Uttarakhand HC rules 3-year agricultural diploma holders eligible for supervisor posts

Nainital, Oct 15 (PTI) The Uttarakhand High Court ruled that candidates with a three-year diploma in agricultural engineering are eligible for sugarcane supervisor posts, setting aside the Uttarakhand Public Service Commission's decision and ordering the declaration of results.

A division bench of Chief Justice G. Narendra and Justice Subhash Upadhyay, hearing a special appeal, set aside the September 1 order of a single bench and directed the (UKPSC) to immediately declare the appellants' results.

The case stemmed from a 2022 advertisement by the UKPSC for 78 sugarcane supervisor posts, which was withdrawn and later resumed in 2023.

The new advertisement required a two-year diploma in agriculture. However, candidates with three-year agricultural engineering diplomas who appeared for the examination were included in the selection list but disqualified during document verification.

The Commission had sought clarification from the government on whether a three-year agricultural engineering diploma could be considered valid.

On November 25, 2023, the Office of the Sugarcane and Sugar Commissioner clarified that both two-year and three-year agricultural diplomas were valid.

Subsequently, on December 14, 2023, the Secretary of the Sugarcane Development and Sugar Industry Department instructed the Commission to consider three-year diploma holders eligible and proceed with the selection process. Despite these clear instructions, the Commission did not amend the advertisement and excluded candidates with three-year diplomas.

The Court deemed the Commission's actions arbitrary and unlawful, stating that the recruiting agency could not alter the educational qualifications set by the employing department. PTI DPT HIG HIG