SC directs DIAL to abolish its contract labour system

Thursday, September 15, 2011: The Supreme Court today directed Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) to comply with Centre’s order to abolish its system of hiring contractual labour saying privatisation of airport does not mean government has no control over it.

A bench of justices Dalveer Bhandari and A K Patnaik directed DIAL to pay a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to each of its 136 trolley retrievers who were not reinstated after expiry of their contracts.

The bench turned down the plea of DIAL that government’s notification for regularisation of services of trolley retrievers is not binding on it as it is a private player. “AAI (Airport Authority of India) clearly acts under the authority of the central government and DIAL acts under the authority of AAI because of its contract with DIAL.

Then it can be logically stated that DIAL works under the authority of the central government,”the bench said.AAI is under an obligation to follow the directions of the central government and if DIAL has admittedly assumed those obligations through the OMDA (Operation, Management, Development Agreement), then DIAL is presumably also obligated to follow such directions,
“the bench said.

The court passed the order on a petition filed by DIAL challenging the Delhi High Court’s order which had directed it to abolish system of contractual job.