Junior civil engineer posts in state water resources dept: HC dismisses plea of engg degree holders against MAT order

Nearly 53,000 diploma holders had applied for 500 posts of junior civil engineers and 33,000 of them had appeared for exams.

The bench accepted state government’s submissions opposing the plea made through senior advocate Ram Apte and advocate Harshal P Nahata and observed that “merely because a degree in civil engineering might be a higher qualification than a diploma, it would not interpret provisions of rules and direct state government to consider candidates who are not eligible”.

A division bench of Acting Chief Justice Sanjay V Gangapurwala and Justice Sandeep V Marne passed a judgment on a plea by 610 civil engineering degree holders argued through advocates Neeta Karnik and Sandesh Waghmare, challenging an advertisement dated July 22, 2019 issued by the state Water Resources department for filling up junior engineer (civil) group-B (non-gazetted) posts.

The advertisement prescribed eligibility criteria of ‘Diploma in Civil Engineering or recognised Part-time or Distance Education equivalent to a three year diploma in Civil Engineering.”

The MAT dismissed the original application by petitioners on July 5, 2022, prompting the petitioners to approach the HC.

The petitioners referred to the Recruitment Rules, 1998 of the Public Works and Irrigation Departments. Advocate Karnik argued that the Tribunal had ignored that the degree holders were also deemed to be included in the eligibility criteria for appointment to the post of Junior Engineers. She added Model Recruitment Rules provided that candidates holding higher qualification than minimum educational qualification are also considered to be eligible.

However, the state government opposed the plea and said that the MAT order was justified as the Recruitment Rules are required to be scrupulously observed. The government said the Rules permitted only Diploma holders to participate in the direct recruitment process and the word “degree in Civil Engineering’ were absent in the Rules and court cannot set aside the MAT order.

The bench accepted the state’s submissions and noted that “it cannot be contended that the provisions of Recruitment Rules would be rendered redundant if degree holders are held ineligible for being appointed as Junior Engineer.

It also noted that the petitioners had not challenged provisions of 1998 Rules before the MAT and the HC “would not be in a position to read something which is missing in the Recruitment Rules.”

It added that the MAT did not commit error in dismissing petitioner’s application and therefore their challenge to the same was “devoid of merits and stand dismissed.”

After petitioners sought the interim order by which the court had stayed the declaration of results to be continued, the bench allowed it for a period of two weeks and thereafter the relief granted shall come to an end.

“Welfare state is a guardian of every fragment of society and makes necessary reservations to uplift and provide sustainable opportunities to all sections. Diploma holders being subordinate in qualification are always on the sidelines when it comes to good employment opportunities and even statistically, compared to degree holders, job avenues available for diploma holders in the public-private space are limited. Even MPSC or a Higher cadre post would require Degree holder candidates. The High Court’s verdict was not just in consonence with rationality of law and rules but has also sustained social-legal rights of diploma holders and highlighted the prominence of the law of natural justice,” advocate Nahata said.