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1974 Supreme(Cal) 193
High Court Of Calcutta
S.K. Datta, B.C. Ray, JJ.
N Jagga Rao : Appellant
Versus
Union Of India : Respondent
Decided on : July 16,1974
Canteen workers employed in a factory governed by the Factories Act, 1948, are employees of the Railway Administration, even if they are appointed by a canteen committee.
Headnote:
FACTORIES ACT - SECTION 46 - CANTEEN WORKERS - EMPLOYEES OF RAILWAY ADMINISTRATION - RECOGNITION - WRIT ISSUED.
Fact of the Case:
Petitioners, employed as canteen workers in the Loco, Carriage and Electrical Workshop of the South Eastern Railway, Kharagpur, sought recognition as railway employees and payment of enhanced dearness allowance. The Railway Administration denied their status as railway servants, contending that the canteen was managed by a committee and the workers were appointed by the committee.
Finding of the Court:
The court held that the canteen workers were employees of the Railway Administration under the Factories Act, 1948. The court reasoned that the establishment and maintenance of the canteen was a statutory obligation of the Railway Administration, and that the canteen committee was an agency of the Administration for this purpose. The court also held that the canteen workers were engaged in operations connected with the industry carried on by the employer, and thus were workers of the factory in which they were employed.
Issues: Whether the canteen workers were employees of the Railway Administration under the Factories Act, 1948.
Ratio Decidendi: The court held that the canteen workers were employees of the Railway Administration under the Factories Act, 1948, because: * The establishment and maintenance of the canteen was a statutory obligation of the Railway Administration. * The canteen committee was an agency of the Administration for this purpose. * The canteen workers were engaged in operations connected with the industry carried on by the employer, and thus were workers of the factory in which they were employed.
Final Decision: The court allowed the appeal in part, directing the Railway Administration to recognize the canteen workers as employees of the Railway Administration under the Factories Act, 1948. The court stayed the operation of its order for eight weeks.
1. THIS is an appeal by the petitioners against the judgment and order of Banerjee, J. dated March 7 and 8 of 1973. The facts in short according to the petitioners are as follows: the petitioners are employed in the canteen of Loco, Carriage and Electrical Workshop, South Eastern Railway, Kharagpur in different capacities like cook, helper, store issuer, stall keeper. They were appointed on diverse dates between November 7, 1954 and April 18, 1963. Canteen was established under the Factories Act, 1948 for providing food to about 14,000 workers of the workshop and formed part of the workshop being exclusively used for catering of the workers. The Kharagpur workshop is a factory within the definition of the Factories Act, 1948 and the canteen is being run by the Railway administration through an administrative committee consisting of two officers of the Railwayone Personnel Officer as President and assistant Personnel Officer as Vice-President with no other member. The canteen has never been run on co-operative basis by a co-operative society of any Managing Committee of the staff. The Railway administration has the ultimate control and is obliged under the Factories Act to maintain the said canteen. In this state of affairs the employees of the canteen are the employees of the South Eastern railway run by the Union of India. This position was admitted in the circular of the Ministry of Law dated October 20, 1956 as also of the Railway Board dated December 27, 1961. There was a further circular by the Railway Board dated April 20. 1963 addressed to all the General Managers. The petitioners received full pay and other allowances including D. A. up to November 30, 1965. There was a revision of D. A. of the Railway Servants with effect from December 1, 1965 whereby the rates were increased and the petitioners received such enhanced D. A. for the period from December 1, 1965 to December 31, 1966. These grants were sanctioned by the Senior Accounts officer (W) of Kharagpur. The petitioners were however wrongfully denied the grant of D. A. from January 1, 1967 on an objection raised by the accounts department. The Railway Administration is also not treating the petitioners as the Railway employees and the petitioner's representation for enhanced Dearness Allowance and recognition of their status as railway servants have yielded no result, A demand of justice dated February 9, 1970 was served by the petitioners' lawyer but no reply was given to the same. The petitioners in this state of affairs on the above allegations moved this court in constitutional writ jurisdiction shortly thereafter praying for a writ in the nature of mandamus commanding as Railway servants and also for payment of salary, allowances, benefits including enhanced dearness allowance from January 1, 1967. A rule nisi being civil Rule No. 1799 (W) of 1970 was issued on this application. The respondents on service of the rule entered appearance and contested the rule by filing an affidavit-in-opposition affirmed by bishnupada Pal, Assistant Railway Officer of the South Eastern Railway on May 26, 1972. All material allegations made in the petition were denied and it was stated that the petitioners were employed or appointed by the canteen committee and some of them were working in the wagon shop canteen which is a different establishment and further some of them were even appointed after April 16, 1973. It was stated that the workshop canteen was set up in compliance of the provision of Factory Act for providing food to the workshop staff. The canteen is located inside the workshops but it does not form part of the Kharagpur Workshop as no manufacturing process is carried on in the canteen within the meaning of Section 2 (k) of the Factories act and the canteen staff are not workers within the meaning of Section 2 (1). It is further stated that the canteen was run by the Railway through its catering department till November, 1954 and thereafter the staff of t
