Ramachandran Nair, J. These two Writ Appeals were referred to the Full Bench by a Division Bench doubting the correctness of another Division Bench judgment in Josegiri Hospital v. Government of Kerala, reported in 2008(3) KLT 627.

2. The question raised is whether hostel building of an educational institution is entitled for exemption from building tax under Section 3(1)(b) of the Kerala Building Tax Act, 1975 (hereinafter referred to as the Act for short), which provides for building tax exemption for buildings used for "educational purposes".

3. While the building involved in Writ Appeal No.1648/2009 is a hostel building owned by a nursing school, the building involved in Writ Appeal No.2495/2009 is a hostel building attached to a Residential Higher Secondary School owned by a private management.

4. We have heard learned counsel appearing for both the appellants and have also heard learned Government Pleader appearing for the respondents.

5. The provision of the Act, which requires consideration with reference to the facts of these cases, is Section 3, which is extracted hereunder:-

"3. Exemptions:- (1) Nothing in this Act shall apply to - (a) buildings owned by the Government of Kerala or the Government of India or any local authority; and (b) buildings used principally for religious, charitable or educational purposes or as factories or workshops. Explanation:- for the purposes of this sub-section, "charitable purpose" includes relief of the poor and free medical relief."

6. The short question that arises for consideration is whether "educational purposes" referred to in the above Section has only a restricted meaning covering buildings, where students are imparted education; or whether it has a wider meaning covering hostel buildings owned by educational institutions to provide accommodation to students in the premises of the educational institutions. The Division Bench of this Court in the above referred judgment held that "educational purposes" cover only purposes which have integral, immediate and proximate connection to education. In the reference order, another Division Bench of which one of us is a member [CNR(J)], took the view that the above test laid down by the other Division Bench in the earlier judgment is satisfied at least in respect of hostels run by nursing schools and medical educational institutions and probably mistake is there only in the conclusion drawn in that judgment. What we notice is that the Division Bench while deciding the matter did not consider the educational Regulations of the Medical Council of India and Nursing Council of India, which make it mandatory that in order to get approval for a medical college or a nursing college, hospital for patients and hostel facilities for students are mandatory. The State also does not controvert this position and in fact all the medical colleges and nursing colleges run in the State including those run by the Government have hospitals of their own or attached hospitals, and have hostels providing accommodation to all students. Except probably few students who hail from the areas very close to the colleges, all the nursing and medical students reside in the hostels attached to their colleges. The students of both medical and nursing colleges require clinical training in hospitals, and students in senior classes are deployed on a turn basis in hospitals. Unless accommodation is provided to the students in the college campus or nearby, it would not be possible for them, particularly for girls, to reach the hospitals attached to the medical and nursing colleges for duty at odd hours in the night. Therefore, the Medical Council of India and Nursing Council of India have made it mandatory for every medical college and nursing college to have hostel facilities, and without such facility no medical or nursing college will get approval from the Medical Council or Nursing Council of India, and only on their approval, the medical educational institutio