PRABHAWATI KUMARI Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Appeal preferred by the writ petitioner arises from the order dated 24th November, 2011 made by the learned Single Judge in C.W.J.C. No. 20262 of 2011. The matter at dispute is the appointment of Lady Supervisors under the Integrated Child Development Programme in the district of West Champaran, Bettiah. Pursuant to the advertisement No. 1 of 2010 issued by the District Magistrate, West Champaran, Bettiah, the appellant applied for appointment as Lady Supervisor. Her candidature was rejected on the premise that she had secured qualification of Madhyama (equivalent to that of SSC) from Bihar Sanskrit Shiksha Board. Feeling aggrieved, the appellant made representation to the Divisional Commissioner, Tirhut Division, Muzaffarpur. The Divisional Commissioner, under his order dated 11th August, 2011 addressed to the District Magistrate, West Champaran, Bettiah, observed that for appointment as Lady Supervisor, the Anganwari Sevika needs to have the qualification of Matric or equivalent. The "Madhyama" awarded by the Bihar Sanskrit Shiksha Board was equivalent to Matric. The Bihar Sanskrit Shiksha Board was not included in the list of non-recognized institutions. The "Madhyama" awarded by the Bihar Sanskrit Shiksha Board should, therefore, be accepted as a valid qualification. The said direction appears to have been ignored by the District Magistrate, West Champaran, Bettiah. The appellant, therefore, approached this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution in C.W.J.C. No. 20262 of 2011 for a direction that she be treated as qualified for appointment as Lady Supervisor. The learned single Judge has rejected the petition. Therefore, this Appeal.

(2.) Learned advocate Mr. Praveen Kumar has appeared for the appellant. He has relied upon the advertisement No. 1 of 2010 and the Supervisor Employment Guidelines, 2010 (hereinafter referred to as "the 2010 Guidelines"). The advertisement No. 1 of 2010 has been issued in the terms of the 2010 Guidelines. Under the 2010 Guidelines, the appointment of Lady Supervisors can be made either by direct selection or by appointment of Anganwari Sevika. 25% posts are reserved for appointment from amongst Anganwari Sevikas who possess the qualification of Matric or equivalent and who have worked as Anganwari Sevika at least for 10 years. For appointment by direct selection, a candidate is required to possess Bachelor's degree from a recognized University. It also provides for bonus points in case of candidates possessing Post Graduate qualification (minimum 45%) in subjects such as Social Science, Social Work etc. We may note here that the 2010 Guidelines does not require that the persons possessing the Bachelor's degree from a recognized University shall also have the qualification of Matriculation from Statutory Board. In absence of such a requirement, the qualification of Matric or equivalent obtained by the concerned candidate pales into insignificance. A person possessing Bachelor degree awarded by a recognized University cannot be non-suited for the reason that such person had acquired a qualification equivalent to Matriculation from an institution other than a Statutory Board.

(3.) We may refer here to paragraph 5 of the 2010 Guidelines. The said paragraph 5 provides for preparation of a merit list (selection panel). For preparation of the merit list, specific weightage has been given to the qualifications; (i) Matric or equivalent; (ii) Intermediate; (iii) Graduation.