STATE OF ODISHA Vs. SURYOKANTA DWIBEDI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In these writ petitions common prayer has been made and as such the same are being disposed of by this common order.

(2.) The state of Orissa has approached this court invoking the extraordinary jurisdiction conferred under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India wherein the orders passed by the Tribunal in O.A. Nos. 947 of 2012, 271 of 2013 and 929 of 2012 are under challenge whereby and where under the Tribunal has passed the order directing the State - Respondent to consider the case of the applicants for their appointments for the post of contractual pharmacists under general stream as per their eligibility and thereafter be regularized as per rule after 6 years of completion of contractual service without quashing the advertisement which was impugned in those original applications.

(3.) The brief fact of the case is that the applicants who are working as contractual pharmacists in different Mobile Health Units under the administrative control of Chief District Medical Officer, Sundargarh, Sambalpur have preferred original applications to quash the advertisement dated 25.7.2012, 27.7.2012 and 19.1.2013, respectively, so far as it relates to filling up the posts of Pharmacists from the open market is concerned and for a direction to the State - respondents not to fill up the regular vacant posts of Pharmacists on contractual basis from the open market other than the applicants without leave of the Tribunal and appoint the applicants against regular advertised vacant posts of Pharmacists under the general stream on contract basis as per the policy decision of the Govt. The applicants were initially appointed/engaged as Pharmacists in different Mobile Health Units against newly created posts for different PHC/CHCs since 2009. The Government of Odisha, in Health and Family Welfare Department/respondent No. 1, in order to facilitate the mobile health unit staff, took a policy decision vide circular dated 26.11.2001 and subsequent circular dated 25.1.2002 for giving preference to the Pharmacists those who have served for three years or more while filling up the contractual posts of Pharmacists under the general stream in view of their long experience in the health organization. The authorities, in consultation with the Finance Department, have taken a policy decision by issuing the resolution vide order No. 24160 dated 29.10.2008 for regularizing contractual Pharmacists including the MHU pharmacists in the regular establishments those who have completed six years of contractual service by converting the contractual vacant post to regular one. The Government, in the resolution dated 13.5.2013, with the concurrence of the Finance Department, also took a policy decision for regular absorption of contractual pharmacists who have completed uninterrupted contractual service of six years in MHU. When the applicants came to know about regular vacant posts of pharmacists under the administrative control of the CDMO, Sundargarh, they have made representation before the authority for allowing them to continue in the available regular vacant post of pharmacists on contract basis on seniority basis in order to be regularization of their services in future in view of the Government policy decision. At that juncture, the CDMO, Sundargarh, issued an advertisement on 27.7.2012 by inviting applications from eligible candidates from the open market for filling up eight nos. of regular vacant posts of pharmacists of different category lying vacant under different PHCs/CHCs of Sundargarh district.