The court directed state government to formulate comprehensive scheme for providing employment guarantee.
Chennai: The Madras High Court has directed the Tamil Nadu government to formulate as expeditiously as possible a comprehensive scheme for providing guarantee of employment to the ousted block level co-ordinators, either by redeploying them in any suitable post on a preferential basis against regular vacancies that may arise in various departments or by sanctioning regular posts in the sanitation programmes that are being implemented by it for their eventual regularisation.
In the meanwhile, as far as the present employment of these writ petitioners is concerned, the same may be continued and wherever there is any possibility of extending their employment, the same may be extended to these petitioners, Justice V Parthiban (since retired) said recently.
The judge was disposing of a batch of writ petitions from N Karunanidhi and 40 others, who prayed for a direction to the State and the central governments to regularise their services in the post of Block Level Co-ordinators, and confirm their services after considering their more than 10 years length of services.
The State government, which is now responsible for their engagement ought to consider their pitiable plight, hanging precariously by a thread and initiate all necessary and earnest steps towards addressing their grievance.
The government cannot shut the doors of hope to the petitioners and still would expect them to work effectively in implementation of the projects, serving public purpose. It is a constitutional imperative and also a moral obligation on the part of the government to come up with some kind of a comprehensive scheme to address the claim of these employees for regularisation.
The government may graciously consider, taking into account the long period of employment and requirement of their experienced service for serving the larger interest of the public in the State.
"For all the above stated reasons, the State government is directed to formulate a comprehensive scheme for providing guarantee of employment to these writ petitioners," the judge said.
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