RAJESH KUMAR GUPTA Vs. STATE OF U P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Leave granted.

(2.) This group of appeals impugns the judgment of the Division Bench of the Allahabad High Court in a group of appeals challenging the correctness of the decision of the learned single Judge, who allowed a batch of writ petitions resulting in the quashing of certain Government Orders relating to selection for training of candidates for appointment as Assistant Teachers in the primary schools run by the U.P. Basic Education Board (hereinafter referred to as the Board).

(3.) The material facts relevant for disposal of this group of appeals may be summarized thus: For several years, the State of U.P. had experienced a severe shortage of teachers as a result of which it was finding it difficult to fulfill its obligations as mandated by Article 45 of the Constitution of India to provide free and compulsory education for all children up to the age of 14 years. The State Government runs a training college in each district, (about 70 in number) where the candidates are given training in teaching and on successful completion of the training are awarded a Basic Teachers Certificate (hereinafter referred to as BTC). The State Government experienced that the number of candidates turned out from these training institutions was insufficient to meet the large requirement of trained teachers required to teach in primary schools run by the Board. While the intake in the training colleges was only about 100 persons in a year, resulting in the number of trained BTC teachers in the range of 5000 to 6000 per annum, it was found that the total requirement of Assistant Teachers for teaching students in the primary schools run by the Board was in the range of about 50,000. In order to meet the shortfall, the State Government decided to impart two months special training to candidates, who had done their B.Ed./L.T. so that they could be employed as Assistant Teachers in the primary schools run by the Board. This decision was implemented by a Government Order dated 3-8-2001. Applications were called for from B.Ed./L.T. qualified candidates for selection to undergo the special BTC training after which suitable candidates would be selected and appointed as Assistant Teachers. The Government Order provided that 50% of the candidates to be selected shall be from Science stream and 50% from the Arts stream and further 50% would be female candidates and 50% would be male candidates. The Government Order also states that after the special BTC training, there would be an examination held and the selected candidates passing the examination would be interviewed and after selection would be recruited as Assistant Teachers in the primary schools of the districts and regions where there was deficiency of teachers. There was a restrictive condition in the Government Order dated 3-8-2001 that candidates were eligible to make applications only against the vacancies available in their home district and that, if a candidate applied for two or more districts, such applications were liable to be rejected. There was a detailed manner of selection for training on the basis of quality point marks obtained in the various examinations passed by the candidates. The Government Order stated that those candidates who successfully completed the special BTC training shall be treated on par with the BTC general trained candidates and become eligible for appointment to the vacant posts of Assistant Teacher for primary schools.