LAWS(DLH)-1991-10-55

H B VERMA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

Decided On October 29, 1991
H.B.VERMA Appellant
V/S
UNION OF INDIA Respondents

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this batch of seven writ petitions, the petitioners, who are engaged in the business of stone quarrying, have challenged the validity of the Notification dated 27 September 1985, issued by the Government of India in the Ministry of Labour, under clause (a) of section 3(1) read with clause (iii) of section 4(1) and section 5( ) of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 (for short `the Act'). By this notification the Central Government fixed minimum piece rate of wages of the employees doing the work of stone breaking or stone crushing at the rate of Rs. 71.00 for a truck load of 150 cubic feet. The notification was limited to the size of the broken stone between 5 inches to 8 inches. The petitioners contend that the notification has not been issued in terms of the requirements of the Act and further that the same is discriminatory and violative of Articles. 14 and 19(l)(g) of the Constitution, and, thus, beyond the competence of the Central Government.

(2.) At the time when these writ petitions were admitted, this Court, on the application of the petitioners seeking interim relief, passed the following order on 20 August 1986 :-

(3.) We are not quite sure as to how the figure of Rs. 47/. per day has been arrived at. Though the notification fixed the wages of piece rate basis, the interim order talks of minimum wages on daily basis. We were, however, told by the learned counsel for the petitioners that two labourers would be able to break stones of the size mentioned in the notification of the volume of 200 cubic ft. in a day and if wages of Rs. 7l.00 was fixed for the volume of 150 cubic ft., for 200 cubic ft. the amount of wages would be Rs. 94.00 , meaning thereby that each labourer would be getting Rs. 47.00 for his labour each day. This, however, did not appear to us to be quite appropriate as the wages fixed on piece rate basis cannot be equated with daily wages as piece rate worker may work more to earn moie and he need not be confined to any specific hours of work. The impugned notification recites that earlier as per the provisions of the Act a notification had been published for information and for inviting objections and suggestions from all persons likely to be affected thereby. These objections and suggestions were duly considered and thereafter the impugned notification w. S made The notification fixes minimum rates of wages payable to the employees for piece work done by them in stone mines in the Faridabad District in the State of Haryana. The notification came into force on the date of its publication in the Official Gazette.