ALL MANIPUR FOREST DEPARTMENT EMPLOYEES ASSOCIATION Vs. PRINCIPAL, CHIEF CONSERVATOR AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) UPON hearing the learned counsel on both sides, it appears to me that the present writ Petitioner, namely "All Manipur Forest Department Employees Association and Workers Union sought for enforcement of the fundamental and other legal rights of a considerable number of lowly paid daily wage earners, namely casual employees or workers of certain categories like casual Khalasi, saw operators, casual peons, casual mali, casual animal attendants, casual chowkidar, casual LDC, casual animal watchers and casual forest guards working under the Forest Deptt., Govt. of Manipur, numbering 71 (seventy one) initially and later on Anr. 29 (twenty nine) more employees/workers listed in Annexure A/1 (1) to A/1 (13) to the writ petition and, for a direction to the Respondents to regularise the employment or the absorption in regular services in respect of the deserving aggrieved employees/workers of the Forest Deptt. after making feasible scheme or otherwise.

(2.) ACCORDING to the writ Petitioner, 71 + 29 =100 casual employees/workers are all qualified and eligible for regular appointment to corresponding substantive and temporary posts in the Forest Deptt., Govt. of Manipur who have been serving for a long period ranging from 15 years to not less than 3 years now as reflected in the document marked Annexure A/ 1(1) to A/l(l 3) to the writ petition. The date of their initial appointment/employment has been based on the orders of such appointment/ employment issued by the competent authorities of the Forest Deptt.. The writ petition is being field by the Petitioner/Union which is a Trade Union formed by the employees and workers of the Forest Deptt., Govt. of Manipur and registered under the Indian Trade Union Act, 1926 and affiliated to the Hind Mazdpor Kisan Panchayat, Bombay in order to ventilate the grievances of the aforesaid employees/workers. These daily rated employees/workers are employed in the Forest Deptt. to tackle the ever -increasing works and ever expanding schemes, plans and programmes of development taken up by the Department and State Govt. in the fields of conservation of forests, afforestation, protection of the flora and fauna, besides extradition of forest produces. Tremendous importance and high priority for development of forest wealth have now been given by the nation as a whole and the need for man -power to work at the grass -roots of the official hierarchy has increasingly been felt to implement various programmes of such devolvement and to achieve the avowed object of the Nation in general and of the State of Manipur in particular. It is also the case of the writ Petitioner that, although these daily wage earners have been in service/employment for more than 3 years in some cases, for more than 15 years in some other cases, they have not yet been absorbed on regular basis in the Department despite their legitimate demands and schemes in this behalf nor is there till now any beneficial scheme of the Department for the absorption and regularisation of the services of those employees. In the other Departments like PWD and others, where numerous casual workers and daily rated employees are in service for a number of years, appropriate arrangement have already been made and taken up either, suo moto or on the direction given by this Court for their absorption or regularisation of such workers/employees who are similarly situated with the present employees/workers of the Forest Deptt., on whose behalf and for whose benefit this writ petition is being filed.

(3.) THE case of the writ Petitioner is contested by the Respondents by filing affidavit -in -opposition and, contending inter -alia, that such workers/employees are hired on temporary/ casual/MR basis and regularisation of such employees/workers for menial and temporary piece meal works under the Deptt. will be quite expensive and it shall deprive all the other fellow -workers of a chance of earning their minimum requirement for livelihood. As per the sanctioned schemes approved by the Govt. of India/Govt. of Manipur also, there is no provision for paying more than the minimum wages prescribed by them. According to the Respondents, a good number of Malis are hired on casual/MR basis every year by the Deptt. for raising seedlings, planting seedlings in the field and, if such Malis are to be paid equal pay like those of regular employees, the Department shall not be able to implement any of the development programmes as it cannot achieve more than 1 /4th of the work sanctioned and the nature of field work of the Department is entirely different from those of the Department like PHED and PWD etc. and cannot be put at par or cannot be equated with each other.