VYSHAK P. Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Ms Arunaa learned Counsel for the petitioners; Ms Mary Beena Joseph learned Senior Government Pleader for the State; Mr P C Sasidharan learned Standing Counsel for the Kerala Public Service Commission, and Mr P M Johny learned Standing Counsel for the Kerala Water Authority.

(2.) The petitioners in the writ petition are candidates who applied for selection and appointment to the post of Surveyor Grade II in the Kerala Water Authority (KWA) in pursuance of the notification issued by the Kerala Public Service Commission (KPSC) dtd. 30/12/2023. The petitioners are aggrieved by the rejection of the candidature of the petitioners by the Kerala Public Service Commission after they were short listed.

(3.) The learned Counsel for the petitioners submits that a committee was constituted by including experts from each Branch to assess the equivalency and higher qualification to various courses conducted by the Department of Technical Education and the NTC/KGCE/NCVT/THSLC courses. Based on their recommendation, a report was prepared by the State Institute of Technical Teachers' Training and Research (SITTTR). The expert opinion in Ext.P12 would suggest that the Diploma in Civil Engineering is a higher qualification to ITI in Surveyor Trade and KGCE Civil Engineering. SITTTR is an institution that revises the curriculum of existing Diploma and certificate programs. They are experts in this field and are the most appropriate body to determine the courses that are higher in qualification for the ITI Surveyor trade.