Authority: Calcutta High Court, Circuit Bench at Port Blair

Order Date: 3 September 2026

Case Overview

  • Petitioners: Baratang Forest Workers' Union and another, represented by President (Petitioner No.2) and counsel Mr. Gopala Binnu Kumar, Ms. Vinita Devi.
  • Respondents: Union of India and others, represented by counsel Mr. Rakesh Kumar.
  • The writ petition (WPA/71/2025) challenges the regularization order dated 12 January 2021, which regularized 122 Daily Rated Mazdoors (DRMs) on a pay band with grade pay effective 21 May 2015, and seeks backdating to the workers' initial engagement date.
  • Petitioners rely on a Labour Tribunal award dated 13 July 2005 directing payment of daily wages from the date of initial engagement, arguing that regularization benefits should likewise commence from that date.
  • Respondents contend the Tribunal did not fix a regularization date, leaving it to the authority, and therefore the court should not interfere with the 21 May 2015 date.
  • Historical litigation includes:
  • WP.CT/1497/2010 (Mohan Kumar Das v. Union of India) judgment 29 March 2011, noting regularization was left to administration.
  • Prior writ WPA/290/2019 disposed 18 December 2019; subsequent appeal dismissed 14 October 2020 with a four‑month extension for regularization.
  • Special Leave Petition No. 3387/2021 dismissed by Supreme Court on 9 March 2021.
  • Order of regularization issued by Conservator of Forests on 12 July 2021, effective 21 May 2015.
  • Contempt application CPAN 18 of 2022 disposed 22 November 2024, stating further relief is not foreclosed.
  • Current writ filed on 5 February 2025.
  • Evidence shows the 122 DRMs were engaged on ad‑hoc basis before 10 April 1996, with the Conservator’s order of 21 May 2015 acknowledging this earlier engagement.
  • The Court finds that, in the absence of a specific Tribunal‑set date, the earliest verifiable engagement date (10 April 1996) must be used for regularization.

Final Outcome

  • The Court declares 10 April 1996 as the effective date of regularization for all 122 DRMs, setting aside the order dated 12 July 2021 which had fixed 21 May 2015.
  • Respondents are directed to update the workers' records and recalculate all consequential financial benefits based on the 10 April 1996 date.
  • Compliance with this direction must be completed within sixty days of the communication of this order.
  • No order as to costs.
  • All parties are instructed to act on the server copy of the judgment downloaded from the official court website.

Topics: Labor Regularization, Forestry Employment