RANCHI: In a major relief to contractual workers, the Jharkhand High Court on Thursday ordered the state government to regularise all those workers who are engaged on contractual basis for more than 10 years. In the light of the Supreme Court order in Uma Devi case, the court of Justice SN Pathak said the state government should make regular appointments of contractual workers.
The decision was given by the court while hearing a writ petition filed by a transport department employee Narendra Tiwari, who had moved the SC after the Jharkhand HC rejected his plea to regularise his services in 2017. The SC directed the HC to reconsider the case, following which a petition was filed again in the HC in 2018.
“Giving final judgment in the writ petition, the court said that since they have been working for more than 10 years, the state government will have to regularise their services following the Supreme Court ruling in the Uma Devi case,” said petitioner’s advocate Vipula Poddar, who was assisting senior advocate Indrajeet Sinha in the case. Saying, “Enough is enough,” the court also directed the state government to ensure that all future appointments are done on a regular basis and that those who are already engaged, their services should be regularised immediately.
Most contractual workers are computer operators engaged in the transport and other departments. The Supreme Court has reiterated that regularisation shall be given effect to by the courts only in those cases where the part-time workers have been appointed irregularly against a sanctioned post, and the courts shall be unjustified in directing the state to create posts for the purpose of regularisation.