IMPORTANT POINT
The court established that qualifications recognized by the N.C.T.E. are valid for eligibility, even if not explicitly mentioned in state rules.

JUDGMENT :

Ritu Bahri, CJ.

Petitioners have filed the present writ petition seeking direction to the respondents to consider their candidature to the post of Assistant Teacher, Primary School. Their candidature has been rejected on the ground that petitioners possessed two years Diploma in Education. The candidature of the petitioners has not been considered on the ground that, as per the Rules, namely, Uttarakhand Government Elementary Education (Teacher) Service Rules, 2012, D.Ed. qualification has not been mentioned as minimum qualification for appointment. Petitioners have placed on record advertisement dated 19.11.2020, 20.11.2020 and 21.11.2020 collectively (Annexure No.4), which was issued for filling up the vacancy to the post of Assistant Teacher, Primary School, except District Haridwar, Dehradun & Nainital.

2. Petitioners have placed on record Notification issued by N.C.T.E. dated 23.08.2010 (Annexure No.1), which prescribes the minimum qualification for Elementary Teachers Class I to V, which is as under:

“(a) Senior Secondary (or equivalent) with atleast 50% marks and two years Diploma in Elementary Education (by whatever name known).

Senior Secondary (or its equivalent) with atleast 45% marks and two years Diploma in Elementary Education (by whatever name known) in accordance with the NCTE (recognition norms and procedure) Regulation, 2002.

or

Senior Secondary (or its equivalent) with atleast 50% marks and four years Bachelor of Elementary Education (B.Ed.)

Or

Senior Secondary (or its equivalent) with atleast 50% marks and two years Diploma in Education (Special Education)

AND

Pass in the Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) to be conducted by appropriate Government in accordance with the guidelines framed by NCTE for the purpose.”

3. The Institutes, from where the petitioners have completed their respective two years Diploma course in Education, are recognized by N.C.T.E. Copies of the recognition issued by Competent Authority of N.C.T.E. is Annexure No.2 collectively.

4. The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 lays down the manner and qualification for appointment and terms & conditions of service of the Teachers. Section 23 (1) prescribes that any person possessing such minimum qualification, as laid down by an “academic authority”, authorized by the Central Government by notification, shall be eligible for appointment as a Teacher. N.C.T.E. is the academic authority in terms of Section 23(1) of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, as per the Notification dated 31.03.2010 by Central Government.

5. N.C.T.E. has released a Regulation by superseding the N.C.T.E. Regulation, 2009 published on 28.11.2014 with appendix-1 marked as Annexure No.3 alongwith the writ petition. As per the above said Regulation, the Diploma in Elementary Teachers Education Programme which carry different nomenclatures such as B.T.C., J.B.T., D.Ed. and (Diploma in Education) has been reclassified and recognized with nomenclature D.El.Ed. from 28.11.2014 onwards. In the above said background, as per the advertisement (Annexure No.4), petitioners are eligible for appointment to above said posts and they were placed in the merit list of counseling in District Bageshwar, however, subsequently, the respondent authorities of District Bageshwar removed the names of petitioner nos.1 & 2 from the merit list meant for counseling. Copy of the merit list for counseling is Annexure No.5.

6. On notice of this petition, a counter affidavit has been filed by Director, Elementary Education, Uttarakhand, Dehradun, taking the stand that petitioners do not have the minimum qualification for the post of Assistant Teacher, Primary School. As per the Uttarakhand Government Elementary Education (Teacher) Service Rules, 2012, the D.Ed. qualification is not mentioned and, in this backdrop, petitioners are not eligible. In the Notification of N.C.T.E. and Rules made by the State Government, the two years D.Ed. in Special Education h