The aim of compassionate appointment is to provide succour and help to the family of the deceased employee, irrespective of the deceased's status as a regular employee.

Sanjiv Khanna, J.

We have heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and respondents and with their consent have taken up the writ petition for final disposal.

2. Kuntesh and Mohit Kumar are widow and son of late Ram Kishan. They had filed OA No. 144 of 2013 for quashing and setting aside the communication dated 16th October, 2012 and for direction that Mohit Kumar may be considered for compassionate appointment.

3. The impugned order passed by the Central Administrative Tribunal, Principal Bench dated 28th March, 2014, dismisses the aforesaid OA and has declined the prayers observing that the deceased Ram Kishan was a casual employee, who was conferred temporary status with effect from 1st December, 1993 in accordance with Casual Labourers (Grant of Temporary Status and Regularization) Scheme of the Government of India, 1993. He was not regularized till he expired on 28th March, 2012 and not being a regular employee, Mohit Kumar, petitioner No.2 is not eligible for being considered for appointment on compassionate basis. The respondents have relied upon their office order dated 4th May, 2000, which stipulates that only a dependent family member of a Government servant, who has died while in service, retired on medical grounds, etc. is eligible for appointment on compassionate basis. Note II of the said office order dated 4th May, 2000 defines the term “Government servant” as under:-

“Note II "Government servant" for the purpose of these instructions means a Government servant appointed on regular basis and not one working on daily wage or casual or apprentice or ad-hoc or contract or re-employment basis.”

It may also be relevant to take into consideration Note III of the said office order, which is as under:-

“Note III "Confirmed work-charged staff" will also be covered by the term “Government servant” mentioned in Note III above.”

4. A reading of Note II would show that it draws a distinction between Government servant appointed on regular basis and Government servant, who is working on daily wages, casual, apprentice, ad-hoc, contract or on re-employment basis. Note III states that “confirmed work-charged staff” would be covered by the term “Government servant”. We perceive and believe that for the purpose of Note II, Government servant appointed on regular basis would be one who does not fall in the excluded category i.e. is not a daily wager, casual worker, apprentice, ad-hoc or a contractual employee or an employee employed on re-employment basis. It is obvious that the term “Government servant” would include the “confirmed work-charged staff".

5. Casual Labourers (Grant of Temporary Status and Regularization) Scheme of the Government of India, 1993 has been quoted in the impugned judgment and states that it would be applicable to casual workers, who were working when the Scheme came into force with effect from 1st September, 1993 in the Ministries/Departments of Government of India and their attached and subordinate offices, but shall not be applicable to the casual workers in Railways, etc. It specifically stipulates that casual labourers, who were in employment on the date of issue of the said OM and had rendered continuous service of at least one year, which means that they had been engaged for a period of at least 240 days or 206 days in the case of offices observing five day week, would be entitled to the said benefit. Conferment of temporary status would be without reference to creation/availability of regular Group ‘D’ posts. However, such casual labourers, who acquire temporary status, would not be brought on record the permanent establishment unless they were selected through regular selection process for Group ‘D’ posts.

6. The Scheme specifically envisaged that the temporary status would entitle the said workers to get minimum pay scale of corresponding regular Group ‘D’ post including DA, HRA and CCA etc. as held by the OM dated 15th January, 1996. They shall be entitled to increments as applicable to Gro