Judgment

RAY, J.

( 1 ) THE petitioners challenged Notifications No. CER/ 3/73 dated 13/03/1973 and CER/ 16/73 dated 13/03/1973 described as the first and the second impugned notifications.

( 2 ) THERE was unprecedented and phenomenal rise in cotton prices in the closing months of 1970 and in January, 1971. There was a very low cotton crop in 1970-71 season. There was a perceptible drop in yarn production. Yarn is produced in hanks for handloom and cones, beams and prins for powerlooms and cones for hosiery industry. There was rise in prices. This strengthened the hands of the weavers in their agitation. The Yarn Pool Scheme was devised in February, 1971. This was a voluntary effort on the part of the cotton mill industry to afford some relief to small weavers in the handloom and powerloom sector. The scheme covered cotton yarn in counts of 20s, 30s and 40s both in hanks and hosiery cones and in counts of 20s, 24s, 30s, 34s and 40s in weaving cones. Under this scheme the mills participating in it had to supply yarn at prices equivalent to the average of prices ruling in the last quarter of 1970. As a compensation the participating mills were allotted foreign cotton at a concessional r