VIKAS RAWAT Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioners are Forest Range Officers, now promoted as Assistant Conservator of Forests, under the Uttarakhand State Forest Services. They are seeking their inclusion in the State Forest Services as defined under Sec. 2(g) of The Indian Forest Service (Recruitment) Rules, 1966, so that they can be considered for promotion against 30 vacant posts of Deputy Conservator of Forests, a service under the Central Government.

(2.) Sec. 2(g) defines "State Forest Service" to inter-alia mean: "(i) any such service in a State, being a service connected with forestry and the members thereof having gazetted status, as the Central Government may, in consultation with the State Government, approve for the purpose of these rules."

(3.) It is not in dispute that the service being performed by the petitioners is connected with forestry and it is specifically asserted in paragraph-6 of the writ petition that vide a Gazette Notification dtd. 21/9/1995 the post of Forest Range Officer was categorized as "Gazetted Service".