JUDGMENT :

Dinesh Mehta, J.

1. These writ petitions involve challenge to the decision of the respondent No. 1 and 2 whereby the posts of Feeder Managers have been merged with the posts of Assistant Engineers of respondent Electricity Companies and a corresponding amendment has been introduced giving them seniority below the Assistant Engineers, appointed in 2010-11 and 2011-12, as the case may be.

2. The first writ petition (SBCWP No. 13772/2016) has been filed by two petitioners; petitioner No. 1 was appointed as Junior Engineer on 23.11.1991, whereas petitioner No. 2 was appointed on 18.11.1997. They were promoted to the post of Assistant Engineer (E&M) against the vacancies of the year 2011-12 and 2013-14 respectively.

3. The second writ petition being SBCWP No. 13775/2016 (RSEB Engineers Association), was initially filed at Jaipur Bench, but later has been transferred to the Principal Seat by order dated 28.9.2016, passed by Hon'ble the Chief Justice. This writ petition also raises a somewhat similar grievance. As the basic grievance namely, merging the post with or converting the post of Feeder Manager to Assistant Engineer is common, both the writ petitions are being disposed of conjointly.

4. The petitioners of the first writ petition have challenged the decision of the Coordination Committee dated 30.10.2015; the subsequent decision dated 10.05.2017 taken by the Reconstituted Coordination Committee and the consequential orders dated 14.08.2017 and 28.08.2017 and identical orders said to have been issued by different Nigams. Whereas the second writ petition lays challenge to the resolution dated 30.10.2015 adopted by the Coordination Committee.

5. It may be noted that earlier, the terms and conditions of the services of the employees of the respondent-Nigam were governed by RSEB Service of Engineers (Recruitment, Promotion & Seniority) Regulation, 1969 (hereinafter referred to as "Regulations of 1969"), which has later been substituted by JVVNL Engineers Service Regulation, 2016 (hereinafter referred as "Regulations of 2016"). Recruitment in the service is governed by Regulation No. 6 of the Regulations of 2016 and according to the Schedule-I appended with the Regulations of 2016, recruitment to the post of Assistant Engineer (E&M Civil) can be made by both the processes i.e. direct recruitment as well as promotion from the post of Junior Engineers.

6. It may be noted that 50% posts of the Assistant Engineer (Electrical) are required to be filled in by direct recruitment (2/3rd from amongst open market and remaining 1/3rd from the existing Junior Engineers, working in the respondent-Nigam), while remaining 50% posts are meant to be filled in by promotion.

7. A new cadre of Feeder Manager came to be introduced in the service regulations in order to cater to the requirement of Feeder Renovation Programme taken by various Discoms. The minutes of the meeting dated 10.07.2007 of the Board of Directors of the respondent-Discom reveals that duties and responsibilities of Feeder Managers were to carry out energy audit of the feeders and to monitor, collect and compile the details of execution.

8. The posts of Feeder Manager were filled in through the process of direct recruitment, which took place in July, 2007 and September 2008, whereafter no recruitment to the post of Feeder Manager was made by the respondents and the post of Feeder Manager was kept as a dying cadre.

9. While admitting that the grade pay and pay-scale of Feeder Manager was equivalent to Assistant Engineer (Electric), the petitioners have pleaded that since inception, no promotional avenue was provided to the Feeder Managers. It has been asserted that all the Feeder Managers, who were recruited directly from open market and those who were already working as Junior Engineers in various companies of the respondents vied in the recruitment process, accepted the appoin