Path cleared for recruitment to 417 posts;court upholds prescribed educational qualification
Two-Judge High Court bench dismisses petition challenging educational qualification
Adding extra degrees to recruitment rules falls within state government's policy domain: High Court
Boost to Yogi government's mission rozgar; High Court delivers key verdict on legality of recruitment rules
Lucknow, October 2026 : The Uttar Pradesh food safety and drug administration department (UPFSDA) has won a major legal victory in the recruitment for 417 posts of Junior Analyst (Food). A two-judge Division Bench of the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court has dismissed the petition challenging the educational qualification prescribed for the recruitment. In its judgment, the Bench of Justice Amitabh Kumar Rai and Justice Alok Mathur made it clear that the educational qualification prescribed by the State Government for the post of Junior Analyst (Food) is in line with statutory provisions. Upholding the relevant recruitment rules as valid, the court dismissed the petition.
*Educational qualification and recruitment rules had been challenged*
The case concerns direct recruitment to 417 posts of Junior Analyst (Food) under Advertisement No. 04/2024. Ten petitioners, including Pankaj Kumar, had challenged the amendment made in 2020 to Rule 8(2) of the Uttar Pradesh Food Safety and Drug Administration Department Analyst (Food and Drug Laboratory) Service Rules, 2017, as well as the educational qualification prescribed in the recruitment advertisement. The petitioners argued that subject-specific degrees such as food technology, dairy technology, oil technology and biotechnology should also be included in the eligibility criteria for the recruitment.
**Court Clarifies: The two posts are different in nature**
In its judgment, the Bench treated the legal distinction between the posts of Junior Analyst (Food) and Food Analyst as significant. The court observed that the two posts are separate and that the service rules prescribed for them operate under different legal provisions. While fixing the qualification for the post of Junior Analyst (Food), the state government included one of the alternative minimum qualifications mentioned in the central rules for Food Analyst. Therefore, there is no legal conflict between the two sets of rules.
The court also clarified that including additional educational qualifications for recruitment, or declaring any degree to be equivalent, falls within the policy domain of the recruiting authority and the state government. The court itself cannot rewrite the recruitment rules by adding new qualifications. On this basis, the Bench upheld Rule 8(2) as valid and dismissed the challenge.
*Important verdict for the recruitment process for 417 posts*
With this ruling, the legal challenge over the educational qualification prescribed for the Junior Analyst (Food) recruitment stands dismissed. A total of 417 posts are to be filled under the recruitment advertisement. Regarding the written examination and document verification having already been completed, the way may be paved for moving the selection process forward once the status of further steps at the departmental level becomes clear.
*Mission Rozgar of the Yogi government to get a boost*
Under the leadership of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, the state government is emphasising providing opportunities to youth in government services and moving recruitment processes forward. The removal of the legal hurdle concerning the 417 Junior Analyst (Food) posts is significant in light of this broader Mission Rozgar. Selections to these posts will also help provide technical human resources for the food safety system. This is likely to strengthen departmental work related to testing the quality of food items, laboratory operations, and the protection of consumer interests.
