Bal Raj Tuli, J. - (1.) THIS judgment will dispose of Civil Writ 1967 (Kishore Chand and Ors. v. State of Punjab and Ors.) and Civil Writ No. 412 of 1967 (Kundan Singh and Ors. v. State of and Ors.), Civil Writ No. 395 of 1967 is by the weighmen of Market Committee, Abohar, while Civil Writ No. 412 of 1967 is by the weighmen of Market Committee. Fazilka. As common questions of law and fact arise in both the petitions, they are being disposed of together.
(2.) THE Petitioners are weighmen in the market areas of the respective market committees. They have obtained licences as weighmen under the Punjab Agricultural Produce Markets Act, 1961. (Punjab Act 23 of 1961), hereinafter referred to as the Act. Section 43(1) of the Act authorises the State Government to make rules by notification for carrying out the purposes of the Act. The State Government made the Punjab Agricultural Produce Markets (General) Rules, 1962 (hereinafter referred to as the rules). By Rule 25 the State Agricultural Marketing Board is authorised to fix standards of net weights of agricultural produce to be filled in a packing unit, such as a bag, a half bag or a palli within each notified market area. In exercise of that power the Board in its meeting held on 4th of April, 1963, fixed various standards of filling for several commodities. As regards cotton, palli (40 kilograms) and half palli (20 kilograms) were prescribed.' On 31st of December, 1963, the Board issued another circular by which the half palli (20 kilograms) was abolished with effect from 7th of January, 1964. This circular abolishing half palli has been challenged as violative of the fundamental right of the Petitioners under Article 19(1) (g) of the Constitution of India and a prayer has been made for quashing it. This matter was considered by me in Hdkam Rai and Ors. v. State of Punjab and Ors. C.W. 2551 of 1966 decided on 11th November, 1968 and I held as under: In my opinion the framing of such a bye -law is within the power of the Board and under Rule 25 the standard packing unit for an agricultural commodity can be prescribed. In the case of cotton, the standard of packing unit prescribed is a palli of 40 kilograms and if the weighmen are required to weigh cotton by that unit, it in no way interferes with the carrying on of their profession of weighing. It appears to me that the idea behind prescribing the unit of 40 kilograms is to lessen the chances of overweighment or underweighment so that the agriculturists who bring their produce to the Mandi do not suffer. If any agricultural commodity is weighed in email quantities, there is every -chance of overweighment to the prejudice of the agriculturists. The weighment is to be made on. a beam scale and the weight of 40 kilograms is not a heavy weight, nor is it impossible for a labourer to carry it on to the top of the heap of cotton as has been represented. It may also be noted that there are not always huge heaps of cotton in the Mandis. The Act and the rules have been made in order to regulate the trading business carried on in the market committees and it is not possible for this Court to determine in minute details whether the unit prescribed is fair or not. It is primarily for the authorities under the Act who are experienced in the line to prescribe the units. No. new argument has been advanced by the learned Counsel for the Petitioners in support of his plea on this point. I, therefore, find no merit in this point in view of my judgment cited above. The other point canvassed in the petitions is that the remuneration prescribed for the Petitioners is not reasonable and does not give a living wage to them. It has been contended that Section 44 of the Act is ultra vires the Constitution as being violative of Articles 14 and 19(1) (f) and (g) of the Constitution. By this section a market committee has been given the power to make bye -laws, in respect of its notified market area for - (i) the regulation of its business; (ii) the conditions of trading; (iii) the appointment and punishment of its employees; (iv) the payment of salaries, gratuities and leave allowances to such employees; (v) the delegation of power; or duties, to the Sub -Committee or Joint -Committee or ad hoc Committee or any one or more of its members under Section 19; and (vi) the remuneration of different functionaries not specifically mentioned in this Act, working in the notified market area and rendering any service in connection with the sale, purchase, storage and processing of agricultural produce. It has been contended by the learned Counsel that the power given to a market committee to make bye -laws in respect of Clause (vi) above is arbitrary and no guide -lines have been prescribed as to how that power is to be exercised. No provision has been made to consult the weighmen, nor any right has been given to them to make a representation, nor have they been given any right of appeal or revision against the bye -laws that may be made by a market committee and, therefore, this power should be struck down. The second argument is that the remuneration fixed by the market committees in the two cases is so meagre that the Petitioners cannot make their both ends meet and they will have perforce to leave this profession of weighing which they have been carry in on for generations. It is emphasised that the fixation of a remuneration by the committee is an interference with the carrying on of their profession of weighing by the Petitioners and is not saved by Clause (6) of Article 19 of the Constitution.
(3.) WITH regard to the first argument that the power of making bye -laws prescribing the remuneration for different functionaries including the weighmen, is arbitrary and unguided, I may point out that the guidance is given in the preamble and Section 13 of the Act. The preamble reads as under: An Act to consolidate and amend the law relating to the, better regulation of the purchase, sale, storage and processing of agricultural produce and the establishment of markets for agricultural produce in the State of Punjab. Section 13 of the Act is in the following terms: 13(1) It shall be the duty of a Committee - (a) to enforce the provisions of this Act and the rules and bye -laws made thereunder in the notified market area and when so required by the Chairman of the Board, to establish a market therein providing such facilities for persons visiting it in connection with the purchase of, sale, storage, weighment and processing of agricultural produce concerned, as the Chairman of the Board may from time to time direct; (b) to control and regulate the admission to the market, to determine the conditions for the use of the market and to prosecute or confiscate the agricultural produce belonging to a person trading without a valid licence; (c) to bring, prosecute or defend or aid in bringing, prosecuting or defending any suit, action, proceeding, application or arbitration, on behalf of the Committee or otherwise when directed by the Board or the Chairman of the Board. (2) Every person licensed under Section 10 or Section 13 and every person exempted under Section 6 from taking out licence, shall on demand by the Committee or any person authorised by it in this behalf furnish such information and returns, as may be necessary for proper enforcement of the' Act or the rules and bye -laws made thereunder. (3) Subject to such rules as the State Government may make in this behalf, it shall be the duty of a Committee to issue licences to brokers, weighmen, measures, surveyors, godown -keepers and other functionaries for carrying on their occupation in the notified market area in respect of agricultural produce and to renew, suspend or cancel such licences. (4) No broker, weighmen, measurer, surveyor, godown -keeper or other functionary shall, unless duly authorised by licence, carry on his occupation in a notified market area in respect of agricultural produce: Provided that nothing in Sub -sections (3) and (4) shall apply to a person carrying on the business of ware -houseman who is licensed under the Punjab Warehouses Act, 1957 (Punjab Act No. 2 of 1958). It is thus clear that the object of the Act is to establish markets for agricultural produce and to regulate the transactions therein, so that the producers do not suffer in any way. In M.C.V.S. Arunachala Nadar v. State of Madras and Ors. : AIR 1959 S.C. 300, their Lordships observed with regard to Madras Commercial Crops Markets Act (20 of 1933), which corresponds to the Punjab Agricultural Produce Markets Act, 1961, as under: (7) With a view to provide satisfactory conditions for the growers of commercial crops to sell their produce on equal terms and at reasonable prices, the Act was passed on 25th July, 1933. The preamble introduces the Act with the recital that it is expedient to provide for the better regulation of the buying and selling of commercial crops in the Presidency of Madras and for that purpose to establish markets and make rules for their proper administration. The Act, therefore, was the result of a long exploratory investigation by experts in the field, conceived and enacted to regulate the buying and selling of commercial crops by providing suitable and regulated market by eliminating middlemen and bringing face to face the producer and the buyer so that they may meet on equal terms, thereby eradicating or at any rate reducing the scope for exploitation in dealings. Such a statute cannot be said to create unreasonable restrictions on the citizens' right to do business unless it is clearly established that the provisions are too drastic, unnecessarily harsh and overreach the scope of the object to achieve which it is enacted. 9 * * * Shortly stated, the Act, Rules and the Bye -laws framed thereunder have a long -term target of providing a net work of markets wherein facilities for correct weighment are ensured, storage accommodation is provided, and equal powers of bargaining ensured, so that the growers may bring their commercial crops to the market and sell them at reasonable prices. Till such markets are established, the said provisions, by imposing licensing restrictions, enable the buyers and sellers to meet in licensed premises, ensure correct weighment, make available to them reliable market information and provide for them a simple machinery for settlement of disputes. After the markets are built or opened by the marketing committees, within a reasonable radius from the market, as prescribed by the Rules, no licence is issued; thereafter all growers will have to resort to the market for vending their goods. The result of the implementation of the Act would be to eliminate, as far as possible, the middlemen and to give reasonable facilities for the growers of commercial crops to secure best prices for their commodities. 13 * * * * We, therefore, hold that having regard to the entire scheme of the Act, the impugned provisions of the Act constitute reasonable restrictions on a citizen's right to do business, and therefore, they are valid." The prescribing of fees to be received by various functionaries for the services rendered by them is by way of regulation of the transactions relating to the agricultural produce brought to the market area. These rates are prescribed so that the growers, who are mostly illiterate, know it beforehand what they have to pay for the various services. The remuneration of the weighmen, if reasonable, cannot be considered to be a violation of a fundamental right guaranteed by Article 19(1)(f) and (g) of the Constitution.;