(1.) Heard Mr. Satyendra Narayan Singh, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner, Mr. J.P. Karn, learned Additional Advocate General No. 9 for the State and Mr. L.P. K. Rajgrihar for the Accountant General.
(2.) I.A. No. 521 of 2008 has been filed for amendment of the prayer made in the writ petition by incorporating the relief mentioned in paragraph-1 of the interlocutory application, whereby the petitioner has sought to challenge the orders as contained in Annexures-9, 11, 12, 13 and 15 cancelling the promotion(s) granted to the petitioner with retrospective effect followed by reversion to a lower scale and again followed by orders of recovery of the excess salary, so drawn by the petitioner. The petitioner has also questioned the authorization issued by the Accountant General on the basis of the aforementioned orders.
(3.) The interlocutory application is allowed in terms of the prayer made therein. Brief fact of the matter is that the petitioner was appointed as a Concrete Inspector on 31.1.1967 in the Work Charge Establishment of the Department of Water Resources, Government of Bihar in the scale of Rs. 140-360/-. Vide letter no. 423 dated 18.3.1967 the post of Concrete Inspector was re-designed as Supervisor Grade-III in the pay scale of Rs. 150-200/- with effect from 31.1.1967. The petitioner was thereafter appointed as Supervisor Grade-II in the pay-scale of Rs. 160-400/- with effect from 13.3.1969 vide office order bearing memo no. 1092 dated 7.4.1976 issued under the signature of the Superintending Engineer, Sone Barrage Circle, Indrapuri (Annexure-1). The petitioner was brought into the regular establishment of the Water Resources Department with effect from 1.4.1977 under the orders of the Department of Irrigation bearing No. 2595 dated 22.12.1980 communicated by the Executive Engineer vide letter no. 184 dated 4.3.1982. The petitioner was appointed as Supervisor Grade-I in the scale of Rs. 415-745/- under the order of the Chief Engineer, Irrigation Department, Indrapuri at Camp, Dehri contained in letter dated 30.9.1980. The petitioner was granted his first time bound promotion in the scale of Rs. 1600-2780 with effect from 30.9.1990 as communicated by the Superintending Engineer, Integrated (Samagra) Planning and Monitoring Circle, Indrapuri contained in letter no. 505 dated 23.3.1991. The petitioner finally superannuated while holding the post of Supervisor Grade-I with effect from 31.1.2000. Under the pay revision implemented in the State of Bihar under the resolution no. 660 dated 8.2.1999 revising the pay-scales on a notional basis with effect from 1.1.1996 and with actual payments from 1.4.1997, the scale of Supervisor Grade-I was revised to Rs. 5,000-8,000/-.