1. - These four writ petitions have been filed in this Court by workmen who were employed as work charge employees in the Irrigation Department of the State of Rajasthan and were working in the Rajasthan Canal Project. As similar questions of law arise in these cases, I propose to dispose them of by a common order.

2. Parumal petitioner in writ petition No. 2070 of 1973 and Benarsilal petitioner in writ petition No. 2072 of 1973 were employed as Fitters in the Rajasthan Canal Project, Mechanical Circle, while Jamna Ram petitioner in civil writ petition No. 2071 of 1973 was employed as a Lineman in the same project. Harbanslal petitioner in writ petition No. 2456 of 1974 was working as a Chargeman (Electrical) in the Rajasthan Canal Project Workshop. All the aforesaid four petitioners were thus work charge employees of the State and were working in the Mechanical Division of the Rajasthan Canal Project and were `workmen' within the definition of section 2(s) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, hereinafter referred to as "the Act", the services of all the four petitioners were dispensed with as they were served with retrechment notices for a period of one month.

3. The petit