PRAMOD KUMAR SINGH Vs. PATNA REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE dispute in this batch of three writ petitions relates to pay scale of the officers and staff of the Patna Regional Development Authority (in short, the Authority or PRDA) pursuant to the Fifth Pay Revision. In a nutshell as a result of impugned pay fixation vide office order no. 76/2001 dated 4.5.2001 the pay of 26 categories of posts stands reduced. The petitioners seek quashing of the impugned order and consequential reliefs. CWJC Nos. 7050 and 7051 of 2001 have been filed making individual grievance on behalf of Chief Accounts Officer and Director of the Authority while CWJC 7226/2001 has been filed on behalf of employees Association in representative capacity.

(2.) THE case of the Association in CWJC No. 7226/2001 is that the Patna Regional Development Authority has been constituted under the Bihar Regional Development Authority Ordinance, 1974 (later replaced by Act 40/82) as successor -in -body of the Patna Improvement Trust. Section 93 (2) (a) of the Act provides for continuity of service conditions of the erstwhile employees of the Patna Improvement Trust and their transfer to the Authority. A committee was constituted to frame regulation regarding salary, allowances and other service conditions of the officers and employees of the Authority in terms of section 81 (d) of the Act corresponding to section 80 (d) of the Ordinance. The said committee framed regulation titled Patna Regional Development Authority (Salaries, Allowances and Service Conditions of Officers and Employees) Regulation, 1975.The said regulation was approved by the Board and the State Government too. On 24.9.81 the Authority constituted different cadres for different categories of employees. By Office Order No. 460/81 dated 16.12.81 the pay scales of different categories of employees were fixed and they were paid their salaries. In the light of the recommendations of the Fifth Pay Revision Committee on 12.12.90 the Authority resolved to pay salaries to its employees in accordance with the recommendations in anticipation of the approval of the State Government and the Bureau of Public Enterprises (in short,the Bureau). The officers and employees were paid salary accordingly. The Bureau vide its letter no. 538 dated 30.5.91 communicated its approval of the new pay scales with a direction that if any employee has been granted pay in excess of the revised scale the amount shall be recovered from his salary in instalment within two years. By Office order no. 204/91 dated 27.11.91 it was decided to place the letter before the Board. Thereafter, different office orders were issued and correspondences were exchanged from time to time between the Authority on the one hand and the Bureau and the Government on the other. Finally, by the impugned office order no. 76/2001 dated 4.5.2001 the revised pay scales were implemented with a direction to recover the excess amount from the concerned officers and employees.

(3.) IT may be mentioned here that though there are 53 categories of posts in the Authority (as stated at the Bar) the said office order dated