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Now coming to the legislative history of our country on the subject, it is interesting to note that more than hundred years back we had the Apprentices Act, 1850 and its preamble says "For better enabling children, and especially orphans and poor children brought up by public charity, to learn trades, crafts and employments, by which, when they come to full age, they may gain a livelihood......". Learning of craft or trade was the essence of the said legislation. This Act was repealed by section 38 of the Apprentices Act, 1961. The object of 1961 Act is to provide for the regulation and control of training of Apprentices in trades and for matters connected therewith. By the definition clause under this Act, namely, section 2(a) "'apprentice' means a person who is undergoing apprenticeship training in a designated trade in pursuance of a contract of apprenticeship". It is, therefore, inherent in the word 'apprentice' that there is no element of employment as such in a trade or industry but only an adequate well-guarded provision for training to enable the trainee after completion of his course to be suitably absorbed in earning employment as a regular worker. The fact that a trainee may have been absorbed in the company where he is undergoing the training, is not relevant for the purpose of comprehending the content of term.

Again we find that where the legislature intends to include apprentice in the definition of a worker it has expressly done so. For example, the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, which is a piece of beneficial labour welfare legislation of considerable amplitude defines 'workmen' under section 2(s) of that Act and includes apprentice in express terms. It is significant that although the legislature was aware of this definition under section 2(s) under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, the very following year while passing the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948, it did not choose to include apprentice while defining the word 'employee' under section 2(9) of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948. Such a deliberate omission on the part of the legislature can be only attributed to the well-known concept of apprenticeship which the legislature assumed and took note of for the purpose of the Act. This is not to say that if the legislature intended it could not have enlarged the definition of the word 'employee' even to include the 'apprentice' but the legislature did not choose to do so.

Even then the question is whether such an apprentice is an employee within the meaning of the term under section 2(9) of the Act. If the answer is yes, he will be governed by the Act and the appellants' claim for charging the company with liability for payment of special contribution under Chapter VA of the Act in respect of the apprentice will be justified.

We may, therefore, turn to the definition of 'employee' under section 2(9) of the Act. So far as is material, section 2(9) reads as follows:-

Incidentally we may note that section 18 of the Apprentices Act, 1961, provides that-

"save as otherwise provided in this Act, every apprentice undergoing apprenticeship training in a designated trade in an establishment shall be a trainee and not a worker...."

The concept of apprenticeship is, therefore, fairly known and has now been clearly recognised in the Apprentices Act. Apart from that, as we have noticed earlier, the terms and conditions under which these apprentices are engaged or not give any scope for holding that they are employed in the work of the company or in connection with its work for wages within the meaning of section 2(9) of the Act. The appeal, therefore, fails and is dismissed. There will be, however, no order as to costs.