IMPORTANT POINT
The court ruled that contract employees with over ten years of service against sanctioned posts are entitled to regularization, emphasizing the need for fair recruitment processes and age relaxation benefits.

ORDER :

Venkateswarlu Nimmagadda, J.

1. All these writ petitions are filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India by different petitioners, claiming identical relief, as such, I find it expedient to decide all the writ petitions by common order, since the issue involved in all the writ petitions is one and the same.

W.P.No.22958 of 2021

2. By this writ petition, petitioners seek to declare the action of the respondents in not considering their cases for absorption/regularization of their services. Petitioners also seek relief of their being absorbed/regularized to their posts which they are holding, and which posts are contractual posts.

3. The petitioners herein were initially appointed as Medical Officers (Homeopathy) in the year 2008 and they are presently working at various Homeopathy dispensaries (Primary Healthcare Centers) on contract basis. The contract period is initially for one year, which was extended from time to time. The Government of Andhra Pradesh issued Notifications dated 02.04.2008 and 07.01.2009 seeking to fill-up Medical Officers in various disciplines of country recognized medical practices i.e. Ayurveda, Homeopathy, Unani and Siddha, pursuant to the scheme of National Rural Health Mission (NRHM). Some of the petitioners in the present writ petitions were selected in the Notification dated 02.04.2008 and few of them were selected in the Notification dated 07.01.2009.

4. The Government issued G.O.Rt.No.254 dated 01.02.2011 proposing to fill-up the posts of 439 Medical Officers, including 108 posts of Homeopathy. In the said Notification, the State Government had awarded weightage for contract service rendered by the Medical Officers. Several Medical Officers who were appointed along with the petitioners during the years 2008 and 2009 came to be appointed on regular basis in the said Direct Recruitment. However, the petitioners and others could not be selected. It is submitted that the posts of Medical Officer are created by the first respondent pursuant to the NRHM Scheme formulated by the Central Government, which is funded 60% by the Central Government and 40% by the State Government. The petitioners are discharging their duties on par with the medical officers who are appointed regularly by the Government.

5. Subsequently, the Government issued G.O.Ms.No.105 dated 16.07.2013, G.O.Ms.No.163 dated 12.09.2018 and G.O.Rt.No.301 dated 20.06.2020, according weightage for recruitment of Civil Assistant Surgeons, Dental Assistant Surgeons, Staff Nurses, Lab Technicians, Pharmacists by extending the benefit of weightage for the contract service rendered by them.

6. The Commissioner of AYUSH had addressed a letter to the Principal Secretary to the Government, Health Medical & Family Welfare Department, A.P vide Lr.No.4762/B1/2015 dated 14.02.2017 stating that all the Medical Officers appointed in the Department under contractual services have been made duly following the procedure as done in case of regular appointments by following merit, roster point and presidential orders. As such they are fully eligible for the post of Medical Officer if the recruitment is done on regular basis, the same contract Medical Officers would have been selected. Since the recruitment of Medical Officers was made on contract basis, they were selected as medical officers on contract basis. In view of the instructions of the Government and as per the business rules, the matter may be placed before the Council of Ministers to take a decision for issue of necessary permission to the Commissioner of AYUSH for filling of posts of Medical Officers (Ayurveda/Unani/ Homeopathy) by absorbing them, as the Commissioner is the appointing authority for the post of Medical Officer. It is also requested that the Government to consider their request on the same lines as was done earlier, since they have completed 9 years of contractual service, as on 14.02.2017.

7. Basing on the letter addressed by the Commissioner of AYUSH on 14.02.2017, the Princi