S. B. Sinha, J.

1. In this writ application, 87 petitioners who are employees of respondent No.1-company have prayed for issuance of an appropriate writ, order or direction commanding upon the respondents to consider their cases for regulation of their services in the regular employment by giving retrospective effect that is from the date of their appointments in the Establishment and further directing them to pay equal pay for equal work.

2. Benefit of all unnecessary details, the fact of the matter lies in a very narrow compass. The respondent No.1 is an instrumentality of the State being owned and controlled by the Government of India, and, thus, is a state within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution.

3. The petitioners are daily rated employees, Allegedly in the year 1981, the services of 109 out of 150 persons who were semi-skilled and highly skilled daily rated workmen who were junior to the petitioners were regularised. Similarly, in the year 1983, services of 41 workmen including 23 unskilled workmen were regularised. The petitioners have contended that they have been working since 1969 continuously. A chart has been annexed which is annexure 2 to the writ