Chittatosh Mookerjee, J. - (1.) The Employees' State Insurance Corporation has preferred this appeal under section 82 of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 against the order dated 30th April, 1968 of the learned Judge, Employees' Insurance Court, West Bengal, dismissing the application made by the Corporation, inter alia, for adjudicating that the respondents as employers were liable to make employees' contribution in respect of the incentive bonus paid to their employees during the period from 1st January, 1963 to 30th June, 1965 and for recovery of Rs. 6213.01 p. from them towards the arrear contribution on account of the said payment of incentive bonus.
(2.) The principal point in this appeal, is whether the learned Judge, Employees' Insurance Court, West Bengal, was correct in holding that the incentive bonus paid by the respondent-employers during the aforesaid period was the wages as defined in section 2 (22) of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 and whether or not the respondent-employers were liable to make employees' contribution to the Fund in respect of the sums paid to their employees as incentive bonus during the period 1st January, 1963 to 30th June, 1965.
(3.) It is not disputed that during the relevant period the provisions of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 applied to the factory of the respondents and as principal employers, the respondents were required to pay in respect of their every employee both employees' contribution and employers contribution. It is also undisputed that the Government of West Bengal, Labour Department, by an order dated 6th August, 1962 had referred the industrial disputes between the employers of the engineering establishments mentioned in List-1 attached to the said order and their workmen to the 7th Industrial Tribunal. The petitioners' establishment was included in the said list attached to the reference. On 9/30th April, 1964 the learned Judge, 7th Industrial Tribunal made an interim award in respect of the said disputes between the engineering establishment was included their workmen. The learned Judge, 7th Industrial Tribunal recorded that the engineering establishments mentioned in the Schedule A of his order and their workmen had filed joint petitions stating that there were no disputes between them in respect of the issues referred for adjudication and their cases should be at once disposed of by no dispute awards Accordingly, the learned Judge made a no dispute award in respect of the establishments mentioned in the Schedule-A to his order. The learned Judge, 7th Industrial Tribunal, West Bengal, by his interim order further recorded that the engineering establishments mentioned in Schedule-A to his order and their workmen had filed petitions of compromise setting out the terms upon which the disputes between them had been amicably settled and they prayed for passing a compromise sward in those terms Accordingly, the learned Judge made an award his respect of the establishments mentioned in Schedule-B and their works in terms of the said compromise. It is undisputed that the establishment of the respondents was included in the Schedule-B attached It the said interim award the 7th Industrial Tribunal. The Part-Y of the said compromise contained the Incentive Bonus Scheme set out at pages 28 to 31, Part II of the paper book of the appeal. The said interim award of the learned Judge, 7th Industrial Tribunal was published in the extraordinary issue of the Calcutta Gazette dated 28th May, 1964.;