1Whether reporters of Local Papers may be allowed to see the judgment? Yes IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH, SHIMLA CWP No.7188 of 2023 Date of decision: 20.05.2025 Anila Devi. ...Petitioner. Versus State of H.P. & Ors. ...Respondents. Coram: Ms. Justice Jyotsna Rewal Dua, Judge. Whether approved for reporting? For the petitioner : Mr. Ravi Tegta, Advocate. For the respondents : Ms. Menka Raj Chauhan, Deputy Advocate General, for respondents No.1 to 4-State. : Ms. Saloni, Advocate, vice Mr. Shubham, Advocate, for respondent No.6. : Mr. Sunil K. Banyal, Advocate, for respondent No.7. : Ms. Sujata Thakur, Assistant Director, Directorate of School Education. Jyotsna Rewal Dua, Judge Petitioner has grievance to the selection and appointment of respondent No.6 as Cook-cum-Helper under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme at Government Primary School, Kuthar, Education Block Nerwa, District Shimla. 2. Heard learned counsel for the parties and considered the case record as also the record produced during hearing of the case. The case as it comes out is:- -2- 2(i). On 08.12.2011, the respondents-State circulated Guidelines (Norms) for engaging Cook-cum-Helper under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme by the School Management Committee (‘SMC’). 2(i)(a). Clause 2 of the Guidelines for hiring of services of Cook-cum-Helper under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme by the SMC gives out following objectives:- “(a) To hire Cook-cum-Helper by SMC for Mid-Day meal in the schools. (b) To empower the SMCs for effective running of Schools. (c) To provide an earning opportunity to the local residents especially women and weaker section to work as MDM cook-cum-helper.” 2(i)(b). One of the eligibility criteria under Clause 6 of the Guidelines for applying for the post of Cook-cum-Helper is that the candidate should have knowledge/experience of cooking for the children. The Clause 6 reads as under:- “6. ELEGIBILITY CRITERIA : Only such candidates will be eligible to apply for the post of MDM Cook cum Helper, who are:- a) Citizen of India. b) Permanent resident of the village /Gram Panchayat / Urban local body of the area, in which the school is located. c) The candidates belonging to such adjacent Gram Panchayats where there is no GSSS/GHS/GMS/GPS shall have the opportunity with him/her to apply for the post -3- of Cook cum helper falling vacant in the equivalent school situated in the adjacent Panchayats. d) Should be medically fit and free from any contagious disease. e) Not involved in any act of crime. f) Has knowledge / experience of cooking for the children.” 2(i)(c). During selection of Cook-cum-Helper under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme, the marks are allocated to the candidates in terms of following Clause 10 of the Guidelines:- “10 INTERVIEW a) The selection committee shall hold interviews by calling all the eligible candidates. b) The selection committee shall judge the suitability of the candidates purely on merit. c) The selection will be specific to a particular school only. d) The Member Secretary of the committee will maintain complete record of the selection process. e) In the interview the marks shall be awarded to the candidate out of 15 marks. The distribution of marks shall be as under : i. Candidates belonging to BPL / low income group family =3 marks ii. Widow, or women deserted by the husband or otherwise destitute =3 marks iii. Candidates belonging to SC/ST/OBC / minority category =2 marks iv Candidates who are from families without any member in Government service =2 marks v. Permanent resident of village in respect of Gram Panchyat / ward in respect of local bodies =2 marks vi. cooking experience =3 marks Total =15 marks” In the aforesaid Clause, three marks are to be given for cooking experience of the candidate. The present -4- petition concerns the marks allocated for the cooking experience. 2(ii). The respondents undertook an exercise for filling the post of Cook-cum-Helper under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme at GPS Kuthar, Education Block Nerwa, District Shimla. Five candidates participated in the counselling process (interview). Petitioner and respondent No.6 were amongst them. The SMC-respondent No.5 allocated the marks to the participating candidates on 06.06.2023. 2(iii). During hearing of the case, the record of the selection process was produced. The record shows that the respondents had reserved ‘three marks for cooking experience in this school.’ Respondent No.6, who had previously served as Cook-cum-Helper for few months under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme at GPS Kuthar, Education Block Nerwa, District Shimla, was given three marks. The other participating candidates, including the petitioner, were not given any mark under this heading. Consequently, the total tally of marks obtained by the petitioner stood at 7, whereas that of respondent No.6 was at 10. Accordingly, respondent No.6 was selected and appointed as Cook-cum-Helper under the -5- Mid-Day Meal Scheme. Petitioner feels aggrieved against selection and appointment of respondent No.5. 3. Learned counsel for the petitioner contends and rightly so that respondents could not have reserved three marks only for cooking experience in ‘that school’ as there was no such stipulation in the Guidelines issued by the State on 08.12.2011 for hiring services of Cook-cum-Helper under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme. Clause 10 of the Guidelines (extracted earlier) did not restrict award of three marks for cooking experience ‘in that school.’ Though the mode and manner of judging the cooking experience has been blissfully kept silent under the Guidelines, nonetheless, the fact remains that cooking experience of an applicant is not to be restricted only for the past cooking in that school or else only those applicants, who had previously cooked in the concerned school, will be eligible for the three marks allocated under this head. This cannot be construed to be the intention of the policy. This would amount to creating monopoly in favour of previously engaged Cook-cum-Helpers in the concerned school. This would also run against the avowed objective of the policy as enshrined in Clause 2 that Cook-cum-Helper under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme are hired, -6- inter alia, to provide an opportunity to the local residents especially women and weaker section to work as Mid-Day Meal Cook-cum-Helper, who have knowledge/experience of cooking for children. 4. Learned Deputy Advocate General next submitted that the petitioner had not furnished any experience certificate in cooking. This contention is also not supported by the record. It is not even the stand of the respondents that the applicants were called to produce experience certificate in cooking, though it is the pleaded case of the petitioner that she had the cooking experience from working as cook in different schools but was not given three marks for her certificates as during the selection process the respondents had reserved marks for cooking experience in ‘that school’ only. Further, the contention of respondents cannot be accepted in view of the policy/guidelines as it existed on the date. In terms of the policy/guidelines, only cooking experience is required to be possessed by the applicant and the objective of policy/guidelines is to give earning opportunities to the local residents especially women and weaker section. The policy does not prescribe any mode and manner of judging the cooking experience. It does not -7- stipulate furnishing certificates for cooking experience in a particular place or institution etc. It is for the respondents to modify/amend/ issue fresh policy/guidelines, if they so desire. In view of the policy as it stands, the petitioner, who claims to be a homemaker with experience of cooking in different schools, could not be denied three marks allocated for the cooking experience. No other point was urged during hearing of the case. 5. In view of above, since the selection of respondent No.6 by respondent No.5 is not based upon the Guidelines for engaging Cook-cum-Helper under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme, petitioner has made out a case for interference by this Court. This writ petition is accordingly allowed. Selection of respondent No.6 as Cook-cum-Helper at GPS Kuthar, Education Block Nerwa, District Shimla, is quashed and set aside. Respondents are, however, at liberty to undertake fresh exercise for selection and appointment of Cook-cum- Helper under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme in the concerned school. -8- The writ petition stands disposed of in the above terms, so also the pending miscellaneous application(s), if any. Jyotsna Rewal Dua 20th May, 2025 Judge (Pardeep)