SEKHAR DUTTA CHOUDHURY Vs. STATE OF TRIPURA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner Shri Sekhar Dutta Choudhury has been working as Supervisor under the Directorate of Welfare for Scheduled Tribe. He has filed the present writ petition in a representative character for himself and other Supervisors, who have been work-ing under the Directorate of Welfare for Scheduled Tribe and the Directorate of Welfare for Scheduled Caste and other Backward Communities. In the above Directories 2 (two) other category of posts of Surveyor and Inspector also exist. The three category of posts of Supervisor, Surveyor and Inspector were in the same pay scale of Rs. 560- 1300/- before the revision of pay of 1988 which came into force w.e.f. 01.01.1986. In the revision of pay, 1988 the post of Inspector was given the modified un-revised pay scale of Rs. 650-1595/- and revised pay scale of Rs. 1450-3 710/- with provision to move to the next higher pay scale of Rs. 1700-3980/- - on completion of 10 years of service as per provision contained in Note-3 under Part-B (Schedule-Ill) of the Tripura State Civil Services (Revised Pay) Rules, 1988 (for short 'ROP of 1988'). For the other two category of posts of Surveyor and Supervisor, the modified scale was Rs. 600-1440/- which was revised to Rs. 1300-3220/- with the provision that the holder of the post should be entitled to the graded scale of pay as provided in Part-C of the ROP of 1988. In that Part, the post of Surveyor has been given Scale No. 9, which would show that the said post has been re-designated as Junior Surveyor retaining the same revised pay scale of Rs. 1300-3220/-. The next higher grade is Surveyor in the pay scale of Rs. 1450-3710/- to which a Junior Surveyor would move after 10 years in the case of no promotion is given. The next higher grade is Senior Surveyor in the pay scale of Rs. 1700-3980/- to which a Surveyor would move after 18 years of service if no earlier promotion occurs. Thus, all the Surveyors before ROP of 1988 became Junior Surveyor with same revised scale of pay of Rs. 1300-3220/- with avenue of upward movement to Surveyor and Senior Surveyor in the higher pay scale of Rs. 1450- 3710/- and Rs. 1700-3980/- after 10 and 18 years of service. For the post of Supervisor, a downward graded scale has been provided. The Supervisors in the revised pay scale of Rs. 1300-3220/- has no avenue for upward movement after 10 and 18 years of service. On the contrary, two lower grades of Assistant Supervisor in the pay scale of Rs. 970-2400/- and Junior Supervisor in the pay scale of Rs. 1020-2620/- were contem- plated providing that a person entering into service as Assistant Supervisor in the pay scale of Rs. 970-2400/- would move to the grade of Junior Supervisor in the pay scale of Rs. 1020-2620/- after 10 years and the next higher grade of Supervisor in the pay scale of Rs. 1300-3220/- after 18 years of service if during these period no promotion is given to the incumbent. For those, who entered into the service as Supervisor before the ROP of 1988 and got the revised pay scale of Rs. 1300-3220/- has been provided with no benefit of upward movement by career advancement. It is the grievance of the petitioner that when all other posts included Part-B or Part- C enjoy the benefit of upward movement by career progression method such benefit has been denied to the petitioners for no rhyme or reason, which is an act of arbitrariness violating thereby the equality clause of Article 14 of the Constitution. It is the prayer of the petitioner to direct the State-respondents to make necessary provisions by way of amendment of the ROP of 1988 for movement of the petitioner from the pay scale of Rs. 1300- 3220/- to 1450-3710/- after 10 years and then to Rs. 1700-3980/- after 8 years more as has been done for Surveyors. Though the ROP of 1988 was published on 16th September, 1988, the petitioner filed the writ petition only on 27.10.1995 after a period of 7 years. This delay, however, has been sought to be explained in para-13 of the writ petition stating that the representation of the Supervisors to remove anomaly in their pay scale was under consideration of the Pay Anomaly Committee for a considerable period and only when the said committee did not favourly any respond to their grievances, the present writ petition was filed after a considerable lapse oftime.

(2.) The State-respondent in their counter- affidavit contended inter alia that though the posts of Inspector, Supervisor and Surveyor were in the same scale of pay of Rs. 325- 6657- in 1975 revision, the post of Supervisor had two grades, the pay scale being Rs. 330-580/- for Grade-II and Rs. 325-665/- for Grade-I. In the revision of 1982, the pay :scale of Inspector and surveyor was revised to Rs. 550-1245/- for Grade-II and Rs. 560- [1300/- for Grade-I. In the ROP of 1988, the Inspector was given the modified un-revised pay scale of Rs. 650-1595/- while that of Surveyor and Supervisor was Rs. 600- 1440.00. The corresponding revised scale of pay under ROP of 1988 was Rs. 1450-3710/ - [for Inspector and Rs. 1300-3220/- for Surveyor and Supervisor. Both the posts of Surveyor and Supervisor have been taken into the Part-C of the said ROP of 1988 and when Scale No. 9 has been given to the Surveyors, Scale No. 27 has been given to the Surveyors. The revised scale of pay being Rs. 1300- 3220/- for both Surveyor and Supervisor, it is contended that there cannot be said to be any discrimination between the two. It has been admitted that the post of Surveyor has been re-designated as Junior Surveyor retaining the same scale ofpay of Rs. 1300-3220/ creating two more grades for upward movement in the pay scale of Rs. 1450-3 710/- for movement to the post of Surveyor after 10 years and Rs. 1700-3980/- for movement to the next higher grade of Senior Surveyor after 8 years move. Admittedly, for Surveyors no such re-designation and avenue for upward movement by creating higher grades has been provided in the said Rules. However, the post of Assistant Supervisor in the pay scale of Rs. 970-2400/- and Junior Supervisor in the pay scale of Rs. 1020-2600/- have been created in order to provide that every entry shall be to the post of Assistant Supervisor, who would move to the next higher grade of Junior Supervisor after 10 years of service and Supervisor after 8 more years of service, if no promotion takes place during these period of 18 years. It is the contention of the State-respondents that as the incumbents in the post of Supervisors has been given the graded pay scale of Rs. 1300-3220))/ - which is the higher scale of pay of that grade, the petitioner cannot have any legitimate griewance to make for adjudication by this court:.

(3.) I have heard Mr. B. Das, learned senior counsel, assisted by Mr. D. Chakraborty, learned counsel for the petitioner and Mr. U.B. Saha, learned senior government Advocate, assisted by Mr. D. C. Nath, learned counsel for the respondents.