The main legal point established in the judgment is the significance of the selection process for Education Volunteers under the Education Guarantee Scheme, emphasizing the role of the local community and the VEC/Gram Panchayat in the selection process.

ORDER :

1. Petitioner, by way of this petition, seeks quashing of the engagement of respondent No. 5 as Education Volunteer/Para Teacher in EGS Centre, Thugi and with a further direction to the respondents to appoint her as Education Volunteer in the EGS Centre Thugi with all the consequential benefits.

2. In Zone Pancheri, a new EGS Centre at Thugi was sanctioned by the respondents under the Educational Guarantee Scheme in village Meer. In village Meer, two EGS Centres were sanctioned; (i) EGS Centre at Mohra Santha and (ii) EGS Centre at Mohra Thugi. The Education Volunteer (EV) was to be engaged on the basis of the merit from all the candidates of same village who were possessing 10+2 qualification. The respondent No. 5 was selected and appointed vide order dated 01.04.2005.

3. The contention of the petitioner is that the respondents have selected and engaged respondent No. 5, as an Education Volunteer in for EGS Centre in Village Meer, Mohra Thugi without issuing any advertisement and without following the norms for selection of an Education Volunteer. The petitioner, belonging to the said village, was the only eligible candidate for consideration to the post but was not selected for the post of Education Volunteer. The respondents, in order to select respondent No. 5 did not advertise the position of EV at EGS Centre Morha Thugi village Meer. The respondents, it is submitted, have wrongly selected respondent No. 5, who is resident of Mohra Guen and not Mohra Thugi and it is only the resident of the same Mohra, i.e., Thugi, who could be selected for the post.

4. The petitioner, aggrieved of the selection of respondent No. 5, approached Director, School Education Department, Jammu, with a request for her engagement as Education Volunteer on the ground that respondent No. 5, who has been engaged, is from a different Mohra and the petitioner is the only eligible candidate to be engaged as EV. The respondent No. 3 sought a detailed report under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan norms after thorough investigation in the matter but no further action in this regard was taken till date.

5. The respondents submit that the Zonal Education Officer Panchari vide advertisement Notice No. ZEO/P/SSA/49 dated 14.02.2008 invited applications from the eligible candidates of the concerned village/Mohra where the new EGS Centres were sanctioned. The EGS Centres were sanctioned for 21 locations including EGS Centre at Mohra Santha and EGS Centre at Mohra Thugi, figuring at Serial Nos. 4 and 5 of the advertisement notice.

6. The eligible candidates were asked to apply for consideration to the post of Para Teachers w.e.f 14.02.2005 to 25.03.2005 on an honorarium of Rs. 1,000/- per month. The respondents submit that only one candidate i.e., Chanchal Singh, S/o Sh. Kapoor Singh, having education qualification 10+2 applied for EGS Centre at Mohra Thugi. The panel was prepared by the competent authority in accordance with the scheme and it was certified that VEC has recommended the candidate for EGS Centre and agreement between EV and VEC has been signed. This panel was approved by respondent No. 3 and an agreement was entered between the School Committee of Village Meer and respondent No. 5 and, accordingly, respondent No. 5 was engaged as an Education Volunteer.

7. The specific stand of the respondents is that as per the scheme the concerned Cluster Resource Person (CRP) has informed everyone in the vicinity to apply for the post but respondent No. 5 was only candidate, who applied and was selected.

8. Learned counsel for the petitioner on the other hand submits that the petitioner could not apply for the post of Education Volunteer as the same was never advertised and since only respondent No. 5 had knowledge of the same, he was the only candidate who applied for the post.

9. The Education Guarantee Scheme and Alternative and Innovative Scheme, i.e., the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Non Formal Education (NFE) was introduced with a view to support the formal syst