The Schedule to the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 contains a specific provision in Article 12 mentioning the stamp duty payable on 'arbitration awards'. Sections 33 and 35 of the Stamp Act are thus attracted if the award is not stamped or is insufficiently stamped.

2)Court where the execution is pending itself can require the stamp duty to be fixed on the award.

The amount of cash prize received by winners is exempted under section 10(17) of Income

Tax Act 1961.

In computing the total income of a previous year of any person, any income falling within any of the following clauses shall not be included— Section 10(17A)

i) Any payment made whether in cash or in kind under any awards instituted in the public interest by the Central or State government or instituted by any other body and approved by the central government in this behalf shall be fully exempted;

ii) Any other reward given by the Central or state government for such purposes as may be approved by the Central government in this behalf in public interest shall also be fully exempted.

This has to be in accordance with the stamp duty prescribed by the state stamp duty act. In some states like MP the award itself has to be printed on a stamp paper. An objection as to insufficiency of stamp duty is a curable defect,moreover its ultimate burden falls on the JD himself if award is allowed with cost.