JUDGMENT

KRISHNA IYER, J.:— A free press can summon its flaming vigour only if its journalistic and non-journalistic wings go into full swing with courage and contentment to make the printed end product that issues daily from the machine, so that the office of education and information the Fourth Estate must perform does not suffer. The community itself has vital concern in the working conditions of the dual human groups whose invisible work is crystallised daily and moved into mass circulation. In a democracy, news media and the men behind have a special value. Therefore, a few legislative and non-legislative measures have taken care of the working conditions of the journalists and non journalists. We are concerned here with non-journalists and that portion of an award which has conferred standardised gratuity benefit on them.

2. The importance of the enthusiasm, integrity and thoroughness of the silent army, which speaks daily in every issue of a newspaper, once underscored, the necessity for a square economic deal to these hands argues itself. A Free Press serves the nation successfully when it serves its family fairly. Even an army marches on its stomach. And retirement benefits