ORDER : 1. The petitioner-Insurance Company is before this Court seeking for the following reliefs: (i) Issue any writ or writs holding that use of chapter II and consequently order 21 of Code of Civil Procedure 1908 in recovery of amount as initiated by XII Additional Senior Civil Judge and XXXVII ACMM, Bengaluru as per Annexure-E dated 23.02.2018 and assumption of power to execute in pursuance to Annexure-F are opposed to section 31 of Employees Compensation Act 1923. (ii) Pass such other order or orders as this Hon’ble Court deems fit, under the facts and circumstances of the case, in the interest of justice and equity. 2. The petitioner is in the business of General Insurance and issuing of all kinds of policies of insurance including motor vehicle policies as contemplated under Section 147 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (the ‘M.V. Act’ for short) as also Workmen's compensation policy. 3. In terms of the Act policy issued under section 147 of the M.V. Act, the risk of the employee doing certain jobs, while being employed by the employer in the use of a particular vehicle would also be covered under the policy, recourse to which could be exercised under the Employees Compensation Act, 1923 (the ‘ECA Act’ for short). The proceedings initiated for recovery of compensation proceedings in MVC/CR/14/2009 before the Commissioner for Employee Compensation by respondent No. 3 herein, wherein the Employee Compensation Commissioner passed an award on 24.06.2013 determining the compensation payable by the petitioner to be Rs. 5,16,672/- with interest at the rate of 10% per annum. 4. The petitioner-insurance company had preferred an appeal in MFA No. 9291/2017 which came to be dismissed, wherein the award was confirmed by this Court. 5. In the meanwhile, the cases pending before the Employee Compensation Commissioner were transferred to the Civil Court under various notifications issued by the Government of Karnataka commencing from the notification dated 23.1.2014 under sub-section 1 of Section (20) of the ECA. 6. Respondent No. 3 upon such transfer initiated execution proceedings in Execution No. 2098/2017 and Order 21 Rule 11 of the Code of Civil Procedure, though the petitioner objected to the same the proceeding were taken up. 6. Respondent No. 3 upon such transfer initiated execution proceedings in Execution No. 2098/2017 and Order 21 Rule 11 of the Code of Civil Procedure, though the petitioner objected to the same the proceeding were taken up. It is aggrieved by the same that the petitioner is before this Court contending that no proceedings under Order 21 of the Code of Civil Procedure for the execution of an award could be initiated before a Civil Court. 7. Sri. A.N. Krishna Swamy, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner would submit that: 7.1. A Employee Compensation Commissioner is a statutory authority appointed under Section 20 of the ECA. 7.2. The State Government may by notification in the official gazette appoint any person who is or has been in judicial service for the period of not less than five years or who is or has been for not less than five years an advocate or a pleader or a person who has been a gazetted officer for not less than five years having educational qualification and experiences in Personal Management in Human Recourses Development and Industrial relations to be a Commissioner for Employees Compensation for such area as may be prescribed in the notification. 7.3. His submissions is that, in view of the nature of appointment being made under sub-section 1 of Section 20 of the ECA, such Commissioner would be a statutory authority and not a court in as much as the persons who could be appointed are not restricted to those in judicial service or those who are Judges but could be of persons who could have retired from the judicial services, having practiced as an advocate or having educational qualification in Personal Management in Human Resources Development and Industrial Relation as also any gazetted officer. 7.4. The ECA being a special enactment the method and manner of recovery is provided under Section 31 of the ECA. The said Act being self-contained, recovery of any amount awarded would have to be made in terms of and as per the framework provided under the ECA. 7.5. An award could be enforced only in terms of Section 31 of the ECA and not by initiating execution proceedings under order 21 of the CPC. 7.6. In that background, he submits that the writ petition is required to be allowed and reliefs sought for are required to be denied. 8. 7.5. An award could be enforced only in terms of Section 31 of the ECA and not by initiating execution proceedings under order 21 of the CPC. 7.6. In that background, he submits that the writ petition is required to be allowed and reliefs sought for are required to be denied. 8. Though respondent No. 3 has been served, none has entered appearance and service has been held sufficient. 9. Sri. Bhojegouda T. Koller, learned AGA would submit that the authority who is designated as an Employee Compensation Commissioner has to function within the purview of the ECA and thus he indirectly supports the case of the petitioner. 10. Heard Sri. A.N. Krishna Swamy, learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri. Bhojegouda T. Koller, learned AGA for respondents No. 1 and 2. Perused papers. 11. The Employees Compensation Act 1923 has been brought into force so as to provide a speedy remedy for a workman who is either injured or expires from and out of injuries caused during the course of his employment with the employer. The employer is required to make payment of compensation if an award is passed in that regard. Wherever the employer was to obtain an insurance policy, the liability of the employer would have to be discharged by the insurer in a speedy manner. The ECA also provides for the manner of calculation of compensation in terms of schedule-I. It also provides for a person who would be regarded to be an employee in terms of schedule II, and as such, the object and purpose of the said act is to make available the compensation to any injured workman or the legal representative/s of the deceased workman for the injury caused during the course of his employment as expeditiously as possible in a summary manner. 12. An Employee Compensation Commissioner is appointed in terms of the sub-section (1) of section 20 for the purposes of expeditious disposal of any particular claim made before him or her and in terms of sub-section (1) section 20 of the Employee Compensation Commissioner is not required to be a Judicial Officer. The power and procedure of a Commissioner are prescribed under section 23 of ECA which reads as under: 23. The power and procedure of a Commissioner are prescribed under section 23 of ECA which reads as under: 23. Powers and procedure of Commissioners - The Commissioner shall have all the powers of a Civil Court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908 ), for the purpose of taking evidence on oath (which such Commissioner is hereby empowered to impose) and of enforcing the attendance of witnesses and compelling the production of documents and material objects [and the Commissioner shall be deemed to be a Civil Court for all the purposes of section 195 and of Chapter XXVI of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974)]. 13. A perusal of the above provision would indicate that the Commissioner shall have all powers of a Civil Court under the Code of Civil Procedure 1908, but that power is only limited to taking evidence on oath, enforcing of attendance of witnesses, compelling the production of documents and material objects and does not extend to execution of any award which has been passed. Thus, from a reading of section 23 it is clear that though a Commissioner would have the powers of a Civil Court, the powers do not extend to the execution of an award. 14. In terms of sub-section (1) of section 20 earlier the Commissioner would be appointed by the State Government from time to time for different jurisdictions. However, on 23.1.2014 a notification bearing No. LD159 LET 2013 came to be issued by the Government of Karnataka, Labour Department which reads as under: In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of Section 20 of the Employees Compensation Act, 1923 (Central Act 08 of 1923) the Government of Karnataka, in super-session of all the previous notifications issued in this behalf, hereby appoint the Principal/Additional/Senior Civil Judges specified in column (2) of the table below as ‘Commissioner for Employees’ Compensation for the purposes of said section within the areas specified in the corresponding entries in column (3) thereof. 15. From the reading of the above, it is clear that it is the Principal/Additional/Senior Civil Judges who are appointed a Commissioner for Employees Compensation for the purpose of sub-section 1 of section 20 within the areas as shown in the column No. 3 of the said Notification. 16. 15. From the reading of the above, it is clear that it is the Principal/Additional/Senior Civil Judges who are appointed a Commissioner for Employees Compensation for the purpose of sub-section 1 of section 20 within the areas as shown in the column No. 3 of the said Notification. 16. Reading of the above would indicate that it is not the proceeding pending before the Commissioner for Employees Compensation which are transferred to the Principal/Additional/Senior Civil Judges but it is that the Principal/Additional/Senior Civil Judges who have been appointed as Commissioners for Employee Compensation, that is to say, apart from the Judicial work to be discharged by the aforesaid Judges they would also act as Commissioner/s for employees’ compensation. While doing so the powers and procedure prescribed under the ECA would have to be exercised by such Commissioners of Employees’ Compensation. 17. Needless to say, that there are no powers vested for execution of the award in terms or Order 21 of CPC even though the Commissioner for employee compensation may be a Principal/Additional/Senior Civil Judges. In that view of the matter when an award is passed by Commissioner for Employee Compensation either prior to the notification or subsequent to the notification such an award cannot be executed under Order 21 of the Code of Civil Procedure. An award passed prior to the notification would have to be enforced in terms of Section 31 of the ECA which reads as under: 31. Recovery - The Commissioner may recover as an arrear of land-revenue any amount payable by any person under this Act, whether under an agreement for the payment of compensation or otherwise, and the Commissioner shall be deemed to be a public officer within the meaning of section 5 of the Revenue Recovery Act, 1890 (1 of 1890). 18. Reading of the above provision would indicate that an amount awarded may be recovered as arrears of Land Revenue and the commissioner shall be deemed to be a public officer within the meaning of Section 5 of the Revenue Recovery Act, 1890. Section 5 of the Revenue Recovery Act, 1890 which is read as under: 5. 18. Reading of the above provision would indicate that an amount awarded may be recovered as arrears of Land Revenue and the commissioner shall be deemed to be a public officer within the meaning of Section 5 of the Revenue Recovery Act, 1890. Section 5 of the Revenue Recovery Act, 1890 which is read as under: 5. Recovery by Collectors of sums recoverable as arrears of revenue by other public officers or by local authorities - Where any sum is recoverable as an arrear of land revenue by any public officer other than a Collector or by any local authority, the Collector of the district in which the officer of that officer or authority is situate shall, on the request of the officer or authority, proceed to recover the sum as if it were an arrear of land revenue which had accrued in his own district and may send a certificate of the amount to be recovered to the Collector of another district under the foregoing provisions of this Act, as if the sum were payable to himself. 19. A perusal of the above would indicate that enough and sufficient powers for recovery of any amount awarded or agreed to be paid in any proceedings under ECA. Merely because an award is passed by a Principal/Additional/Senior Civil Judge, the same would not result in jurisdiction vested with that Court to exercise powers under Order 21 of CPC since the vesting of the power to deal with a particular matter under the ECA is by designating the Principal/Additional/Senior Civil Judge as a Commissioner for Employees’ Compensation. 20. To put it in other words, whether an award has been passed prior to the notification or after the notification, the enforcement of such an award can only be made in terms of Section 31 of the ECA. Thus is in the present case, the respondent No. 3 having initiated execution proceedings in Execution No. 2098/2017 under Order 21 Rule 11 of the CPC is not maintainable and said proceedings would be required to be quashed. Hence I pass the following: ORDER: (i) Writ petition is allowed. (ii) A certiorari is issued, the proceedings initiated in execution No. 2098/2017 are hereby quashed. (iii) The concerned judge dealing with the execution No. 2098/2017 is directed to issue necessary recovery certificate in terms of section 31 of the Employees Compensation Act, 1923. Hence I pass the following: ORDER: (i) Writ petition is allowed. (ii) A certiorari is issued, the proceedings initiated in execution No. 2098/2017 are hereby quashed. (iii) The concerned judge dealing with the execution No. 2098/2017 is directed to issue necessary recovery certificate in terms of section 31 of the Employees Compensation Act, 1923. (iv) The Registrar (General) after obtaining approval from the Hon’ble Chief Justice, High Court of Karnataka is directed to issue necessary directions/guidelines to all Principal/Additional/Senior Civil Judges appointed as Commissioner for employees compensation to comply with the directions issued in this order, thereby not exercising power under Order 21 of the Code of Civil Procedure but to issue necessary recovery certificate in terms of Section 31 of the ECA for immediate enforcement of that said award. (v) Needless to say that the terms of the award including interest would continue to operate until the payment is received by the claimant before the Employees Compensation Commissioner.