REGIONAL PROVEDENT FUND COMMISSIONER Vs. C RAGHAVENDRACHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE respondents/complainants were the employees of Tungabhadra Steel Products Ltd. As employees of the said Company, they were enrolled as members of the Employees Family Pension Scheme, 1971 and they started making contributions to the said scheme. On coming into force of the Employees Pension Scheme, 1995, they opted for the said scheme. The contributions which they had made towards the 1971 scheme was transferred to the 1995 scheme. Thereafter, the complainant continued to make contributions to the Employees Provident Fund till they superannuated. The total eligible service rendered by them, according to the complainants was more than 20 years at the time they retired. They claimed that in terms of para 9 (b) of the 1995 Scheme, they were entitled to pension calculated in para 12 (3)(4) of 1995 Scheme. As per the aforesaid provision, an employee superannuating on attaining the age of 58 years and/or rendering pensionable service of 20 years or more was entitled to the benefit of weightage of two years, while calculating the pension. However, the aforesaid weightage was not given to the complainants.

(2.) BEING aggrieved, they approached the concerned District Forum for grant of pension calculating in the aforesaid manner. The complaint was resisted by the petitioner primarily on the ground that in the 1971 Scheme, there was no provision for payment of pension to the employees and only in the event of his death, his family members were entitled to pension. It was further stated in the reply filed by the petitioner that in terms of para 10 of 1995 Scheme, the pensionable service was restricted to the service rendered under the Pension Scheme of 1995. In other words, the case of the petitioner was that the service rendered at the time the complainants were contributing to 1971 Scheme was not applicable to the present case. Though, it is not denied that the 1995 Scheme provides for giving weightage of two years to the employees to put in pensionable service of 20 years, the case of the petitioner is that it is only the pensionable service rendered after opting for 1995 Scheme which is to be counted for the purpose of deciding whether a particular employee is entitled to the said weightage or not.

(3.) THE District Forum vide its order dated 22.10.2013, directed the petitioner to re -fix the pension of all the complainants as per para 12(3)/12(4) R/w para 10(2) of the Employees Pension Scheme, 1995, by giving weightage of two years to each of the complainants and pay pension accordingly to them from the applicable date alongwith interest at the rate of 6% per annum. The petitioner was also directed to pay Rs. 1,000/ - each as costs to the complainant.