ORDER : 1. In this writ petition, the petitioner is seeking a writ of mandamus declaring the Proceeding bearing No.16/D/2023-11, dated 27.11.2024 issued by the respondent No.3 as illegal, arbitrary, violative of principles of natural justice and unconstitutional and contrary to G.O.Ms.No.74 , Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development and Fisheries-II Development, dated 21.10.2011 and consequently to set aside the same and to pass such other order or orders in the interest of justice. 2. Brief facts leading to the filing of the present writ petition are that the petitioner society was registered in the year 1981 and since then it has been operating and its area of operation consisted of two tanks namely Choudhary Pond (Ac.161.10 gts.) and Mamidikunta Sikam (10 Acres), situated at Kottalla Village, Kowdipally Mandal, Medak District. Initially the petitioner society was registered with 67 members of different castes including Bestha, Mudiraj and several other communities mentioned in G.O.Ms.No.74 , Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development and Fisheries II Department, dated 21.10.2011. However, 22 members died thereafter, and the society is functioning with only 45 members. It is stated that though the petitioner society can admit the legal heirs of its deceased members, it is not in a position to extend its services to them, as the usufruct of the said two tanks is not sufficient for the livelihood of the existing 45 members. Therefore, the petitioner society passed a resolution dated 29.04.2024 in its General Body Meeting informing the respondents that it could not admit the legal heirs of the 22 deceased members as the members of the society and further requested the respondents not to give any membership to any other person and if the respondents intend to fill up 22 members, the said members should be filled up with the legal heirs of the deceased 22 members only. Thereafter, the petitioner society made another representation dated 08.09.2024 complaining that without considering the cases of the legal heirs of the deceased 22 members of the society and without issuing any notice or advance intimation to the society, the respondents are trying to admit new members. Thereafter, the petitioner society made another representation dated 08.09.2024 complaining that without considering the cases of the legal heirs of the deceased 22 members of the society and without issuing any notice or advance intimation to the society, the respondents are trying to admit new members. The petitioner society representation dated 21.01.2025 was submitted to the Commissioner Fisheries Department, Telangana, stating that without following the procedure prescribed in G.O.Ms.No.74 , Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development and Fisheries II Department, dated 21.10.2011, the authorities have conducted the skill test and without permission of the society and without any advance information, the said test was conducted and therefore, the same has to be cancelled. Instead of considering the representations of the petitioner society, the respondent No.3 has issued the impugned Proceedings bearing No.16/D/2023-11, dated 27.11.2024 stating that on the strength of skill test and the committee report, the Director of Fisheries Telangana has accorded permission and requested the President of the Fishermen Co- operative Society of Kottalla Village of Kowdipally Mandal of Medak District, to admit the respondents No.5 to 19 into the society. Stating that the operational area of the society is not sufficient to meet the requirements of the 45 of the respective families and that the society is not in a position to admit any new members including legal heirs of 22 deceased members, the present writ petition is filed. 3. Learned counsel for the petitioner has annexed the copy of the resolution as well as the representations made by the petitioner society to the respondents and also G.O.Ms.No.74 , dated 21.10.2011, to the writ petition. He further submitted that under G.O.Ms.No.74 , a three men committee shall be formed to conduct the skill test and that the committee comprising of the (1) Divisional Cooperative Officer (official member); (2) President, District Fishermen’s Cooperative Society (non-official member); (3) District Fisheries Officer or the Divisional Assistant Director of Fisheries (Convener/official member), with an advance intimation of date, time and venue of the skill test to the applicants and others concerned by beat of tom-tom, notice in Gram Panchayat and other public places in the village and after obtaining an acknowledgement from the Chief Promoter and Sarpanch, shall conduct the skill test and the entire process of conducting the skill test shall be videographed in the presence of the observer. It is submitted that without following the said procedure, the respondents have issued the impugned order. 4. Learned counsel for the petitioner has placed reliance upon the application made by the petitioner dated 12.02.2025 under the RTI Act with regard to the information on the skill test conducted by the respondents and that no such information has been furnished to the petitioner till date. Further, he also placed reliance upon the decision of this Court in W.P. No.43799 of 2017 , dated 07.09.2018, wherein under similar circumstances, when the procedure prescribed under G.O.Ms.No.74 was not followed, there was a direction to conduct the skill test for all eligible aspiring applicants by following the procedure prescribed under G.O.Ms.No.74 . Therefore, it is submitted that the skill test would have to be conducted for the legal heirs of the deceased members and also new members i.e., respondents No.5 to 19 in accordance with the procedure laid down in G.O.Ms.No.74 , to be admitted as new members of the society. He has also drawn the attention of this Court to the skill test statement filed along with the counter affidavit of the respondent No.3 to submit that the said report is signed by only two members of the committee and therefore, it is not in accordance with the procedure prescribed under G.O.Ms.No.74 . 5. Learned Government Pleader for fisheries appearing for the respondent No.3, has filed a counter affidavit supporting the impugned order. It is submitted that respondent No.3 along with the committee members, conducted the skill test on 13.04.2023 at Madapurcheruvu of Madapur Village, Narsapur Mandal of Medak District and 16 persons have qualified in the skill test and the then District Fisheries Officer, Medak, submitted a proposal to the Head Office to accord permission for enrolment of only 15 persons into Fisherman Cooperative Society Kottala, as one of the qualified persons has expired in the meantime. It is submitted that the Director of Fisheries, Telangana, Hyderabad, has issued a Memo No.6496/E2/2023, dated 15.09.2023 to the District Fisheries Officer, Medak, to submit the missing documents i.e. the General Body Resolution, Active Fisherman and Observer Report and accordingly, the then District Fisheries Officer has addressed Notice No.16/D/2023-11, dated 04.11.2023, 16.02.2024 and 02.04.2024, to the President/Secretary of the petitioner society with a request to conduct a General Body Meeting of the society and submit its opinion on the admission of 15 new members into their society in the form of General Body Resolution within 15 days from the date of the receipt of the notices. It is submitted that the petitioner society submitted a reply on 29.04.2024 stating that the society was running with 67 members from 1979 to 2020 and there were 22 legal heirs of deceased members, who are to be admitted as members of the society and that the water spread area of Chowdaricheru and Mamidikunta is not enough to admit the legal heirs of deceased members and the petitioner society has not agreed to admit new members to the society. 6. It is further stated that the skill test was conducted by duly following the procedure laid down in G.O.Ms.No.74 in the presence of the skill test committee on 13.04.2023 for 42 applicants, out of which 16 persons were qualified. It is submitted that the skill test was conducted simultaneously for three to four societies on a single day in view of the special drive taken up for enrolment of all the eligible persons into the existing societies and thereafter, after getting permission from the Commissioner of Fisheries, Telangana, necessary orders were issued to the respective societies with a request to enroll the persons qualified in the skill test. Therefore, the respondent No.3 prayed for dismissal of the writ petition. 7. Learned counsel appearing for the respondents No.5 to 19 have also relied upon the averments in the counter affidavit filed on their behalf and stated that they have participated in the skill test and were found to be eligible to be admitted to the petitioner society. It is submitted that as per the report of the Executive Engineer, Irrigation Department in Letter No.EE/ID.No.12/MDK/325/G, dated 30.07.2024, the water spread area of two water bodies i.e., Chowdaricheru and Mamidkunta, is Ac.171.10 gts. It is submitted that as per the report of the Executive Engineer, Irrigation Department in Letter No.EE/ID.No.12/MDK/325/G, dated 30.07.2024, the water spread area of two water bodies i.e., Chowdaricheru and Mamidkunta, is Ac.171.10 gts. and both water bodies are rain- fed and as per the viability norms prescribed in G.O.Ms.No.6, AHDD&F Department, dated 24.03.2016, it is sufficient to accommodate 85 members. Therefore, it is stated that the society can accommodate not only 15 members but also 35 more members and therefore the petitioner society has refused their admission with a malafide intention to deprive the respondents of their legitimate rights. 8. It is further submitted that the petitioner society has deliberately mis-represented the facts alleging that the society has not admitted the legal heirs of the deceased members, whereas the list of the members filed along with the writ petition clearly establishes that more than two or three legal heirs of the deceased members are inducted as members and that the writ petition is filed only to deprive the respondents No.5 to 19 from becoming the members of the society. He therefore, prayed for dismissal of the writ petition. 9. Having regard to the rival contentions and the material on record, this Court finds that admittedly, the petitioner society was formed with 67 members and the area of operation is Ac.171.10 gts., and that both the tanks are rain-fed and as per G.O.Ms.No.6, dated 24.03.2016, the area of operation can be 2 Acres for person and therefore, it can clearly accommodate more than 85 members. Admittedly, the petitioner society is having only 45 members as on the date of filing of this writ petition. Therefore, it can accommodate nearly 40 more members. The contention of the petitioner society that legal heirs of the 22 deceased members are still to be admitted and therefore new members cannot be admitted, cannot be accepted. However, as rightly pointed out by the learned counsel for the petitioner, the skill test has not been conducted in accordance with the provisions of G.O.Ms.No.74 , dated 21.10.2011. The contention of the petitioner society that legal heirs of the 22 deceased members are still to be admitted and therefore new members cannot be admitted, cannot be accepted. However, as rightly pointed out by the learned counsel for the petitioner, the skill test has not been conducted in accordance with the provisions of G.O.Ms.No.74 , dated 21.10.2011. The G.O.Ms.No.74 provides that there shall be three members of the committee, who shall conduct the skill test and the District Fisheries Officer shall give communication about the date, time and venue well in advance to the applicants and others concerned by beat of tom-tom, notice in Gram Panchayat and other public places in the village and obtain an acknowledgement from the Chief Promoter and Sarpanch. Since the procedure prescribed under the said G.O., is apparently not followed in this case, the skill test conducted on 13.04.2023 is not in accordance with said G.O. The petitioner society cannot be compelled to accept or admit the respondents No.5 to 19 as members of the society. The respondent No.3 is therefore, directed to follow the due procedure prescribed under G.O.Ms.No.74 , dated 21.10.2011 and re-conduct the skill test for both the legal heirs of the deceased members who are desirous of becoming the members of the petitioner society and also the respondents No.5 to 19 and any other person who is eligible and interested to participate and thereafter, proceed in accordance with law for admission of members into the petitioner society. The entire exercise shall be completed within a period of Two (2) months from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. 10. Accordingly, the writ petition is disposed of. Thereshall be no order as to costs. 11. Miscellaneous petitions, if any, pending in this writpetition, shall stand closed.