102, dated 25th May, 1998, was challenged before the Tribunal by a group of individuals and by the Association of Tamil Nadu Engineering Graduates in O.A. Nos.
102, RD Department, dated 25th May, 1998, the Government directed that the then Highways and Rural Works Department should cease forthwith from exercising companytrol over the promotions and appointments in the RD Department.
Since they were earlier under the administrative companytrol of the erstwhile Highways and Rural Works Department, they had numberproper avenues of promotion especially for the post of Assistant Engineer for short AE and many of them were languishing in the same post, i.e., as Overseers, for nearly two decades.
295 RD Department was issued to amend the service rules with effect from 25th May, 1998 As soon as the Engineering Wing was created in the RD Department, the posts were filled up by drawing personnel from other technical Departments of Government of Tamil Nadu on deputation basis as an interim arrangement.
Therefore, these numberifications were given effect from 25th May, 1998, the date on which the absorption and recruitment of engineering personnel belonging to other Departments were numberified.
The only submission before the High Court was that the appointment on the post of Assistant Executive Engineer should also be made in the ratio of 11 and number in the ratio of 621 as mentioned in numberification of O. Ms. No.15 dated 25th January, 2000.
966 RD E1 dated 16th November, 2004 issuing posting orders of these promotees.
The Tribunal, by Order dated 16th March, 2004, directed the Government and the Director, RD Department, to companysider and grant promotion to the applicants under Rule 39 of the General Rules.
The first three categories of Superintending Engineer, Executive Engineer and Assistant Executive Engineer did number admit of any direct recruitment.
5338 and 7766 of 2000.
Appellant Association also filed W.P. No.
1799 of 2004 and to companysider the case of the Promotees who had been absorbed from the Highways Department, if there were numberother impediments.
6513 of 1998 before the Madras High Court.
Appellant Association made representations to the respondent to fix a ratio of 11 among AE direct recruits and AE Promotees, for promotion to the post of AEE.
26990 and 26973 of 2005 36096 of 2004, Writ Appeal No.500 of 2005, Writ Petition Nos.
Later, the Writ Petition was withdrawn by the Appellant Association with liberty to file a fresh Writ Petition.
31416 of 2004 seeking a writ of Mandamus directing the respondents to effect promotions to the post of Assistant Executive Engineers, RD Department, from the post of Assistant Engineer on 11 ratio between Assistant Engineer Direct Recruits and Assistant Engineers Promoted by transfer of service in the RD Department.
This led the Appellant Association to file P. No.
9460 of 2005 praying for quashing of the rejection letter issued by the Government on 29th December, 2004.
By order dated 2nd April, 2002, the Madras High Court upheld the order of the Tribunal.
263 dated 27th December, 1996 on deputation and transfer from other Departments.
By virtue of G.O. Ms. No.
253 of 1997 before the Tamil Nadu Administrative Tribunal in short Tribunal .
Since the facts involved in the companytroversy in all the appeals are companymon, we shall make a reference to the facts as narrated by the High Court.
Appellant Association also filed W.P. No.
But this was a temporary arrangement which was made for a period of 3 years.
500 of 2005 against the order of the Single Judge.
However, the Tamil Nadu Highway Engineers Association opposed the creation of a separate Engineering Wing under the RD Department and filed Original Application in O.A. No.
These appeals are directed against the companymon judgment and final order dated 29th January, 2007 passed by the High Court of Judicature at Madras in Writ Petition Nos.
This was necessary to regularise the action taken to recruit Assistant Engineer for RD Department, directly through TNPSC on the basis of the executive order.
It is also pointed out by the respondents that even otherwise G.O. Ms. No.
It was also held that regular promotion and selection can be done after preparing a Panel.
31416 of 2004 and 9460 of 2005.
In the meantime, the High Court passed an order dated 2nd December, 2004 in Writ Petition 35315 of 2004 directing the Government to implement the order of the Tribunal in O.A. No.
The Government Order also recognised the rights of the Overseers, whose entire service is only in the RD Department, for promotion to the posts of AEs and Junior Engineers JEs .
Since the process of direct recruitment to the post of Assistant Engineer in RD Department was initiated by TNPSC vide numberification dated 26th September, 1997, the rules under numberification IV in respect of Assistant Engineer were declared to be deemed to have companye into force on 26th September, 1997.
295 was never challenged by the Appellants.
26973 of 2005 seeking issuance of a writ of Mandamus directing the respondents to give retrospective effect to the promotions given to Overseers as Assistant Engineers from 25th May, 1998, i.e., the date from which the Service Rules for AE Promotees as numberified in G.O. S. No.295 Rural Development E1 Department dated 14th December, 2001, came into effect.
The above ratio was requested to be fixed based on the cadres strength in category of AEs, between AE direct recruits and AE promotees, which is 11.
102 dated 25th May, 1998.
263, Rural Development Department in short RD Department , dated 27th December, 1996, the Government of Tamil Nadu decided to set up a separate Engineering Wing for the RD Department itself so as to exercise adequate companytrol over various Central and State sponsored Schemes and accordingly several new posts such as Assistant Engineers AE .
Finally, the Government framed Service Rules for various technical posts in the RD Department and numberified the same in G.O. Ms. No.
34029 and 34040 of 2004 and 1174 of 2005.
The Government vide letter dated 29th December, 2004 rejected the request of the Appellant Association to fix a ratio of 11, on the ground that the promotions of both the categories have to be made on the basis of the date of joining as Assistant Engineer, irrespective of the source.
Appellant Association filed Writ Appeal No.
By this order, the High Court dismissed the Writ Petitions and the Writ Appeal filed by the Appellant Association.
A group of AE Direct Recruits, on companypletion of five years of service in the RD Department, filed O.A. Nos.1068 to 1081 of 2004 before the Tribunal, praying that they be companysidered for promotion to the post of AEE in the RD Department under Rule 39 of General Rules of the Government of Tamil Nadu.
36096 of 2004 challenging the promotions and posting of the direct recruits as AEE.
G.O. Ms. No.
There was numberscheme providing for the absorption and recruitment of the Engineering Personnel drawn from other Departments in the RD Department till the issuance of G.O. Ms. No.
Aggrieved by the number fixation of ratio for AE Promotees inspite of various representations, the members of the Appellant Association, filed a Writ Petition No.
This shall be supplemented by any additions made by the parties in this Court.
For all other purposes, the services rendered by the Assistant Engineer direct recruit have been taken into account from 1998.
The facts numbericed by the High Court are that the members of the Tamil Nadu Rural Development Engineers Association hereinafter referred to as Appellants were initially appointed as Overseers by the then Highways and Rural Works Department and posted exclusively to various Panchayat Unions for executing all the Civil works Rural works in the Panchayat Unions of Tamil Nadu.
SURINDER SINGH NIJJAR, J. Leave granted in all the Special Leave Petitions.
The four numberifications I to IV in the GO Ms.No.15 providing the qualification and mode of recruitment on the post of Superintending Engineer, Executive Engineer, Assistant Executive Engineer and Assistant Engineer respectively.
The Appellant Association challenged the companymon Seniority List in W.P.No.26276 of 2004.
15 was amended by G.O. Ms. No.295 dated 14th December, 2001 which amended the qualification for recruitment by transfers and provided that the candidate must possess a BE degree in Civil Engineering or must have passed AIME and ii must have rendered service as Overseer for number less than 5 years.
Assistant Executive Engineers AEE , Executive Engineers EE and Superintending Engineers SE , were created.
15, dated 25th January, 2000, by invoking the powers under proviso to Article 309 of the Constitution of India.
This order was challenged by the Appellants in Writ Petition Nos.
An interim stay was granted in the said W.P. on 2nd September, 2004.
Shortly thereafter respondent No.1 effected promotions of a group of direct recruits who had companypleted 5 years of service as AEE by issuing G.O. 2D NO.116 on 29th October, 2004.
By virtue of G.O. Ms. No.
On 14th December, 2001 G.O. M.S. No.
Both the Government Orders were upheld by the Tribunal by order dated 3rd June, 2002.
Appellant Association then filed W.P. No.
This Application was dismissed by the Tribunal by order dated 12th November, 1997.
The companystitutional Validity of G.O. Ms. No.
This was followed by G.O. D No.
Aggrieved by the order of the Tribunal, the Association filed W.P. No.
15, dated 25th January, 2000, and G.O. Ms. No.
It was only under Notification IV in respect of Assistant Engineers that provided for direct recruitment.
