FISHERMEN CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETY Vs. STATE OF TELANGANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Challenge in all these Writ Petitions is to the G.O.Ms.No.6 dated 24.3.2016 issued by the first respondent-Animal Husbandry and Dairy Development and Fisheries Department of the State of Telangana.

(2.) Since the grievance of the petitioners in all the Writ Petitions, more or less, is one and the same, they are being disposed of by this common order. For the sake of convenience, I refer to the facts of the case as pleaded in W.P.No.6256 of 2021.

(3.) The case of the petitioners is that all the petitioners are fishermen cooperative societies and they are solely depending on fishing operations to eke out their livelihood. All the tanks of the respective societies are rain fed tanks and no perennial water supply to the tanks. Thus the tanks are rain fed and not long seasonal water spread area. All the petitioner societies are under the supervision and control of the Department of Fisheries and are governed under the provisions of the Telangana State Cooperative Societies Act, 1964. The second respondent issued a Circular Memo No.26130/1(1)/83, dated 23.12.1983 specifying the viability norms for each member. As per the said Circular, One Hectare (2.47 acres) of long seasonal water spread area is taken as a viable unit to a member of a Cooperative Society. While so, the first respondent, ignoring the prevailing facts and circumstances, has issued G.O.Ms.No.6 dated 24.3.2016 fixing the viability norms as Ac.1-00 water spread area to each member in case of perennial / canal fed water sources and Ac.2-00 water spread area to each member in case of all other water sources. The first respondent constituted a Five-Men committee to determine the viability norms for organization / bifurcation / enrollment of new members of Fishermen Cooperative Societies in the State of Telangana. The said Five-Men committee said to have examined the matter in respect of existing norms in Memo No.26129/1(1)/83, dated 23.12.1983 and submitted a report that due to construction of various projects under Jalayagnam and Mission Kakatiya, every water body has changed its seasonality and potentiality and adopting to do management practices by the fishermen and the productivity of all water sources also to be increased into many folds. It is also submitted to uphold the circular instructions and to set aside the G.O.No.6.