A temporary permit under Section 68-F (1-C) of the Motor Vehicles Act can be granted even if the route is covered by two draft schemes, provided that no application for a temporary permit has been made by the State Transport Undertaking under Section 68-F (1-A) of the Act. The expression "permit" in Section 68-F (1-C) means a pucca permit and not a temporary permit, and therefore, a temporary permit granted to a private operator under Section 68-F (1-C) would not cease to be effective upon the grant of a temporary permit to the STU.

( 1 ) THE appellant in this writ appeal is the petitioner in writ Petition No. 6676/80. He applied for the grant of two temporary permits on the route Nellore to Donakonda. By order dated 29. 09. 80, the application was rejected by the Secretary, Regional Transport Authority, Nellore and ground that the route partially overlaps a notified route and hence S. 68-FF of the Motor Vehicles Act (referred to in the judgment as the Act) operates as bar. Aggrieved by the said order, the petitioner preferred an appeal to the State Transport Appellate Tribunal. Before the Tribunal it was contended that in view of the promulgation of a draft scheme on those routes, a temporary permit under Sec. 68f (1-C) of the Act could be granted though there may be a draft scheme in respect of the routes overlapping the route in question. In support of this contention, he relied upon a decision of this Court in W. R. No. 4475/79 to the effect that when a route is covered by a draft scheme as well as an approved scheme, temporary permit can be granted under S. 68f (1-C ). The Tribunal, however observed that the route in question was not covered by a single draft scheme, but two draft schemes one from Nellore to Kanigiri (Draft Scheme No. 407/77) and another from Mungamoor to donakonda (Draft Scheme No. 334/77) and the route in question was covered by the two draft schemes and S. 68f (1-C) will not apply and temporary permits cannot be granted under the section. In the result the Tribunal dismissed the revision petition. The Tribunal, however, held that as the application was made for the issue of the permit in the place of a permit which had been canceled, there was sufficient need for the issue of a temporary permit.

( 2 ) THE petitioner filed W. P. 6676/80 praying for the issue of a writ of certiorari quashing the order of the Tribunal confirming the order of the Secretary, Regional Transport Authority, Nellore and for a consequential direction directing them to issue two temporary permits to the petitioner on the route - Nellore to Donakonda under S. 68f (1-C) of the Motor Vehicles Act. Our learned brother Jeevan Reddy, J. dismissed the writ petition. He agreed with the view of the Tribunal that it would not be permissible to join or synthesise two different draft schemes are pending and grant a temporary permit in respect of such a route, on the ground that it is covered by the two schemes taken together. He held that a temporary permit can be granted only for a route or a portion of the route in respect of which there is a single draft scheme. The petitioner has judgment. W. A No. 308/81

( 3 ) THIS appeal is directed against the judgment of Jeevan Reddy, J. in W. P. No. 3959/81. The petitioner in the writ petition applied for a temporary permit on the route Nellore to Sitaramapuram via Atmakur when one of the permits held by the Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation on that route was canceled on surrender by them and a vacancy arose on the route in question. By his order dated 20-04-1981, the secretary, Regional Transport Authority rejected the application on the ground that there was an approved scheme covered by G. O. Ms. No1172 dated 11-8-1975. Aggrieved by the said order, the petitioner preferred an appeal, in A. P. No. 316/81 before the State Transport Appellate Tribunal. Pending disposal of the appeal, the petitioner requested for directions directing the Secretary, Regional Transport Authority, Nellore to grant a temporary permit. The Tribunal by its order dated 23. 04. 1981, directed the latter to grant a temporary permit under S. 68f (1-C) was granted to the petitioner on the route Nellore to Atmakur. Thereafter, the Andhra Pradesh Road Transport Corporation (referred to in the judgment as the Corporation) filed an application on 14. 05. 1981 for the grant of a temporary permit. The Secretary, regional Transport Authority, Nellore issued a temporary permit and as consequence, directed the petitioner to stop plying h