Rattan Singh vs State and Others

J.P. Singh, Judge

Claiming parity with the Workshop Instructors of Industrial Training Institute, the petitioner has filed this Writ Petition seeking issuance of a

command to the respondents to place him in the pay scale of 6500-10,500 with effect from 01.03.1996 when he was promoted as such in

Government Polytechnics, Jammu on the ground that possessing the same qualification and discharging the same duties as that of Workshop

Instructors of the Industrial Training Institute, he too was entitled to the same pay scale which the State Government in the Technical Education

Department had provided to the Workshop Instructors of the Industrial Training Institute.

Petitioner's, learned counsel refers to the judgment delivered by this Court in Writ Petition No. 1326/95 decided on 11.12.1998, dealing with

the same issue, to support the petitioner's contention.

Learned State counsel admits petitioner's entitlement to the same pay scale which the Government had provided for Workshop Instructors in the

Industrial Training Institute but only: from the date, of his promotion order disputing his entitlement to the grade from any date anterior thereto.

I have considered the submissions of learned counsel for the parties and gone through the documents placed on records.

Complying with the judgments delivered by this Court from time to time on the question of the entitlement of Workshop Instructors of

Government Polytechnics in, the pay scale of 6500-10,500, the State Government has removed the disparity in the pay scale of the Workshop

Instructors working in Government Polytechnic, Jammu and those working in Industrial Training Institute, by issuing Government Order No. 111-

Edu (Tech) of 2007 dated 02.08.2007 in terms whereof Workshop Instructors of Government Polytechnics too have been placed in the same pay

scale of 6500-10,500 which was available to the Workshop Instructors of the Industrial Training Institute.

Petitioner's entitlement to the pay scale of 6500-10,500 is thus established.

The only question that therefore remains to be determined is as to whether the petitioner was entitled to the pay scale of 6500-10,500 prior to

2001 when his promotion order was issued.

Reference in this regard needs to be made to the petitioner's promotion order issued by the Director Technical Education Jammu on March 20,

2001.

In terms of the promotion order, the Competent Authority is indicated to have found the petitioner entitled to promotion with effect from

01.03.1996.

In this view of the matter, having been promoted with retrospective effect from 01.03.1996, the petitioner cannot be denied the benefit of the

promotional pay scale of the post to which he stands promoted with effect from March 01, 1996.

There is, therefore, no justification for the respondents to refuse consideration of petitioner's entitlement to the pay scale of 6500-10,500 with

effect from the date he is indicated to have been promoted. The date of the issuance of the promotion order may not thus be relevant for

determining the entitlement of the petitioner to the promotional grade

This Writ Petition, therefore, succeeds and is, accordingly, allowed.

A direction shall, accordingly, issue to the State-respondents to consider the petitioner's case for placing him in the pay scale of 6500-10,500

with effect from 01.03.1996 for passing appropriate orders in this behalf within a period of three months.