Advance notice to terminate a settlement is valid when the statutory two-month period ends on or after expiry.

Under Section 19(2) of the Industrial Disputes Act, a settlement remains binding for the agreed term and thereafter until two months after written notice of intention to terminate is given. The provision requires notice of intention, not termination on the date of service, so advance notice is permissible if the settlement is not curtailed during its binding period and the two-month period expires on or after the agreed expiry date. This construction is said to preserve industrial peace while allowing either party to end continued operation of the settlement by timely written notice.

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Issues: Whether, under Section 19(2) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, notice of intention to terminate a settlement may be given before the expiry of the contractual period, provided the two-month notice period expires on or after that expiry.

Analysis: Section 19(2) makes a settlement binding for the agreed period and thereafter until two months after written notice of intention to terminate is given. The provision requires notice of intention, not actual termination on the date of service of notice. Nothing in the section prohibits advance intimation, so long as the settlement is not curtailed during its binding period and the two-month period expires at or after the agreed expiry date. This construction accords with the object of the Act to preserve industrial peace while allowing either party to avoid continued operation of the settlement by timely written notice.

Conclusion: Advance notice under Section 19(2) is valid if the two-month period ends on or after the expiry of the settlement. The objection to the reference failed.

Ratio Decidendi: A notice of intention to terminate a settlement under Section 19(2) is valid even if given before the settlement expires, provided the statutory two-month period runs out only on or after the settlement's agreed expiry.

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