(1.) WHILE posted as Range Officer, Soil Conservation, Anantnag Range, in May 1967 A.D, the petitioner Syed Sharif -ud Din Ahmed Naqishbandi, was entrusted by his D.F.O. with the additional work of administering and managing the Potato farm run by the Forest Department at Daksum. Accordingly the petitioner took up the work and started sowing of "Kufri Sindhuri" potato seed tubers, an exotic and late maturing variety, imported into the State by the Agriculture Department from Punjab which was supplied to the Forest Department in May 1967. On a complaint being made to the authorities after the harvesting season, the Additional Secretary to Government, Agriculture Department (Forest) vide his No. FST/Plan/40/60 dated March 30, 1968, issued a show cause notice to the petitioner and his superior, Shri G. Q. Reshi, D.F.O, Soil Conservation Division, Bijbehara, calling upon them to explain why they allowed 350 quintals of potatoes cultivated in the aforesaid farm to rot in bags outside the fence enclosing the farm and why crop over an area of 10 acres was not harvested in time.
(2.) THE petitioner as well as Shri G. Q. Reshi furnished their explanation, on a consideration whereof the Government issued Order No. FST -119 of 1968 dated July 31, 1968, stopping their one years increment for the indifference and negligence shown by them in not harvesting in time the potato crop at Duksum Potato Farm from the aforesaid are of 10 acres before the advent of winter.
(3.) ON receipt of a reference from the Accountant General, the Government vide its order No. FST/5 of 1969 dated January 2, 1969, directed that stoppage of one years increment of Shri G. Q. Reshi, D.F.O, would not have the effect of postponing his future increments but no such order was issued in respect of the petitioner.