LILY PATRA Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE present writ petition has been filed with the following prayers:

(2.) PETITIONER 's case in a nutshell is that after being duly selected she was engaged as Swechha Sevi Sikshya Sahayak on 9.3.2005. Since the date of her engagement, the petitioner has been discharging her duty to the utmost satisfaction of all concerned. She belongs to S.T. category. An untrained candidate belonging to S.T. category was engaged as Swechha Sevi Sikshya Sahayak in relaxation of her qualification as per the resolution dated 10.1.2008 issued by the Government of Odisha in Department of School and Mass Education laying down certain conditions of service for engagement of Swechha Sevi Sikshya Sahayak and the recruitment procedure. From 10.1.2008, 'Swechha Sevi Sikshya Sahayaks' were called as 'Sikshya Sahayaks'. As per Clause-10 of the said resolution, Sikshya Sahayaks, after completion of three years of continuous satisfactory engagement, will be appointed as Junior Teachers by the Zilla Parishad on contractual basis. Further, as per Clause- 12.1 of the said resolution, a Junior Teacher after completion of three years of continuous satisfactory engagement, will be eligible for appointment as regular Primary School teacher. Accordingly, after completion of three years of satisfactory service, the petitioner was engaged as Junior Teacher. On 09.11.2009, the Government in School and Mass Education Department passed a resolution laying down certain service conditions for appointment of regular Primary School teachers from among the eligible Junior Teachers. As per Clause- 2.1 of the said resolution, a Sikshya Sahayak, after completion of six years satisfactory engagement as Sikshya Sahayak and Junior Teacher taken together, shall be eligible for appointment as regular Primary School teacher under Zilla Parishad. The petitioner completed six years of service as Sikshya Sahayak and Junior Teacher taken together on 5.3.2011. As per the policy decision of the Government, the petitioner is eligible for appointment as regular Primary School teacher on or after 9.3.2011. However, the Government by another resolution dated 1.8.2011 provided for career advancement policy of Sikshya Sahayak/Junior Teacher. As per Clause-4 of the said resolution the trained Junior Teachers after completion of three years of continuous satisfactory engagement as such under Zilla Parishad may be eligible for appointment as regular Primary School teacher by the Zilla Parishad on the basis of the number of vacancy to be transferred from the existing District Cadre to the Zilla Parishad cadre and subject to fulfilling the conditions mentioned in the said resolution. Further as per Clause-4.1 of the said resolution, a Sikshya Sahayak/Junior Teacher having training qualification after completion of six years of continuous satisfactory engagement as Sikshya Sahayak and Junior Teacher taken together, shall be eligible for appointment as regular Primary School Teacher. From 19.10.2011 the Government clarified the position that the Sikshya Sahayaks/Junior Teachers, who are eligible as per the conditions laid down in Annexures- 4 and 5, are eligible for appointment as Primary School Teachers under the Zilla Parishad. In-so-far-as the Ganjam District is concerned, 1300 Primary School Teachers were transferred from School and Mass Education Department to Zilla Parishad for appointment as regular Primary School Teachers from among the eligible Sikshya Sahayaks/Junior Teachers. Resolution dated 10.1.2008 under Annexure-2 was issued in supercession of earlier resolutions dated 31.5.2006, 12.10.2006 and 14.11.2007. According to the petitioner, for appointment as Sikshya Sahayak the eligibility criteria is that a candidate must have passed HSC/ +2 Examination and C.T. Examination and B.A./B.Sc./B.Com and B.Ed. Examination for B.Ed. candidates. But there was a relaxation for SC & ST candidates that untrained +2 candidates can be engaged as Sikshya Sahayak in case of unavailability of CT/B.Ed. trained candidate of that category. Since the petitioner belongs to ST category, she was engaged as Sikshya Sahayak though she was untrained. As per notification under Annexure-2, the petitioner deserves for appointment as regular Primary School Teacher on completion of six years of satisfactory service as Sikshya Sahayak and Junior Teacher. But when the case of Junior Teachers of Ganjam District were taken into consideration for appointment as regular Primary School Teachers, case of the petitioner was not taken into account, by misrepresenting Resolutions dated 19.10.2011 and 26.12.2011 passed under Annexures-5 and 6 respectively. The only ground for non-consideration of the petitioner's case for appointment as regular Primary School Teacher is that she being an untrained candidate cannot be appointed as regular Primary School Teacher.

(3.) MR . Rath, learned Standing Counsel appearing on behalf of Opp. Parties submitted that the writ petition is not maintainable as the relief prayed for by the petitioner in the writ petition relates to recruitment to the post of regular Primary School Teacher which is a civil post and the Orissa Administrative Tribunal is vested with the jurisdiction, powers, authority and matters concerning recruitment to any civil service of the State or to any civil post under the State. Mr. Rath further submitted that this Court vide judgment dated 26.7.2011 passed in W.P.(c) No.18915 of 2011 held that regular Primary School Teacher's post is a civil post. Therefore, the proper remedy available to the petitioner is to approach the Orissa Administrative Tribunal.