JUDGMENT 1. K Suri, Member (A)—The applicant, who belongs to a Scheduled Caste, is a graduate in engineering and was appointed as Assist. Engineer in the Public Works Department of the Government of Himachal Pradesh in the year, 1978 vide Annexure P-l. The next promotional post for Assistant Engineer is that of*Executive Engineer* the requisite qualifications for such promotion being 8 years service as Assistant Engineer in addition to the passing of the departmental examination. On 21st July, 1984, Assistant Engineers were promoted to the cadre of Executive Engineers on adhoc basis for a period of six months in the first instance vide notification of that date Annexure P-3. It appears that the said appointments are still continuing on adhoc basis. 2. According to the policy relating to reservation of posts for Sche duled Castes and Tribes, two of the posts against which the appointments aforesaid were made were reserved for Scheduled Castes. However, only one Scheduled Caste candidate was eligible for promotion to the rank of Executive Engineer and was promoted as such The second post meant for a Scheduled Caste candidate was filled up from the general category, as no Scheduled Caste Assistant Engineer with the requisite experience was available. 3. Admittedly, the applicant was the senior most Scheduled Caste Assistant Engineer, next to the one promoted as Executive Engineer on 21st July. 1987. But he could not be promoted against the vacancy reserved for Scheduled Caste because he had not yet completed the prescribed minimum service of 8 years as Assistant Engineer. The applicant is aggrieved on this count, and prays that the respondents be directed to promote him with effect from 21-7-1984, the date on which 11 other officers referred to above were promoted vide Annexure P-3, with all consequential (benefits. 4. It is the contention of the applicant that he should have been promoted as Executive Engineer on the date aforesaid after relaxing the minimum period of service as Assistant Engineer prescribed under the Recruitment and Promotion Rules, especially because the belongs to a Scheduled Caste. According to him, such relaxation had been granted by the respondents on some earlier occasion. It is the contention of the applicant that he should have been promoted as Executive Engineer on the date aforesaid after relaxing the minimum period of service as Assistant Engineer prescribed under the Recruitment and Promotion Rules, especially because the belongs to a Scheduled Caste. According to him, such relaxation had been granted by the respondents on some earlier occasion. In this connection, the applicant has referred to the promotion of two other Assistant Engineers, S/Shri S. K. Kamal and S. P. Negi made vide Annexure P-2 dated 26th May, 1981 as also to the promotion of two officers belonging to the Electrical Wing of the Public Works Department to the posts of Executive Engineer, even though they are stated to have completed only six years of service as Assistant Engineer against the minimum period of 8 years service prescribed under the Rules. 5. The position relating to the promotions aforesaid has been explained by the respondents in the supplementary affidavit dated 30-4-1989 filed by the Deputy Secretary, PWD (I & PH). it is asserted therein that S/Shri S K. Kamal and S. P. Negi had completed the prescribed minimum 8 years of service as Assistant Engineer (C) before their promotion on 31-3-1981, and it is denied that any relaxation in this regard was granted to them. Two Assistant Engineers (Ele^t.), Sarvshri Subhash Chander Tejpal and N, V. Vyas, are admitted to have been promoted as Executive Engineers (Electrical) in September, 1984 by relaxing the eligibility criteria of 8 years of service. It is explained that these promotions were made against the cadre of Assistant Engineer (Electrical) as (i) no eligible officers were available for promotion ; (ii) the said officers were senior-most Assistant Engineers ; and (iii) they were already performing the duties of Executive Engineers (Electrical) in their own scale with Rs. 100 as Special Pay. 6. In making promotions to higher posts, relaxation in respect of any provision of the Recruitment and Promotion Rules may be made in exceptional circumstances having regard to the facts of each cases, and administrative needs and exigencies. Normally, no relaxation can be granted if other eligible officers are available, nor can relaxation be claimed as a matter of right merely because relaxation was allowed in some other case In the case quoted by the applicant relaxation was allowed because of administrative requirements as no other eligible officer was available for promotion. Normally, no relaxation can be granted if other eligible officers are available, nor can relaxation be claimed as a matter of right merely because relaxation was allowed in some other case In the case quoted by the applicant relaxation was allowed because of administrative requirements as no other eligible officer was available for promotion. No such contingency existed in the present case Therefore, the plea of the applicant that he was entitled to the grant of relaxation for promotion to the post of Executive Engineer (Civil) on the analogy of relaxation granted to Assistant Engineers (Electrical) is not sustainable. 7 It may be stated here that the post of Assistant Engineer was classified as Class I post in the years 1985, shortly after the impugned promotions were made. As a result, no reservation for Scheduled Caste/ Tribe Candidates is now available in the matter of promotion from the post of Assistant Engineer to that of Executive Engineer. It was pleaded on behalf of the applicant that the post reserved for Scheduled Castes in 1 8. For the reasons stated above, we do not find any merits in this application, and the same is accordingly dismissed. Application dismissed.