KUSH CHANDRA BARMAN Vs. STATE OF WEST BENGAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner is an Assistant Teacher of Boro Balaram Lal Behari Vidyamandir, Burdwan. He was appointed as an Assistant Teacher in Social Science Group on 23 rd March, 1993 as a Pass Graduate with Geography. Subsequently, he passed M.A. examination in History through correspondence course from the University of Burdwan in 1997. His prayer for higher scale of pay for his enhanced qualification was rejected by the District Inspector of Schools (S.E.), Burdwan, on 18th May, 2005. The said order of the District Inspector of Schools, which is appearing at page 35 of the writ petition, is under challenge in this application at the instance of the said Assistant Teacher. 2 The District Inspector of Schools held that higher scale of pay cannot be granted to the petitioner as he did not improve his qualification after taking prior permission from the school authority. The District Inspector of Schools also held that since the school authority did not allow the petitioner to take classes in History with the approval of the concerned District Inspector of Schools, he is not entitled to get higher scale of pay for his enhanced qualification in non-relevant subject. The District Inspector of Schools also held that staff pattern of the school does not justify grant of higher scale of pay to the petitioner for his enhanced qualification. He further elaborated this ground of rejection by pointing out that the total number of sectioned post in Social Science Group in the said school is four and presently four Assistant Teachers are working in Social Science Group in the said school. He recorded in the order that out of those four teachers two teachers namely, Sunita Roy, M.A. in History, B.Ed. and Sandip Deyase, M.A. in Geography, B.Ed. are enjoying Post Graduated scale of pay and the other two teachers namely, Shyma Prasad Das, B.A. with History and Kush Chandra Barman (Petitioner), B.A. with Geography are enjoying Pass Graduate scale of pay. He further mentioned that in addition to the aforesaid staff strength in Social Science Group one Srikanta Dey, a teacher of Work Education and Physical Education Group is also enjoying higher scale of pay for his P.G. Degree in History. Under such circumstances, the petitioner 's prayer for higher scale of pay for his Post Graduate qualification was rejected by the said District Inspector of Schools. 3

(2.) LET me now consider as to how far the said District Inspector of Schools was justified in rejecting the petitioner 's prayer for higher scale of pay for his enhanced qualification, in the facts of the instant case. Since the petitioner enhanced his qualification through correspondence course in 1997 by enrolling himself as a candidate in the said course in 1996, this Court is of the view that he was not required to take prior permission from the school authority for enhancing his educational qualification through correspondence course as per the Government Order dated 26th June, 1997 as the said Government order did not see the light of the day when the petitioner got himself enrolled in the said correspondence course.

(3.) CONSIDERING such uncontroverted claim of the petitioner, the impugned order passed by the said District Inspector of Schools is set aside and the petitioner 's prayer for grant of higher scale of pay is remitted back to the concerned District Inspector of Schools who is required to reconsider the petitioner 's such claim in the light of the provision contained in ROPA 1998 after ascertaining the correctness of the petitioner 's claim that Sandip Deyase left the service of the said school and engagement of any additional 6 History teacher with Master Degree qualification in the school in the post vice Sandip Deyase, is justified according to the staff pattern of the said school or not. The District Inspector of Schools is, thus, directed to reconsider the petitioner 's prayer for higher scale of pay in the light of the observation made hereinabove and dispose of the same by passing a reasoned order after giving a reasonable opportunity of hearing to the petitioner and the school authority within twelve weeks from the date of communication of this order. The concerned authority is also directed to intimate his decision to the petitioner and the school authority immediately thereafter. The writ petition is, thus, disposed of. Urgent xerox certified copy of this judgment, if applied for, be given to the parties as expeditiously as possible.