IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
CIVIL APPEAL NO.10856 OF 2014
(Arising out of SLP (C) No.31531 of 2009)
DURGAPUR CASUAL WORKERS UNION & ORS. … APPELLANTS
VERSUS
FOOD CORPORATION OF INDIA & ORS. … RESPONDENTS
This appeal has been preferred by the appellant-Durgapur Casual Workers Union and others (hereinafter referred to as, ‘the workmen’ for short) against the judgment and order dated 25th February, 2009 passed by the Division Bench of the High Court at Calcutta in F.M.A. No.2345 of 2005 (C.A.N. 8685 of 2007 and C.A.N.4726 of 2008). By the impugned judgment, the High Court allowed the appeal preferred by the respondent-Food Corporation of India (hereinafter referred to as, ‘the Corporation’ for short) and set aside the Award dated 9th June, 1999 passed by the Central Government Industrial Tribunal(hereinafter referred to as, ‘the Tribunal’ for short) as affirmed by the learned Single Judge of the High Court at Calcutta. The factual matrix of the case is as follows: The Corporation had long back setup a rice mill in the name and style of Modern Rice Mill at Durgapur and it had been handed to successive contractors for running the same. The concerned workmen, forty nine in numbers, had been working as contract labours under the contractors in the rice mill. The last contractor was M/s Civicon. The contract system was terminated and the rice mill was closed in the year 1990-1991. Thereafter, the concerned workmen were directly employed by the Corporation in June, 1991 as casual employees on daily wage basis in the Food Storage Depot at Durgapur for performing the jobs of sweeping godown and wagon floors, putting covers on infested stocks for fumigation purpose, cutting grass, collections and bagging of spillage from godowns/wagons etc….read more