1. The short question arising in this case is whether an 'apprentice' is an 'employee' within the meaning of that term in S.2 (9) of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948, (hereinafter referred to as the 'Act'). An employee is defined in that section as follows:

"'employee' means any person employed for wages in or in connection with the work of a factory or establishment to which this Act applies and

(i) who is directly employed by the principal employer on any work of, or incidental or preliminary to or connected with the work of the, factory or establishment, whether such work is done by the employee in the factory or establishment or elsewhere; or,

(ii) who is employed by or through an immediate employer on the premises of the factory or establishment or under the supervision of the principal employer or his agent on work which is ordinarily part of the work of the factory or establishment or which is preliminary to the work carried on in or incidental to the purpose of the factory or establishment; or

(iii) whose services are temporarily lent or let on hire to the principal employer by the person with whom the person whose services are so lent or let on hire has ent