R.K. Agrawal, J.

Special Appeal No. 404 of 2002, has been filed by the State of U.P. through Secretary, Education U.P. Government, Lucknow, Director, State Council of Educational Research and Training, Lucknow and the Director Basic Education, U.P., while the Special Appeal No. 365 of 2002, has been filed by District Basic Teachers Kalyan Samiti and three others after obtaining leave to appeal and the remaining special appeals have been filed by the selected candidates after obtaining leave to appeal against the judgment and order of the learned single Judge dated 21.3.2002 passed in Civil Misc. Writ Petition No. 37124 of 2001, Anant Kumar Tiwari and Ors. v. State of U.P. and Ors. and other connected writ petitions, whereby the learned single Judge had allowed all the writ petitions and had quashed the Government order dated 3.8.2001, the advertisement dated 14.8.2001. Government order dated 3.12.2001 and the process of selection, pursuant thereto at whatever stage it had reached before passing of the interim order dated 9.11.2001 and 3.12.2001. The learned single Judge has held that the Government order dated 3.8.2001 and the proportion of selection in pursuance thereto at whatever stage it has reached is per se, arbitrary, discriminatory and violative of Articles 14, 15, 16 and 21 of the Constitution of India, apart from the same being contrary to the U.P. Basic Education Act, 1972 and U.P. Basic Education (Teachers) Service Rules, 1981 and cannot be upheld.

2. We have heard the learned Advocate General, Sri R.N. Singh, learned senior counsel assisted by Sri A.P. Shahi, Sri P. S. Baghel and Sri M. D. Singh Shekhar for the appellants and Sri Shailendra, learned counsel appearing for the respondent-writ petitioners.

3. Briefly stated the facts giving rise to the present special appeals are as follows :

"In the primary schools run by the U.P. Basic Education Board (hereinafter referred to as the Board) in the State of U.P. for the last several years there had been a shortage of teachers, as a result of which the State Government was finding it difficult to fulfil its obligations as mandated by Article 45 of the Constitution of India to provide free and compulsory education for all children until they complete the age of 14 years. It appears that in the State of U.P., the State Government runs a training college in each district, which is at present about 70 in number, where the persons are given training in teaching and on successful completion thereof are awarded Basic Teacher's Certificate (hereinafter referred to as B.T.C.). As per the statement made by the learned Advocate General, in each of the training college, the intake is of only 100 persons in a year. Thus, only about 5,000 to 6,000 qualified B.T.C. teachers are available for being appointed as assistant teachers to teach students in primary schools run by the Board in the State of U.P. whereas the total requirement of teachers at present is more than 50,000. To fulfil its constitutional obligations, the State Government took a policy decision to impart two months' special training to those persons, who have done their B.Ed./L.T. The decision taken by the State Government, which was accorded permission by the Government manifested itself in the Government order dated 3.8.2001. It mentions that the Governor has been pleased to accord permission for the appointment of 20,000 B.Ed./L.T. qualified and selected candidates on the vacant posts of Assistant Teachers in the primary schools run by the Board after they complete two months special B.T.C. training and are found successful in the examination. The detailed procedure for making of application and selection was also prescribed by the aforementioned Government order. It provided for determination of vacancies district wise and the candidates concerned will be eligible to make an application only against the