PRACHETA J LADHAKE Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner, a Lecturer in respondent No. 3 college on the verge of her retirement and stagnating in the entry level scale of pay for Lecturers, seeks grant of higher scales of pay of senior scale and selection grade.

(2.) The petitioner was appointed as Lecturer in respondent No. 3 College on 1-12-1978. She did not acquire qualification of Doctor of Medicine (MD) , but was awarded Ph. D. on 23-3-1992. By Government Resolution dated 27-2-1989, scales of pay of University Teachers were revised and career advancement scales after completion of 8 and 16 years of service were provided. After 8 years, a teacher in the scale of Rs. 700-1600 was entitled to be placed in the senior scale of Rs. 3,000-5000 and a Lecturer in the senior scale of Rs. 3,000-5,000 was entitled to be placed in the scale of Rs. 3,700-5,700. The petitioner laments that she has been denied the benefits of both these pay scales in spite of her entitlement, while other Teachers have been granted such scales of pay.

(3.) In the return filed by respondent No. 3 - petitioner's employer, respondent No. 3, respondent No. 3 has taken the stand that since the petitioner had not obtained the degree of MD (Ayurved) , she was not entitled to the benefit of higher pay scale in terms of recruitment rules notified on 9-7-1988, which mandate that a Lecturer must have a Post Graduate Degree in the concerned ayurvedic subject for being eligible to be appointed as a Lecturer.