aggriev ed by the entries in the register 
may, within fifteen days of the receipt of the extract , file an 
appeal to the District Collector for having the entries 
corrected. 
 
 (5) The entries in the register made by the officer 
aforesaid shall be binding and conclusive subject only to the 
result of any appeal filed under sub-section (4). 
 
6. In the case of any land, or any land with building 
thereon, if at any gen eral or special revision of assessment 
by the mun icipality o r other loc al body subsequent to the 
notified date, the assessment payable in respect of that 
property has  been enhanced, the standard price may be 
increased by such percentage not exceeding twenty-five per 
cent, as the Government may, by notification, specify having 
regard to such enhancement. 
 
7. The owner of any i mmovable property situated in any 
notified area shall, on demand by the Government by notice 
in writing, sell to them such property at the standard price 
specified in section 5 together with such increase over the 
standard price as is permissible under section 6 or at the 
current market value of the property, whichever is less: 
 
 Provided that if the propert y is one purchased or 
otherwise acquired by the owner after the notified date he 
shall, on such demand by the Government, sell such 
property to them either at the standard price specified in 
Permitted 
increase over the 
standard price. 
 
Power of 
Government to 
purchase 
immovable 
property. 
 
6  [Act No. VIII of 1954] 
section 5 together with such increase over the standard 
price as is permissible under section 6 or at the price 
mentioned in the instrument of transfer, if any, or at the 
current market value of the property, whichever is less. 
 
8. (1) In the case of any  property in respect of which a 
demand has  been made unde r s ection 7, the District 
Collector or any officer authorized by him in this behalf shall 
determine the amount payable for that property under that 
section and  tender the same to the owner .  If the owner 
refuses to accept the amount so tendered , the District 
Collector or the officer aforesaid shall deposit the said 
amount in the Subordinate Judge ‟s Court having jurisdiction 
over the area in which the property is situated and make a 
reference to that Court to determine the amount payable for 
that property under section 7 and take possession of the 
property on behalf of the Government, and the property 
shall vest in the Government from the date on which 
possession is so taken. 
 
 (2) If the amo unt determined by the Court is in excess 
of the amount tendered by the District Collector or the 
officer auth orized by him, the Court may direct the District 
Collector or the officer aforesaid to p ay such excess to the 
owner toge ther with interest on such excess at the rate of 
four per cent per annum from the date on which the 
property was taken possession of to the date of payment of 
such excess, and the amount deposited in the Court shall 
be paid immediately to the owner. 
 
9. (1) Where any immovable prop erty has been sold  in 
execution of a decree or order of a Court or by an officer 
acting under the authority of any statute, or decree or order  
of a Court for a price exceeding the standard price specified 
in section 5 together with such increase over that price as is  
permissible under section 6, the District Collector or any  
person having an interest in such property, may, within thirty 
Taking 
possession of 
property and 
reference to 
subordinate 
Judge‟s Court. 
 
Setting aside of 
Court sales etc., 
held in 
contravention of 
the Act. 
 
[Act No. VIII of 1954]  7 
days from the date of the sale, apply to the Court or the 
officer aforesaid for setting aside the sale. 
 
 (2) Upon such application, if the Court or the officer 
aforesaid is satisfied, after such inquiry as may be deemed 
necessary, that there has been a contravention of the 
provisions of this Act, the Court or the officer aforesaid shall 
set aside the sale and order a fresh sale to be held in 
conformity with the provisions of this Act. 
 
10. If any person transfers immovable property situated in 
a notified area in contraven tion of the provisions of section 
4, he shall, on conviction, be liable to pay a fine equal to 
twice the amount by which the value of the consideration 
received by him for the transfer exceeds the price to which 
he is entitled under this Act. 
 
11. No Court shall take cognizance of an offence under  
this Act except on a complaint made by the Ditrict Collector. 
 
12. No suit, prosecution o r other legal proceeding shall  lie 
against the Governme nt or any  officer or servant of the  
Government for any act done or purpor ting or intended to  
be done in good faith under this Act. 
 
13. (1) The Government may by notification, make rules to 
carry out the purposes of this Act. 
 
 (2) In particular and without prejudice to the  generality 
of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for — 
 
  (a) the form of the register of new and reconstructed 
buildings to be maintained under this Act; 
 
  (b) the manner of service of notices under this Act; 
 
Penalty. 
 
Cognizance of 
offences. 
 
Bar of certain 
proceedings. 
 
Power to make 
rules. 
 
8  [Act No. VIII of 1954] 
  (c) the procedure to be followed in holding inquiries 
under this Act; 
 
  (d) the powers and duties of office rs exercising any  
functions under this Act and procedure to be followed b y 
them; and 
 
  (e) the removal of any difficulty arising in giving effect 
to the provisions of this Act. 
 
 (3) All rules made under this section shall be  laid for  
not less than fourteen days before 6[both the Houses of the 
State Legislature,] as soon as possible  after they are made, 
and shall be subject to such modifications, whether by way 
of repeal or amendment, as 6[the State Legislature]  may 
make during the session in which they are laid. 
 
* * * 
                                                           
6. Substituted for the words “the Legislative Assembly of the State ” and 
“that Assembly” respectively by Act XI of 1960. 

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