SHANTI YADAV Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The twenty six Petitioners who are part of the teaching and non-teaching staff of Asha AWWA School for Handicapped Children (hereinafter the School?), Respondent No. 5, have filed this writ petition seeking directions to the Union of India through the Ministry of Defence (MoD?), Army Headquarters (Respondent No. 1); the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MSJE?), Government of India (GOI?) (Respondent No. 2); Adjutant General (AG?), Adjutant General?s Branch, Army Welfare Society (Respondent No. 3); Army Wives Welfare Association (AWWA?) (Respondent No. 4) and the School to extend to the Petitioners and other employees of the School, the benefits in the matter of pay and allowances in accordance with the recommendations of the Fifth Pay Commission (FPC?) as extended to the employees of the GOI and employees of the other educational institutes in the National Capital Territory of Delhi with effect from 1 st January 1996.

(2.) The School is located in the complex of the Base Hospital, Delhi Cantonment. It was started in July 1991 under the aegis of the MoD through the agency of the AWWA, under the control of the AG, Respondent No. 3, for imparting training and education facilities to the handicapped children of army personnel. It is stated that the building was provided by the GOI and government funds were routed from various sources for setting up and running of the School. It is stated in the petition that the School was started with 13 children, 2 or 3 teachers, 2 maids and a sweeper. At the time of the filing of the present petition in September 1999, the strength of the School had risen to more than 150 students with 16 teachers, a Principal, three sweepers, one mali, two watchmen and a clerk. The School also has a Director and a Deputy Director. It is stated that the children are of abnormal intellectual faculties due to cerebral palsy and/or are hearing or speech impaired. It is stated that teaching in the School is regulated by the syllabus of Lady Noise School for Hearing Impaired and National Institute for the Mentally Handicapped. The teaching and non-teaching staff have to undertake varied jobs from the cleaning of children to physical training and education with the aim to rehabilitate the children and integrate them in the society. Towards this end the School offers facilities in education, activities of daily living, physiotherapy, music and dance therapy, social integration, speech therapy, vocational training, yoga and other exercises. The School also organises various in-service training programmes and training camps for parents. The teachers are well qualified and trained in their particular fields and are required to remain present to attend to the children through the entire hours of the School.

(3.) Anticipating a plea by the Respondents that the School is a private one, the staff of which cannot be extended the benefits of the FPC, the Petitioners have in the writ petition set out the relevant facts in support of their plea that the School is receiving grants through the GOI with the substantial control of its activities by the AG?s branch under which the AWWA functions. It is stated that apart from the plot of land on which the building of the School stands being allotted by the Defence Ministry Officers Delhi Circle, Delhi Cantonment by a letter dated 30 th December 1996, a grant of Rs. 1,33,380/- was received from the MSJE. The staff of the School is employed only upon approval by the AG. The various circulars including the policy circulars of the army headquarters in relation to the allotment of grants are circulated to the School officially as the School draws funds from the army. The various funds drawn from the Government are set out in Annexure C-I and constitute 90% of the amount from which salaries of the staff are paid. A copy of the annual report for the year 1999-2000 of the School sets out the details of the expenditure of the grant-in-aid received from the Ministry of Social Welfare ( 'MSW?). The utilization certificate in respect of the grant-in-aid from the MSJE has also been enclosed with the report. It is accordingly claimed that the School is in the nature of a public institute in which the GOI has interest. The Petitioners submit that the MoD and the MSJE have a vital interest in the School as they have the obligation to provide facilities and opportunities to army personnel to avail of the right to educate their disabled children. It is submitted that pursuant to the implementation of the recommendations of the FPC, the teaching staff of various institutions under the MoD and MSJE have been granted enhanced pay scales whereas the Petitioners have been denied such benefit. It is submitted that this constitutes a hostile discrimination and is in violation of Article 14 of the Constitution. It is pointed out that simultaneous with the FPC recommendations, the School increased the monthly fees of students from Rs. 75/- to Rs. 150/- per month on the ground that the reimbursement fee for children in regular schools had been increased from Rs. 50/- to Rs. 100/- per month on the basis of a communication dated 12 th June 1998 issued by the GOI. The Petitioners point out that in response to the representation made on 9 th July 1999 the AWWA has cited financial constraints for not being able to extend to the Petitioners benefit of the FPC revision of pay scales.