Srivastava, J. - The petitioners, at the relevant time Superintendent of Taxes in the Department of Taxes, Government of Assam, challenge the vires of the Assam Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes( Reser­vation of Vacancies in Services and Posts ) Act, 1978, hen-after the Act, and the Government notification dated 17.3.81 whereby the respondent No.4 also Superintendent of Taxes, was appointed on promotion as Assistant Commissioner of Taxes. 2. Briefly the undisputed facts are that the six petitioners and the respondent No. 4 were at the relevant time Superintendent of Taxet in the Department of Taxes, Government of Assam. In the final gra­dation list of seniority under Notification No. FTX 15/63/1 9 dated 7th June, 1975 (Annexure A), the petitioners were at serial Nos. 27 to 32, whereas the respondent No. 4 was at serial No. 3^. Five vacancies in the post of Assistant Commissioner of Taxes were to be filled by promotion of Superintendent of Taxes, for which a select list keeping in mind the twenty point roster in the schedule to the Act was prepared. In the said select list the respondent No. 4 was at serial No. 11, whereas the petitioners were above him. By notification No. FEB 539/77/54 dated 17. 3. 81 impugned in this petition, five Superintendent of Taxes had been promoted and appointed to officiate as Assistant Commissioner of Taxes, including the respondent No. 4 in pursuance of the aforesaid roster, being a person belonging to Scheduled Caste, for whom one vacancy was reserved. The petitioners are aggrieved and assail the vires of the Act whereunder the said roster was provided, and also the appo­intment of the respondent No. 4 as illegal. 3. ' The" respondent No 1. State of Assam and the respondent No'. 4 have resisted the petition on the ground that in pursuance of the policy for ^reservation of posts in employment under the State, the Act had been made and it provided 7% reservation for Scheduled Caste, 10% for Scheduled Tribes (Plains ) and 5 for Scheduled Tribes (Hills), and to work the policy a 20 point roster had been provided. The Act is within the competence of the State and .the reservation provided, being only 22% is well within, reasonable limit. The appointment of the respondent No. 4 made in pursuance of the provisions of the Act and the roster thereunder is valid. 4. The Act is within the competence of the State and .the reservation provided, being only 22% is well within, reasonable limit. The appointment of the respondent No. 4 made in pursuance of the provisions of the Act and the roster thereunder is valid. 4. We have heard Shri J. P. Bhattacharjec, learned counsel for the petitioners, Shri D. N. Choudhury, learned counsel for the State and Shri S. N. Bhuyan, learned counsel for the respondent Vo.4. 5. The Act (Assam Act XII of 1979) was made by the State of Assam to provide for reservation of vacancies in services and posts for the members of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribe, because, as stated in its 'preamble the members of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes who are backward classes of citizens were not adequately represented in the services and posts within the State, and it was expedient to provide for the reservation of vacancies in services and posts for them. 6. Section 2(ej) defines 'Schedule' to mean the Schedule appended to the Act. 7. Section 4 provides for reservation in direct recruitment, and its relevant part reads as under : “4. Reservation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in vacancies to be filled by direct 'recruitment. At the commencement of this Act, all appointments to serv­ices and posts in the establishment which are to be filled up by direct recruitment shall be regulated in the following manner, namely : a) subject to the other provisions of this Act, seven per­cent of the vacancies shall be reserved for the candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes and ten percent for Sched­uled Tribes ( ^lams) and five percent for Scheduled Tribes (Hills), in the manner set out in the Schedule . ( emphasis supplied ) Provided that the State Government may from time to time review the implementation of the reservation policy and take adequate measures including increase of percentage, mentioned in Cl. 4(a) of this Act; Provided further that the candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes who qualify for selection on merit shall be included in the general list and not against reserved quota; Provided also that in respect of the. 4(a) of this Act; Provided further that the candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes who qualify for selection on merit shall be included in the general list and not against reserved quota; Provided also that in respect of the. Assam Judicial Service, the percentage snail be seven for Scheduled Castes and ten for Scheduled Tribes ( Plains ) and five for Scheduled' Tribes ( Hills) in Grade H and HI of the Service; b) - - c) -- Section 5 for reservation in promotion provides: "5. Reservation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in vacancies to be filled up by promotion. Reservation for members of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in vacancies to be filled up by promotion in any establishment shall be regulated in the following manner, namely: (a) There shall be reservation at seven percent for members of the Scheduled Castes and ten percent for the me­mbers of Scheduled Tribes ( Plains ; and five percent for the members of the Scheduled Tribes ( Hills ) : Provided that the State Government may from time to time review the implementation of the reservation policy and take adequate measures including increase of percentage, mentioned in (I) (5) (e) of this Act; b) A separate twenty point roster in the form given in the Schedule shall be maintained by every establishment." Section 10 provides for removal of difficulties and reads : "10. Removal of difficulties. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the State Government may take such steps or issue such orders not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as the State Government may consider necessary for removing the difficulty." Section 11 confers power on the S»ate Government on amend the Schedule by order published in the Official Gazette. It clearly means that the State Government has the power to add to, amend or alter the Schedule. 8 The Schedule which refers to section 4, provides 20 point roster, which is as under : "The reservation for the members of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in services or posts in an establishment shall be given effect to in the following manner, namely : i) A roster of twenty vacancies will be necessary to give effect to the reservation of vacancies for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. The roster given below shall be adopted for the purpose of each establishment : 1st Vacancy Scheduled. Tribes (Plains). 2nd Vacancy Unreserved. 3rd Vacancy Scheduled Castes. 4th Vacancy Unreserved. 5th Vacancy Unreserved. 6th Vacancy Unreserved. 7th Vacancy Scheduled Tribes ( Hills ). 8th Vacancy Unreserved. 9th Vacancy Unreserved. 10thVacancy Unreserved, 11th Vacancy Scheduled Tribes (Plains). 12th; Vacancy Scheduled Castes. l3thVacancy Unreserved 14th Vacancy Unreserved. 15th Vacancy Unreserved. 16th Vacancy Unreserved. 17th Vacancy Unreserved. 18th Vacancy Unreserved. 19th Vicancy Unreserved. 20th Vacancy Unreserved. Reservation points - Scheduled Tribes ( Plains) -1,11 Scheduled Castes -3,12 Scheduled Tribes ( Hills ) --7" The reservation poi its, according to this roster, are 1,11 for Sch­eduled Tribes i Plains), 3,12 for Scheduled Castes and 7 for Sched­uled Tribes (Hills). The Scheduled further provides in its clause (iv) "the roster is a running account from year to year and shall be maintained accordingly. If recruitment in a particular year stop at a particular point of the cycle, say dt the 4th point, recruitment in the subs­equent year shall begin at the next point, i. e. at the 5th point." 9. Section 13 provides for power to make rules and the Assam Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes ( Reservation of Vacancies in Services and Posts) Rules, 1983, hereafter the Rules, were made in pursuance of the said power. Its rule 5 provides for promotion by selection, and its clause (5) provides that the appointing authority shall thereafter make promotions in accordance with the roster provided in clause (i) of the Schedule to the Act in order of preference indicated in the lists. 10. There is no difficulty in regard to Schedule Tribes Hills and Scheduled Tribes Plains. It is only because of seven percent reservation for Scheduled Castes in 20 point roster that the difficulty arises. 11. Shri J. P. Bhattacharjee, learned counsel for the petitioners, during arguments has not challenged the vires of the Act. His challenge is confined to the 'roster' for filling vacancy 'by promotion'. It is only because of seven percent reservation for Scheduled Castes in 20 point roster that the difficulty arises. 11. Shri J. P. Bhattacharjee, learned counsel for the petitioners, during arguments has not challenged the vires of the Act. His challenge is confined to the 'roster' for filling vacancy 'by promotion'. The submission is that while section 4 in its clause (a) clearly provides that the post to be filled by direct recruitment shall be regulated in the following manner, namely, with reference to the percentage of reservation, i. e. in the manner set but in the Schedule (emphasis supplied), the provision in section 5 (a) for filling vacancies by promotion is different, in that, it says that promotion in any establishment shall be regulated in the manner, namely, clause (a) refers to the percentage and clause (b) says that a separate twenty point roster in the form given in the Schedule shall be maintained by every establishment. The learned counsel for the petitioners has amphasised the difference in language of section 4 and section 5 as said above, and has com ended that while appointment by direct recruit­ment has to be in the manner set out in the Schedule, i, e. roster, section 5 only says that a separate twenty point roster in the form given in the Schedule shall be maintained by every establishment, i. e. that for appointment by promotion, the roster is not to regulate or govern the appointments. Shri Bhattacharjee has also contended that section 5 clearly says that there shall be reservation at seven percent for members of the Scheduled Castes, ten percent for the members of Scheduled Tribes (Plains) and five percent f r the members of the Scheduled Tribes (Hills), but the roster provides two vacancies at points No. 3 aid 12 for the Scheduled Caste in a roster of twenty, which is in excess of seven percent and that in hundred vacancies according to the roster, the Scheduled Castes shall obtain ten posts, i. e. ten percent which is obviously far in excess of 'seven percent reservation. Shri Bhattacharjee has, therefore, submitted that the roster should be ignored for filling of posts by promotion and that if that is done, the petitioners would have obtained appointment to the post of Assistant Commissioner of Taxe in the year 1981 itself and not the respondent No. 4 who was given the appointment by following a roster which was not in accordance with the provisions of section 5 relating to. reservations and which otherwise too had not been meant to regulate the said appointments, the language of section 5 being altogether different from that of section 4 providing for the roster and also the manner of regulating the filling of the said post in accordance with roster. 12. On the other hand Shri D. N. Choudhury and Shri S. N. Bhuyan, learned counsel fir the respondents, have submitted that there is no substantial or material difference in the language of section 4 and section 5, both of which refer to the same percentage of reservation in direct recruitment as well as in promotion and both of which refer to the roster, and that there being only one roster in the Schedule, the rosier referred in section 5 (b) must be the roster in tie Schedule, and that even though there is slight differences in the language of sections 4 and 5 the legislative intent is manifestly clear that the same roster was to be used to regulate filling of vacancies by pro notion that a separate roster as in the Schedule was to be maintained for the purpose. Shri Choudhury, learned counsel for the State, has also placed before us the roster register to show that after the Act came into force the vacancies by promotion had been filled, strictly in accordance with the roster. The register shows that after the Act became operative from the year 19.81, the first vacancy was given to a person treated as unreserved, because no Schedule Tribe (Plain), was available, the third vacancy for Schedule Caste was given to a member of the Schedule Caste (respondent No. 4). No candidate of Scheduled Tribe (Hills) being available,. ,,the next seven , vacancies were treated as unreserved. In the year 1984, eleventh vacancy for Scheduled Tribe (Plain) was again unreserved and twelfth vacancy for Scheduled Caste was given to Scheduled Casts candidate, who later retired on 31. 8. 85. No candidate of Scheduled Tribe (Hills) being available,. ,,the next seven , vacancies were treated as unreserved. In the year 1984, eleventh vacancy for Scheduled Tribe (Plain) was again unreserved and twelfth vacancy for Scheduled Caste was given to Scheduled Casts candidate, who later retired on 31. 8. 85. In 1985 all tae vacancies were unreserved and in 1987, nineteenth vacancy was given to Scheduled Caste. In 1987, twenty first vacancy was given to S. T. (Plains) and twenty third meant for Scheduled Castes was treated as unreserved. Shri Choudhury has submitted that the record of operation of roster clearly reveals that the unreserved, i e. general candidates have not at all suffered on account of appointment to the reserved post and that in 24 vacancies filled during the period by promotion, only three Scheduled Caste candidates had been appointed, which is not at all in excess of the reservation of 71/2 provided under the Act for the Scheduled Castes. 13. Shri S. N. Bhuyan, learned counsel for the respondent No. 4, has also submitted that while minimum reservation of 71/2 for Scheduled Castes, five for Scheduled,, Tribe .(Hills) and 10.% for Scheduled Tribes (Plains) has been provided and hence should be ensured there should be, up serious or valid objection as in the case of Scheduled Castes even if there be some marginal excess while working the 20 point roster system; Shri D.N. Choudhury and shri S.N. Bhuyan have submi­tted that the roster in the Schedule unmeant to regulate filling up of the vacancies because; otherwise without the, roster it would just not be possible to give effect; to the policy of reservation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, as envisaged in the Act. 14. We have .given our most anxious and careful consideration to the submissions for the parties and the provisions" of the Act and-roster thereunder. . 15. Shri Bhattacharjee learned counsel for the petitioners, during, the course of argument, has not questioned the competence of the State to the Act. It may briefly be noted that under item .41 of State List in VIIth Schedule, Article 309 and Article 16(4) of the Constitution of India, the State has the competence , to make provision for .reservation4 in appointments to posts in favour of the State, is not. adequately 'represented in the services under the State. It may briefly be noted that under item .41 of State List in VIIth Schedule, Article 309 and Article 16(4) of the Constitution of India, the State has the competence , to make provision for .reservation4 in appointments to posts in favour of the State, is not. adequately 'represented in the services under the State. The State therefore has undoubtedly the accessary competence to make the law, including the said provision for roster. 16. On careful consideration of the provisions of section 4 and section 5 and the other provisions of the Act together with its Schedule, we are of the opinion that while there is some difference in the language of section 4 and section 5, there should be no doubt that the appointment by promotion, have also to be regulated in the manner provided, i. e. with the assistance of the roster. The fact that clause (b) of section 5 of the Act provides for maintena­nce of a roster in the form given in the Schedule, which is the only roster in the Schedule, and the provision of clause (b) also has to be considered applicable to regulate the filling of the vacancy by promotion as stipulated by the words "to be filled by promotion in any establishment shall be regulated in the following manner”, clearly means, that the roster in the Schedule has to be foil” wed in filling vacancy by promotion. We are unable to accept the submissions for the petitioners that in view of the difference in the language in section 4 and section 5, the Act does not cast any obligation on the authorities to follow the roster in appointments by promotion. Moreover, we further think that it shall not be practicable to ignore the roster because; firstly, the roster in the Schedule is very much part of the provisions of section Sand has to be followed, secondly, in the absence of the roster, who would say which vacancy is to be treated unreserved or which is to be treated as reserved for Scheduled Caste, or Scheduled Tribes (Hills) or Scheduled Tribes (Plains) and to our mind obviously it shall lead to disorder rather than help in the matter of implementation of policy on reservation of posts incorporated in the Act. Besides, we think that unless some better and more rational system is suggested, it shall not be reasonable to ignore the roster prescribed in the Schedule by the- legislature. 17. Shri Bhattacbarjee has suggested another roster, which is kept on record. 18. We have considered the suggested roster and although it provides for seven vacancies to Scheduled Castes, we are unable to say or accept that it provides any better or more reasonable basis for implementation of the policy of reservation on the basis of percentage in the provisions of section 5. We are inclined to think, that the roster was provided in the Act by the legislature to lay down a declared specified roster system as to how the reservation in posts is to be worked and which in our opinion, it was necessary to so provide because as said before without a roster it shall not be possible to implement the policy, and for otherwise every time there could be questions and decision taken could be assailed. In Hira Lal vs. District Judge, Ghaziabad (1983) 3 SCC 371 the Supreme Court in para 5 of the judgment, in similar matter observed that 'the stand taken in the counter-affidavit that more than 21 percent of the posts in Grade-Ill cadre of the judgeship were being manned by the people belonging to the Scheduled Castes at the relevant time is no answer to the prescription of the roster. (emphasis supplied). It is not known whether some of the recruits of earlier years already in service belonging to the Scheduled Castes and had come on the basis of overall merit without reference to reservation." The Court in para 6 held that "On this premise, if the provision of reservation had to be kept in view, the petitioner was bound to have been recruited. We allow the petition. As per the roster, he was entitled to be appointed against the first vacancy." 19. Shri Bhattacharjee, learned counsel for the petitioners, has contended that the roster shows that the scheduled Castes would have ten percent reservation because out of twenty point roster two vacancies at 3 and 12 are reserved for the Scheduled Castes. We allow the petition. As per the roster, he was entitled to be appointed against the first vacancy." 19. Shri Bhattacharjee, learned counsel for the petitioners, has contended that the roster shows that the scheduled Castes would have ten percent reservation because out of twenty point roster two vacancies at 3 and 12 are reserved for the Scheduled Castes. It may be noted as said before that there is no difficulty about reservation in vacancies 10% for Scheduled Tribes ( Plains) and 5% for Scheduled Tribes (Hills), but the difficulty in V e case of Scheduled Castes arises because of reservation of seven percent. Had it been 5 % or iO%, there would have been no diffi­culty. The reservation policy however has to be and has been made on the basis of percentage of said class of persons to the population in the State, and therefore it shall hot perhaps be possible by law to increase or decrease the percentage of reservation except on the reasonable basis of percentage of population. The suggestion that even if the percentage of Scheduled Caste is increased to 10% it would be well within the overall reservation percentage of 25% only, and that then there would be no difficulty in working 20 point roster, seems attractive but could not be permissible for the reason stated earlier. The existing provision of 7% in the re­servation for the Scheduled Castes in the Act cannot be reduced t 5% or raised to 10% even by legislation just to make the roster work, because the reservation in posts in order to have reasona­ble rational basis, has to, be related to the percentage of population of such: classes of persons to the total population of the State and cannot be arbitrarily laid down just to make the roster work. The roster provided is only the means to achieve the end of reservation on the basis of percentage, it should not be the other way found. It has been stated that in the State of Assam, at the relevant time, i.e. when the Act was made on the basis of the census taken in the year 1971, the percentage of Scheduled Castes population was about 7%. There has been no census in the State of Assam the­ reafter, i.e. in the year 1981. It has been stated that in the State of Assam, at the relevant time, i.e. when the Act was made on the basis of the census taken in the year 1971, the percentage of Scheduled Castes population was about 7%. There has been no census in the State of Assam the­ reafter, i.e. in the year 1981. It may, therefore, be said that the reservation in case of Scheduled Castes in the Act on a reasonable basis, and it cannot just be reduced or increased even by amend­ment in the Act in order to make the roster work. We are inclined to think that the difficulty on account of Scheduled Castes getting two vacancies in a twenty point roster possibly could not be avoided; and if there is any difficulty on that score, the State Gov­ernment has sufficient powers under section 10 of the Act for re­moval of difficulties, under section 11 even to add to, amend or alter the Schedule which would include the roster itself and app­rehension on the said score could well be taken care of by the power given to the State Government under the proviso to section 5 itself which says that the State Government may from time to time review the implementation of the reservation policy and take adequate measures including increase of percentage mended in clause (a) of section 5 of t e Act. Be it noted that similar is the pro­vision in section 4 also. The above provisions in the Act, in our opinion, are sufficient to remove any difficulty or hardship if it occurs in the implementation of the reservation policy and for that purpose even to take care of the working of the roster system itself. It may be noted that the roster system is a running account maintained from year to year as provided in clause (4) of the Sch­edule, and in our opinion the provisions provided are fairly reas­onable and have -rational basis for implementation of the reservation policy and the roster- being necessary for the purpose had to be provided and has to be followed, and that any difficulty of injustice as may occur at any given point of time because of its working can be taken adequate care of by the State Government in exercise of the powers under the various provisions in the Act noted above. 20." While it may be said that the roster could provide a diffe­rent order of filling up of the vacancies, yet any system which so provides, may be open to criticism and -objections on the basis of some interest affected, but unless some thing better can be suggested we see no reason why the existing roster system provided by the legislature should not be considered good enough and worked. We therefore, think that objection against the roster provided in the Schedule to the Act for the purpose of filling vacancies by prom­otion is not tenable in law. " 21. For the aforesaid reasons, we think that the impugned noti­fication dated 17.3.81 were by the respondent No. 4, belonging to Scheduled Caste, had been appointed to the post of Assistant Commissioner of Taxes in pursuance of the foresaid roster in the Schedule to the Act, was valid. The petition fails and is accordingly dismissed. We leave the parties to bear their own costs. A.Raghuvir, CJ.-1 agree.