Vidyut Mazdoor Sanghathan, Lucknow, filed Special Appeal No. 414 of 1996 challenging order dated 1-5- 1996 passed by learned Single Judge, in Civil Misc. Writ petition No. 15034 of 1996. By this order operation of the Uttar Pradesh Rajya Vidyut Parishad Parichalkiya Karam-chari Varg Sewa Niyamawali, 1995, was stayed during pendency of the writ petition.

2. Special Appeal No. 578 of 1996 was forced by U. P, Electricity Board against the order dated 1-5-1996 passed in the same writ petition. During hearing of Special Ap peal No. 414 of 1996 on 16- 7-1996, learned counsel for the parties agreed that the Spe cial appeal should be heard along with con nected bunch of writ petitions for final dis posal. Thus, in pursuance of the aforesaid order dated 16-7-1996, aforesaid two appeal and the entire hunch of writ petitions known as Meter Readers Bunch was listed before us for hearing and final decision. As the questions of law and facts involved in all these writ petitions are identical, the two appeals and all the writ petitions consisting of this bunch can be conveniently decided by a common judgment. Along with the special appeals, the three writ petitions, on which arguments have been advanced by learned counsel for the parties, are specifically men tioned in this judgment. However, the judg ment will cover the entire bunch except those writ petitions which involve different controversy. Writ petition No. 15034 of 1996 shall be the leading case.

3. Generation of electric energy and its distribution in the country initially was mainly on private sector through licensees appointed under the Indian Electricity Act, 1910 and Indian Electricity Rules, 1956. After the country attained independence, the Electricity (Supply) Act, 1948 was enacted for rationalisation of production and supply of electricity and for taking measures conducive to electric develop ment. Section 5 of the Electricity (Supply) Act, 1948 (hereinafter referred to as the Act) provided for constitution and com position of the State Electricity Boards. U. P. Electricity Board (hereinafter referred to as the Board) was constituted by the State Government on 30-3-1959. Provisions of the Indian Electricity Act, 1910 were amended by the Electricity Laws (U. P. Amendment) Act, 1974, i. e. U. P. Act No. 36 of 1974. The Indian Electricity (U. P. Amendment and Validation) Act, 1975, i. e. U. P. Act No. 16 of 1975, the Indian Electricity (U. P. Amendment) Act, 1976, i. e. U. P. Act No. 14 of 1976 and the Electrical Undertakings and Establishments run by the State of U. P. , local authorities and erstwhile licensees were taken over. Thus, for the State of U. P. , Board acquired a monopoly in respect of the generation and distribution of electrical energy. The employees of the State Government, local authorities and erstwhile licensees also started serving the Board on deputation basis. To safeguard their interest provisions were made by inserting new Sections 6a in and by further amending the provisions of Indian Electricity Act, 1910. The provisions in this regard shall be noticed at the relevant place in later part of this judgment. In due course the Board has become a big organisa tion having its power generation and dis tribution units spread all over the State which followed tremendous increase in the number of employees resulting in various disputes between the Board and its employees.

4. The dispute which has come for determination before this bench in shape of bunch of writ petitions is not new. It has also old history which started with passing of order dated 29-5-1963 by the Board creating a combined cadre of meter readers, sub-sta tion operators and switch board attendants and also making them inter- changeable. However, for some reason or the other this order was not implemented. The Board passed another order on 24-3-1977 and su perseded its earlier order, dated 29-5-1963 and created a combined cadre of four categories of employees, namely, meter r