IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) TUESDAY, THE THIRTY FIRST DAY OF MARCH TWO THOUSAND AND NINE PRESENT THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION No.6677 of 2009 Between: S. Sanjeev Reddy S/o. Veera Reddy R/o. T1-278, 8th Incline, Godavari Khani, Karimnagar District. ..... PETITIONER AND 1 Chief General Manager (Per.) M/s. The Singareni Collieries Co. Ltd. Kothagudem, Karimnagar District. 2 General Manager, Ramagundam Area III M/s. The Singareni Collieries Co. Ltd. Godavari Khani, Karimnagar District. 3 Manager, GDK 10 Inc. M/s. The Singareni Collieries Co. Ltd. Godavari Khani, Karimnagar District. .....RESPONDENTS Counsel for the Petitioner:MR.V.SREE RANGA RAO Counsel for the Respondents:MR. N.S.PATTABHI RAMA RAO FOR MR.NANDIGAM KRISHNA RAO The Court made the following : ORDER: This writ petition is filed for a writ of mandamus to declare the action of the respondents in retiring the petitioner from 01.05.2009 vide their letter, dated 30.03.2008 as illegal and arbitrary. Heard Sri V.Sree Ranga Rao, learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri N.S.Pattabhi Rama Rao, learned counsel representing Sri Nandigam Krishna Rao, learned Standing Counsel for the respondents. There is a serious dispute regarding actual age of the petitioner, who entered in respondent No.1 Company as Khalasi on 11.04.1976. The petitioner was later on absorbed as Pump Operator with effect from 16.01.1977 with continuity of service. Admittedly, the petitioner’s age was entered as 22 years in Form ‘B’ register maintained under the Mines Rules, 1955. However, in the service register, there is a discrepancy. It is pleaded by the petitioner that though he entered service in 1976 and absorbed in 1977, the service register was opened only on 27.01.1994, in which, his age was shown as 29 years. The respondents, however, took into consideration the entry in the service register and issued the impugned letter informing the petitioner that he will retire with effect from 01.05.2009. A perusal of the correspondence filed by the petitioner shows that right from 1999, the petitioner has been agitating on the issue of his age. Though an order was passed on 28.04.2005 by the Superintendent of Mines informing the petitioner that the area level Age Determination Committee in its meeting held on 21.01.2004 confirmed his age as 27 years as on 11.04.1976, the petitioner did not stop making representations with the respondents. In one of the recent communications sent by the General Manager, Ramagundam Area III, vide letter, dated 17.02.2008, it is inter alia mentioned that the age/date of birth confirmed by the Area Age Determination Committee is not in accordance with the company records referred to in paragraph 1A of the said letter. Though ordinarily, the age entered in the service register is conclusive proof of age of an employee, in the instant case, there are admitted discrepancies between Form ‘B’ register, which is maintained under the statute, and service register. As mentioned earlier, the petitioner has been raising this dispute for the last ten years. Therefore, I find the dispute raised by the petitioner bona fide and requires to be considered by the Apex Medical Board (for short ‘the Board’). In this view of the matter, the writ petition is disposed of with the direction to respondent No.1 to immediately refer the dispute raised by the petitioner regarding his correct date of birth to the Board of respondent No.1 Company and ensure that the Board examines the petitioner and submits its report on or before 15.04.2009. Thereupon, respondent No.1 shall pass an appropriate order on the age of superannuation of the petitioner on or before 25.04.2009 and communicate the same to him. As a sequel to disposal of main petition, WPMP.No.8738 of 2009 filed by the petitioner for interim relief is disposed of as infructuous. C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY, J 31st MARCH, 2009. Note: issue c.c. in three (3) days. kvni