CHENNAI: If charges are levied and collected for transportation of students, teaching and non-teaching staff of educational institutions, including medical colleges running hospitals, the vehicles used for the same would come under the purview of Motor Transport Workers Act, the Madras High Court has ruled.
A division bendh of Justices K K Sasidharan and R Subramanian gave the ruling while dismissing a writ appeal from the management of Christian Medical College (CMC Association), Vellore, on Tuesday.
The appellant was running medical and nursing colleges, research institution and a full fledged hospital. To cater to the needs of the students, staff comprising doctors, nurses, paramedical and other skilled and unskilled employees, the college owned vehicles are used for transporting them.
While so, the Labour department issued a notice for non-compliance of provisions of Motor Transport Workers Act, 1961, in 1968 to which the college sent a reply stating that the Act would not apply to the appellant institution. After a legal battle for five decades, in 2015, a single judge rejected the claim of the college. Hence, the present writ appeal.