Himachal Pradesh High Court

Takshila Private Industrial ... vs State Of H.P & Others on 8 January, 2021

Bench: Tarlok Singh Chauhan, Jyotsna Rewal Dua

HON'BLE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH AT SHIMLA CWP No. 6128 of 2020 Reserved on: 6.01.2021

Decided on: 08.01.2021

Takshila Private Industrial Training Institute ...Petitioner.

                                   Versus





    State of H.P & others                            ....Respondents.

....................................................................................... Coram Hon'ble Mr. Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan, Judge.

Hon'ble Ms Justice Jyotsna Rewal Dua, Judge.

Whether approved for reporting?1

For the petitioner. : Mr. Aman Parth Sharma, Advocate.

For the respondents : Mr. Ashok Sharma, Advocate General with Mr. Vinod Thakur, Mr. Vikas Rathore, Mr. Shiv Pal Manhans, Mr. Nand Lal Thakur, Additional Advocates General, Mr. Bhupinder Thakur, Ms. Seema Sharma, & Mr. Yudhvir Thakur Deputy

Advocate Generals, for the respondents/State. Mr. Shashi Shirshoo, Central Government Counsel, for respondent No.3.

Jyotsna Rewal Dua (J)

Petitioner is a private institute imparting Industrial Training

(ITI). Its application for affiliation of additional 4th base Unit in Electrician

Trade has been rejected by respondent No.3 vide communication dated

25.11.2020/9.12.2020. Aggrieved, instant writ petition has been preferred.

2(i) Petitioner institute was established in the year 2011 and was

affiliated with National Council of Vocational Training (in short NCVT) for

Electrician Trade initially for 2(1+1) Units. 4 additional units (1+1+2) in

Whether reporters of the local papers may be allowed to see the judgment?

2014 and 3 more units (1+1+1) in the year 2019 were approved for it. As of

now, this ITI is affiliated for total of 9 units in Electrician Trade.

2(ii) On 2.12.2019 vide Annexure P-2, online affiliation portal was

opened by respondent No.3 for existing ITIs wishing to apply for extension

of Trades/Units, for shifting (as per DGT norms) and for new ITIs willing to

start session. The last date for submitting online applications was 28.2.2020.

Pursuant to the link so generated on the web portal of respondent No.3,

petitioner institute, within the stipulated period applied for affiliation of an

additional 4th base Unit in Electrician Trade alongwith deposit of requisite

fees.

2(iii) As per Affiliation Norms-2018, process of affiliation is spread

over three stages. Sub-Committee of NCVT headed by respondent No.2

conducted a joint inspection of petitioner institute under Stages I, II & III.

After completion of all stages of affiliation process, the Sub-Committee of

NCVT vide letter dated 7.11.2020 recommended the case of the petitioner

institute for additional 4th Base Unit in Electrician Trade.

2(iv) As per averments made in the writ petition, on the basis of

recommendation of NCVT Sub-Committee, the State Council of Vocational

Training (in short SCVT) granted affiliation to the petitioner institute for two

shifts under SCVT certificate. SCVT certificate is valid within the State,

whereas NCVT is valid throughout India. Based on the recommendation of

NCVT Sub-Committee, many aspirants applied for admissions and were

admitted in the institute.

2(v) Recommendation of NCVT Sub-Committee was placed

before the Recommendation Committee of respondent No.3 (DGT). The

Recommendation Committee of respondent No.3 in its 16 th meeting held on

25.11.2020, did not recommend the affiliation of additional 4 th base Unit in

Electrician Trade for the petitioner. The minutes of this meeting were

forwarded to respondent No.2 on 9.12.2020. Aggrieved against non-

approval of additional 4th base Unit in Electrician Trade, instant writ

petition has been preferred for the following reliefs:-

"i. In view of the submission made hereinabove it is most humbly prayed that present petition may kindly be allowed and Annexure P-7

(Recommendation Committee DGT, report qua the petitioner institute

may kindly be quashed and set-aside being illegal, unwarranted and untenable in the eyes of law.

ii. Respondent No.3 may kindly directed to recommend that case of the petitioner for the additional 4th base unit (1+1+1) for electrician trade as per the Joint Committee report of NCVT Sub-Committee."

3.(i) The Recommendation Committee in its meeting held on

25.11.2020 has given following reasons for not recommending the case of

petitioner institute:-

    SI.No ITI's Name         Trades/U ITI          Units      Remarks by Remarks     by
          MIS                nits        Propose   recommen Scrutiny     Recommendatio





          Code/Application   sought for Units      ded by SCI Committee  n Committee
          Number             affiliation
    2       Takshila   Private Eletrician 3(1+1+1) 3(1+1+1)   ITI needs to     Not
            ITI, Near M.L.S.M. (NSQF)                         upgrade to 4     Recommended
            College                                           trades for the   Since ITI is
            Sundernagar                                       session 2021     more than 5
            District    Mandi                                                  years      old,
            H.P. 175018                                                        should    apply
                                                                               for minimum 4
            PR02000211                                                         for affiliation
                                                                               by      session
                                                                               2021.

It is evident that 4th Base Unit in Electrician Trade in

petitioner institute was not approved by respondent No.3 on the ground that

'petitioner ITI was more than 5 years old and should apply for minimum 4

for affiliation by session 2021'. The reasons for rejecting the case of the

petitioner, as contained in the impugned communication (extracted above)

are not clearly worded. It does not stand to reason that an ITI in existence

for five years should apply for minimum 4 for affiliation and having not

applied for "minimum 4 for affiliation", its case for affiliation of 4 th

additional unit in Electrician Trade cannot be approved.

3(ii) It is the case of the petitioner that it had applied for additional

4th base Unit in Electrician Trade pursuant to generation of link on the web-

portal of respondent No.3 before the cut-off date. Petitioner has also placed

on record the receipt in lieu of deposit of fees. The petitioner has also

appended documents with the writ petition reflecting that in all the three

stages of inspection, the duly constituted Sub-Committee of NCVT had

recommended its case for addition of 4th base Unit in Electrician Trade.

3(iii) Respondent No.3 in its response to the writ petition has tried

to come clear by advancing following reasons for rejection of petitioner's

case:-

"2. That the Directorate General of Training (DGT) published the Affiliation Norms for ITI(s) Year-2018, whereby, some old norms have been revised and updated. As per these latest norms, ITI(s) are required to get affiliation for minimum 04 trades and minimum one unit per trade. Moreover, all the affiliated ITI(s) are required to get re-affiliation for every years from the date of affiliation. The institutes are required to submit online application at least one year prior to expiry of affiliation/completion

of five years of affiliation. Copy of Affiliation Norms for ITIs year 2018 are annexed as annexure-R-3/1 (Colly).

3. That the matter of petitioner ITI, it is pertinent to mention that petitioner Institute has never applied for re-affiliation. Moreover, it is running single trade since 2011. Furthermore, it is also submitted that

.

instead of applying for re-affiliation of petitioner ITI and affiliation for

another three new trades than electrician, the petitioner ITI has applied for additional units in the same electrician trade, which cannot be considered as per prevailing norms. Accordingly, the application filed by the petitioner for the additional 4th Base unit has been rejected by the Recommendation

Committee, DGT in its 16th meeting held on 25.11.2020."

It is evident from the above extracted paras of respondent No.3's

reply that according to the respondent as per Affiliation Norms for ITIs-year

2018:- (a) Affiliated ITIs are required to get re-affiliation for every five

years from the date of affiliation (b) ITIs are required to get affiliation for

minimum 4 trades and minimum one unit per trade. Petitioner unit is

running since 2011 and has never ever applied for re-affiliation. Instead of

applying for re-affiliation and for affiliation to the other three new trades,

the petitioner had applied for additional unit in the same electrician trade.

The application filed by the petitioner for additional 4 th base Unit in

Electrician Trade was therefore rejected by the Recommendation

Committee (DGT) in its 16th meeting held on 25.11.2020.

3(iv). Following clause from Affiliation Norms for ITIs year 2018

provides for re-affiliation:-

"Instructions for 3.7.1:

All the institutes shall be re-affiliated for every 5 years from date of affiliation. The institutes shall submit online application at least one year prior to expiry of affiliation/completion of five years of affiliation."

The petitioner institute was initially affiliated in the year

2011. The Affiliation Norms being pressed into service by respondent No.3

requiring re-affiliation after five years from the date of affiliation, came

into existence in the year 2018. The ground of non re-affiliation, as a reason

for rejecting petitioner's case was taken in the reply by respondent No.3. To

this reply, petitioner has filed rejoinder with specific averments in para-2

that 'after 2018, the ITIs' can apply for affiliation etc., only on online

portal ,however, no link for the purposes of re-affiliation was ever generated

on the site of the respondent'. No substantive rebuttal to this factual

averment has been made by respondent No.3. In such circumstances, the

reason now putforth in the reply for rejecting the case of the petitioner on

the ground of its non re-affiliation after five years from the date of

affiliation, does not hold good.

3(v). The petitioner ITI had applied for additional 4 th base Unit in

Electrician Trade with three shifts. Respondent No.3 submits that the

petitioner was required to get affiliation for minimum four trades and

minimum one unit per trade. Since the petitioner failed to do it therefore, its

case was rejected. Learned counsel for respondent No.3 could not point out

any provision in the Affiliation Norms 2018, which provides that an

existing ITI has to get affiliation for minimum four trades. Learned counsel

for the petitioner invited our attention to Clause 3.1.2 of Affiliation Norms

2018 providing that existing ITI has to meet with NCVT norms for

additional trade/unit. The clause reads as under:-

"Instructions for 3.1.2:

I. No increase in intake shall be given to ITIs where FIR/CBI/CVC/ any other Investigation agency/punitive action is initiated by DGT for any violation in the norms and standards and where enquiries are pending.