The expression "employment in stone-breaking or stone-crushing" in item 8 of Part I of the Schedule to the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, does not include stone-breaking or stone-crushing operations carried on in mines.

Judgment

GAJENDRAGADKAR, J. : This appeal arises from a writ petition filed by the appellant, Madhya Pradesh Mineral Industry Association, in which the appellant challenged the validity of the notification issued by the Madhya Pradesh State Government on 30-3-1952, under S. 5(2) of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 (11 of 1948) (hereinafter called the Act).

2. The High Court of Bombay at Nagpur dismissed the appellant s petition but has granted the appellant a certificate of fitness under Art. 133(1) (c) of the Constitution. It is with the said certificate that the present appeal has been brought to this Court.

3. The appellant is a non-profit making company limited by guarantee and registered under S. 26 of the Indian Companies Act, 1913. It has been formed with the object of protecting and promoting the interest of its members-shareholders who are engaged in the mining industry by all legitimate and constitutional means. It appears that under Art. 258 of the Constitution the President of India by notification No. S. R. O. 2052 published on 11-12-1951, entrusted Governments of certain States including the Madhya Pradesh with their consent the functions of the Central Government under the Act in so far as such functions relate to the fixation of minimum rates of wages in respect of employees employed in stone-breaking or in stone-crushing operations carried on in mines situated within their respective States. Pursuant to the said delegation the Madhya Pradesh Government issued the impugned notification purporting to act under S. 5(2) of the Act. This notification has prescribed the minimum rates of wages for employment in stone-breaking or in stone-crushing operations carried on in mines. The rates thus prescribed were inclusive of dearness allowance or compensatory cost of living allowance.

4. The Regional Labour Commissioner (Central), Nagpur, respondent 1, wrote to the appellant for the first time on 20-6-1956, stating that the State of Madhya Pradesh, respondent 2, had considered the question whether the Act was applicable to the manganese mining industry and had come to the conclusion that it was so applicable; that is why the appellant s members were asked by respondent 1 to implement the Act within a fortnight from the receipt of his letter. The appellant made several representations to respondent 1 urging that the Act was inapplicable to the manganese mining industry; nevertheless respondent 1 threatened large-scale prosecution of the appellant s members on the basis that the Act applied to them, and its provisions had been contravened by them. The appellant was thus driven to file the present petition because it alleged that it had no alternative remedy, at any rate equally speedy and efficacious, and so it was urged on its behalf that the High Court should issue a writ quashing the impugned notification as ultra vires. In its petition the appellant had also alleged that the notification issued by the President of India under Art. 258 cannot fasten upon the manganese mining industry the character of employment in stone-breaking or stone-crushing and if that was the object of the said notification it was invalid.

5. The respondents disputed the correctness of the appellant s contention that the impugned notification is invalid. It was urged on their behalf that any industry wherein the workers are employed in operations involving stone-breaking or stone-crushing is governed by the Act. In their written statement they described the details about the mining operations and contended that the mining of manganese are mainly consists of development work or the removal of over-burden, breaking of big mineral stones like boulder ore or bed ore to manageable sizes, dressing of ores to remove impurities etc. According to the respondents, having regard to the nature of the manganese mining industry the Act applied to the stone-breaking or stone-crushing operations connected with it.

6. The High Court has accepted the respondent s plea and ha