1. Heard Mr.K.K. Mahanta, the learned senior counsel assisted by Mr. K. Sinha for the petitioners. Also heard Mr. M.R. Adhikari, the learned Government Advocate who appears for all the respondents.

2. The case of the petitioners in brief is that they were appointed as Field Investigators (F.I.s for short) between the years 1988 to 1994 under the Old Age Pension Scheme, 1983 introduced by the State Government in the Department of Welfare of Plains Tribes & Backward Classes & Social Welfare. The petitioners were confirmed against their respective posts. According to the petitioners, the posts of F.I.s were created in the establishment of District Social Welfare Officer (DSWO) with one Grade lower to the said post and they work under direct supervision of DSWOs. They were initially employed for effective implementation of the schemes like old age pension scheme etc. According to the petitioners, the nature of duties and functions of F.I.s and Statistical Assistant in the Social Welfare Department are more or less similar and in fact the post of F.I.s carries a higher responsibility. Although the petitioners have been rendering their services since their initial appointment in the year 1988-1992, no promotion have been given to them for want of service rules to govern their service conditions. The petitioners therefore, submitted their representations to the Secretary to the Government of Assam, Social Welfare Department on 02.02.2006 requesting their promotion to appropriate posts such as the District Social Welfare Officer/Child Development Project Officer/Superintendent of Homes/Programme Officer amongst others.

3. The petitioners also represented their cause before the State respondents even through their service association i.e., All Assam Social Welfare Field Investigators Association (Service Association) on several occasions and consequently, vide communication dated 25.09.2010, the Director of Social Welfare Department informed the Service Association that a draft service rules covering all categories of officers and employees under the Department was going to be prepared and therefore, asked them to submit their views, comments and suggestions on or before 05.06.2010.

4. Accordingly, the Service Association submitted their views and opinion for framing the contemplated draft service rules and consequently, a draft service rules i.e. the Assam Social welfare Officers Service Rules, 2010 (Draft Rules) was made and a copy of the same was circulated to all stake holders for their views and comments by the Director of Social Welfare Department vide his communication dated 29.06.2011.

5. As per the Draft Rules, 2% of the vacancies in the Class-II category of post other than the post of DSWO were to be filled up from the post of F.I.s having requisite qualifications with 8 years of experience as F.I.s. However, despite framing of the Draft Rules, the same was not finalised and the petitioners have been stagnating in the post of F.I. since the last more than 22 years. Having no other option, they have filed the present writ petition.

6. Mr. K.K. Mahanta, the learned senior counsel appearing for the petitioners submits that non-creation of promotional avenues for the petitioners from the post of F.I. amounts to gross violation of Article 14, 16 and 21 of the Constitution of India. He submits that the State respondents are duty bound to frame service rules for F.I.s so that there are promotional avenues for them to move to a next higher post/grade. He submits that the post of F.I. is equivalent to the post of Supervisor and Statistical Assistant under the Social Welfare Department having similar pay scale and similar nature of duties to perform. While a Supervisors and Statistical Assistants have the opportunity for being considered for promotion to the post of Child Development Project Officer (CDPO), which is at par with the post of DSWO, the petitioners in the absence of any service rules do not have such opportuni