SUDHIR AGARWAL, J. - (1.) ALL these writ petitions involve common questions of law and fact and, therefore, as requested by learned Counsel for the parties, they have been heard together and are being decided by this common judgment.
(2.) ALL these petitioners have sought a writ of mandamus commanding the respondents State of U.P. through Principal Secretary, Forest, Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, Conservator of Forest and Divisional Forest Officer to correct the service book of the petitioners and treat them as regularly appointed from the date of initial appointment instead of their respective date of regularization. The petitioners have also challenged the validity of Rule 7 of the U.P. Regularisation of Daily Wages Appointment on Group 'C' Posts (Outside the Purview of the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission) Rules, 1998 (hereinafter referred to as “the 1998 Rules”), alleging the same to be ultra vires and contrary to the judgment of the Apex Court in State of U.P. v. Putti Lal, 2002(2) UPLBEC 1595. The brief facts as stated in writ petition are that the petitioners appear to have been engaged on daily wage basis in the Forest Department on the following dates : S.No. Name of the petitioner Date of initial appointment 1. Ram Sukh Yadav 1-7-1997 2. Jitendra Kumar Srivastava 16-10-1989 3. Junaid Ahmad 1981 4. Awadhesh Prasad Pandey November 1975 5. Shyam Lal November 1983 6. Suresh Prasad Tripathi November 1979 7. Ram Krishna Dwivedi November 1979
(3.) THE question of continuance of daily wage employees in Forest Department for a long time drew attention of this Court in a large number of cases and the matter was decided by a Division Bench of this Court in State of U.P. v. Putti Lal, 1998(1) UPLBEC 313, wherein direction was issued to the State Government for framing a policy so as to consider regularisation of daily wage employees of Forest Department working for a long time. The State of U.P. preferred a Special Leave Petition before the Hon'ble Supreme Court and during the pendency of the matter before the Apex Court, the 1998 Rules were promulgated which were placed before the Apex Court and considering the same, the Apex Court disposed off all the petitions vide judgment dated 23-5-2001, observing that the State Government shall consider the daily wage employees of forest department for regularization in accordance with 1998 Rules. The petitioners pursuant to the aforesaid directions appear to have been considered for regularisation and have been regularised on various posts vide various orders as mentioned hereinbelow : S.No. Name of the petitioner Date of Regularisation Post on which regularisation was made 1. Ram Sukh Yadav 4-12-2001 Forester 2. Jitendra Kumar Srivastava 16-10-1989 Typist-cum-clerk 3. Junaid Ahmad 16-4-2002 Forester 4. Awadhesh Prasad Pandey 4-12-2001 Forester 5. Shyam Lal 4-12-2001 Forester 6. Suresh Prasad Tripathi 4-12-2001 Forester 7. Ram Krishna Dwivedi 4-12-2001 Forester ;