JUDGMENT & ORDER

(M.S. Ramachandra Rao, C.J.)

1) Heard Mr. Purusuttam Roy Barman, learned senior counsel assisted by Mr. Samarjit Bhattacharjee, counsel appearing for the appellants/ petitioners and Mr. Dipankar Sarma, Additional Government Advocate appearing for the State respondents.

2) Writ Appeal No.16 of 2026 and Writ Appeal No.101 of 2025 arise out of the same judgment dt.24.07.2025 of the learned Single Judge in WP(C) No.550 of 2024.

3) Writ Appeal No.114 of 2025 arises out of the judgment dt.10.09.2025 of the learned Single Judge in WP(C) No.518 of 2025, where the learned Single Judge had followed the judgment dt.24.07.2025 in WP(C) No.550 of 2024 and granted relief partly to the petitioners in the WP(C) No.518 of 2025/ respondents in the said appeal.

4) The appellants in W.A. No.101 of 2025 and W.A. No.114 of 2025 are the State of Tripura and its officers. They shall be referred to in this judgment as "State".

5) The respondents in those Writ Appeals as well as the appellants in W.A. No.16 of 2026 will be referred to henceforth as "petitioners".

6) Petitioners 1, 2, 4, 6 & 8 were engaged as Anganwadi Workers and petitioners 3, 5, 7 & 9 in WP(C) No.550 of 2024 were engaged as Anganwadi Helper in different Anganwadi centres under the Damcherra ICDS Project . The sole petitioner in WP(C) No.518 of 2025 was engaged as Anganwadi Helper in one of the Anganwadi centres under the Damcherra ICDS Project. They had been discharging their duties in their respective Anganwadi centres ever since their respective dates of appointment between 2007 and 2010 to the full satisfaction of the competent authority.

7) Meanwhile, the Child Development Project Officer of Damcherra ICDS Project issued one memorandum dt.28.12.2022 mentioning that 5 Anganwadi centres situated at Khakchang Para Nos.1 to 5, where the petitioners were working as Anganwadi Workers and Anganwadi Helpers, were shifted from Khakchang Para to Khahamthai Para without his consent, that all Anganwadi centres of Khakchang Para were closed (locked) with all equipments and utensils, and all the Bru people were also shifted from Khakchang Para Bru camp to Khahamthai Para Bru camp in the last week of November, 2022. The said memo also states that a report was submitted by the CDPO, Damcherra ICDS Project to the Director, Social Welfare and Social Education Department, Government of Tripura and the honorarium of all the petitioners was to be stopped from the month of December, 2022 until further orders.

8) However, no subsequent decision was taken as regards the fate of the petitioners and they were deprived of the honorarium, and the engagements of the petitioners, though not specifically cancelled, were kept in limbo.

9) This prompted the petitioners to approach this Court by filing the respective Writ Petitions contending that as per the Rules framed by the State Government, the retiring age of Anganwadi Workers and Helpers was 60 years and so before such date, their engagement also cannot be terminated.

10) Petitioners contend that shifting of an Anganwadi centre from one place to another place merely results in change of location of such centre, but does not change the status of its employees; and that their honorarium cannot also be withheld on that ground as has been done from the month of December, 2022 onwards, because they were not at fault, and they were not being allowed by the State to work in the said Anganwadi centres.

11) The State, however, contended that the Bru Camp wherein the Bru people were rehabilitated got shifted from Khakchang Para Bru camp to Khahamthai Para Bru camp. So there was no further necessity of keeping these Anganwadi centres operational in Khakchang Para. It contended that department had started processing of engagement of Anganwadi Workers and Helpers to newly established Anganwadi centre at Khahamthai Para. The State opposed the prayer of the petitioners for honorarium on the ground that they did not work during the period after December,