JUDGMENT

KAILASAM, J. :— These appeals raise the same question of law and may be dealt with together and can be disposed of by a common judgment.

2. Civil Appeal No. 652 of 1976 is filed by the Hyderabad Asbestos Cement Products Ltd. by certificate granted by the High Court of Andhra Pradesh by an order dated 2nd April, 1976. The appellant company is a factory situated at Sanatnagar where Asbestos sheets are manufactured. The company has Zonal Sales Offices in various States and in the State of Andhra Pradesh they have such Zonal Offices at Vijayawada and Vishakhapatnam. We are concerned with the Vijayawada Zonal Office. There are employees in the Zonal Office who do the work of canvassing for the sale of products manufactured in the factory located at Sanatnagar. It is contended that the Zonal Offices are establishments and are not factories and as such do not fall within the scope of the Employees State Insurance Act, 1948. The High Court negatived the contention of the appellant.

3. Civil Appeal No. 900 of 1977 is by a certificate granted by the Andhra Pradesh High Court to the appellants, M/s. Foods, Fats & Fertilisers Ltd., Tadepalligudem, West Godavari District. The appellant is having a factory at Tadepalligudem in West Godavari District where rice bran oil, alvitone and cattle food etc. are being manufactured. The appellant is also having an administrative and export office at No. 115-B N.S. C. Bose Road, from where rice bran, textile yarn etc. are exported to foreign countries. The administrative work is also carried on in the Madras office in relation to the business of the company. It was contended that the employees of the company at the Madras office are not employees under the Employees State Insurance Act, 1948. The High Court of Andhra Pradesh following its decision in W. P. No. 2907 of 1974 : (1976 Lab IC 868 (Andh Pra)) against which Civil Appeal No. 652 of 1976 is preferred, dismissed the petition and granted a certificate.

4. Civil Appeal No. 1314 of 1977 is an appeal by M/s. Union Carbide (India) Ltd. against the decision of a Bench of the Calcutta High Court in Matter No. 631 of 1973 by special leave granted by this Court. The appellant is a public limited company carrying on business in the manufacture and sales of diverse consumers products such as finished batteries, flashlights, Arc-carbons, Chemicals and Plastics and also in pesticides and processing and export of shrimp. For carrying on the business of the company the company operates factories all over India. Eight of the manufacturing units have been placed under the Calcutta General Office which is situate at 1-Middleton Street, Calcutta. According to the appellant, the Calcutta General Office of the company is concerned with Managing the affairs of the company in general and with laying down the broad policies in respect of the business of the eight factories and falls within the meaning of West Bengal Shops & Establishments Act. The High Court rejected the plea of the appellant holding that the employees in question fall under the Employees State Insurance Act.

5. Apart from the three appellants, several companies, Voltas Ltd., Hindustan Lever Ltd., Rallis India Ltd., Marck Sharp and Dohme of India Ltd., and Indian Chemical Industries were all permitted to appear as interveners.

6. The main contentions that were put forward in these appeals are that the Act maintains a distinction between a factory and an establishment and that the Zonal Offices and Branch Offices with which we are concerned in these appeals are in the nature of establishments and cannot be brought within the purview of factories. It was next contended that in order to bring an employee within the scope of the Employees State Insurance Act, he should not only be an employee within the meaning of S. 2 (9) of the Act but also that he should be an employee of a factory as defined in S. 2 (12) of the Act. It was submitted that the scheme of the Act and particularly the charging section