COMMON ORDER

These writ petitions have been filed by the wives of four deceased workers who lost their lives in a fire accident that took place on 02.12.2014 at a fireworks manufacturing unit located at Ettakkapatty Village, Sivakasi Taluk, Virudhunagar District. All four workers belonged to the Scheduled Caste community and were the sole breadwinners of their families. Following the incident, the petitioners approached the District Administration for compensation and employment support.

2.After assessing the socio-economic condition of the petitioners’ families, the Tahsildar submitted a report recommending a compensation of Rs.5,00,000/- for each of the victims. The second respondent / the District Collector forwarded this recommendation to the Government through his letter dated 30.12.2014. However, the Government, in March 2015, sanctioned only Rs.1,00,000/- as ex gratia compensation. The balance of Rs.4,00,000/-, though recommended, was never released. Aggrieved by this, the petitioners have approached this Court seeking a writ of mandamus directing the respondents to release the balance amount and to provide suitable employment to them or their eligible family members.

3.Learned