Hon’ble Mahesh Chandra Tripathi, J.—Heard Sri T. P. Singh, learned Senior Advocate alongwith Sri Anil Kumar Srivastava and Sri Swarn Kumar Srivastava, learned counsels for the petitioners, Sri Yogendra Kumar Yadav, learned Standing Counsel, appearing for respondent Nos. 1, 2 and 3 and Sri Vikash Budhwar, appearing for respondent Nos. 4 5.

2. Parties have exchanged their affidavits with the consent of learned counsels for the parties, the writ petition is finally decided at the admission stage itself. The petitioners have field the present writ the petition with following prayers :

“(i) issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari to quash the impugned order dated 21.8.2012 whereby the respondent No. 4 has been given the charge of Chief Engineer Minor Irrigation Department as well as the order dated 30.6.2012 where by the respondent Nos. 4 and 5 have been given promotion to the post of Superintending Engineer by completely ignoring the provisions contained under U.P. Services of Engineers (Minor Irrigation Department Rules 1991, true copies whereof are contained in Annexures-1 and 2 respectively to the writ petition.

(ii) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus commanding the respondent-State Government not to treat the respondent Nos. 4 and 5 to have been merged in the Minor Irrigation Department (Engineering Cadre) without amendment of Departmental Service Rules 1991 in respect of their merger and not to give any benefit to the respondent Nos. 4 and 5 till then.

(iii) Issue further a writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus commanding the respondent State Government to stop the respondent No. 4 on the post of Officiating Chief Engineer, Minor Irrigation Department U.P., Lucknow and respondent No. 5 on the post of Superintending Engineer, Minor Irrigation Department till their merger in the Minor Irrigation Department (Engineering Cadre) is decided after amendment in the Departmental Service Rules 1991.

3. Brief facts given rise to this writ petition are as follows :

That the State Government had created Minor Irrigation Department in the year 1966. A large number of persons had been appointed as Assistant Engineers on ad hoc basis in different years prior to the year 1981. In order to regularise them the U.P. Public Service Commission had advertised 56 vacancies vide advertisement dated 19.6.1982 and result was declared on 21.9.1984. In order of merit, names of petitioners find place at serial Nos. 1, 3, 9, 20, and 19 respectively. It also appears that meanwhile Regularisation Rules had been framed and the case of the ad hoc Assistant Engineers working in the Minor Irrigation Department came to be considered by the Government and in this regard the State Government had passed order of regularisation on 3.12.1985.

That the Minor Irrigation Department was already existing in the State of Uttar Pradesh to take care of irrigation facilities to smaller farmer at lower level.

That in order to boost the facilitate research in the research wing in the Planning Department a Minor irrigation Cell was created vide Government order dated 11.2.1980 alongwith requisite number of posts which included-

(I) One post of Subject Specialist in the pay scale of Rs. 1400-1800/-

(II) One post of Civil Engineer now Senior Research Officer in the pay scale of Rs. 800-1450/-

(III) Three posts of Research Officers (in the Discipline of Agriculture Civil and Mechanical Engineering) in the pay scale of Rs. 550-1200/-

That in furtherance of creation of above cell in the Planning Department vacancies on the post of Research Officers where advertised through U.P. Public Service Commission, were the Respondent Nos. 4 and 5 were selected and vide Government order dated 24.5.1983 they were appointed on substantive basis on the post of Research Officer in the pay scale of Rs. 850-1720/-, which has been revised from time to time.

That in a very short spell Minor Irrigation Cell of the Planning Department showe