S.K.Katriar, J.

1. The two writ petitions raise common issues of law and facts and, in fact, one set of arguments on behalf of both the sides have been advanced. Therefore, both the writ petitions are being disposed of by a common judgment. Four petitioners have joined C.W.J.C. No. 10443 of 1998, and six petitioners have joined C.W.J.C. No. 10446 of 1998, make a common prayer that they are entitled to employment with the respondent National Thermal Power Corporation Limited (hereinafter referred to as the Corporation), consequent upon acquisition of their lands. The Corporation as well as the State of Bihar and its functionaries have been impleaded as party respondents in the two writ petitions. No private person has been impleaded as party respondent. We shall draw the facts from C.W.J.C. No. 10443 of 1998.

2. The admitted position is that lands were acquired under the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act (hereinafter referred to as the Act) to enable the Corporation to set up a super thermal power station at Kahalgaon in the district of Bhagalpur. The petitioners claimed to be the oustees and awardees under the Act, whose lands have been acquired for the said purpose. In order to mitigate the rigours of acquisition, the Corporation and the State Government had jointly formulated a policy dated 17.2.1986, to provide employment to the awardees which was circulated under the joint signatures of the General Manager of the Project and the District Magistrate, Bhagalpur, vide notice dated 15.5.1992 (Annexure-1). The same provided for jobs to the oustees in accordance with the norms stated therein. The respondent authorities undertook the exercise of implementation in terms of the policy decision and issued merit-list dated 15.4.1993 (Annexure-3), and jobs were accordingly given to a large number of persons. Aggrieved by the list, the petitioners had preferred C.WJ.C. No. 6704 of 1993, which was disposed of vide order dated 9.2.1996, whereby the matter was referred back for the joint consideration of the Collector and the Corporation because it involved issues of facts, with the following directions:

"7. Be that as. it may, this writ petition is disposed of with the following directions: (a) The respondent Corporation through his Counsel shall hand over a copy of the final list of the land oustees of the petitioners through their counsel arranged categories by 26th February, 1996.

(b) On being furnished each copy of the list, the petitioners are at liberty to make a detailed representation pointing out their grievances and such representation must be addressed to the said Corporation as well as the Collector and the District Magistrate, Bhagalpur, within a period of two weeks from the date of receipt of the said list.

(c) Thereafter the said District Magistrate, Bhagalpur is directed to hold an enquiry alongwith a Competent Officer of the said Corporation to find out if any person of a lower category than the category in which the petitioners are placed has got any job in the Mouza to which the petitioners belong.

(d) If as a result of the enquiry, it is found that the person of the lower category than the petitioners in the same Mouza to which the petitioners belong has got job and the petitioners case has not been considered. In that case the petitioners must be treated to be discriminated against and must be considered by the Corporation for the grant of a job. In the said report the District Magistrate and the Competent Officer to the said Corporation must also indicate whether in any family two persons have been appointed. If on enquiry it is found that two persons of one family have been appointed in that case, one of them may be removed in accordance with the observations made in this judgment and if the vacancy arises out of it, against such vacancy persons of the Mouza concerned must be considered for appointment.

(e) The entire exercise which is directed by this Court as aforesaid to be undergone by the District