1007WP-260.13-Judgment 1/9
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
NAGPUR BENCH, NAGPUR.
WRIT PETITION NO. 260 OF 2013
PETITIONER :- The Director, National Civil Defence College,
Ministry of Home Affairs, Civil Lines, Nagpur
440001.
...VERSUS...
RESPONDENTS :- 1) Siddheshwar Prasad Singh, Aged adult,
Occ : Service, R/o. Quarter No.113, Type-II,
CPWD Colony, Katol Road, Nagpur.
2) Union of India, Through its Secretary,
Ministry of Home Affairs, North Block, New
Delhi-110001.
3) The Director General Civil Defence,
Government of India, Ministry of Home
Affairs, Block 7, Level-7, R.K.Puram, New
Delhi-110066.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mrs.Gauri Venkatraman, counsel for the petitioner.
Mr. R.K.Shrivastava, counsel for the respondent No.1.
None for the respondent Nos.2 and 3.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CORAM : SMT. VASANTI A NAIK &
ARUN D. UPADHYE
, JJ.
DATED : 10.07.2017 O R A L J U D G M E N T (Per Smt.Vasanti A Naik, J.) By this writ petition, the petitioner-The Director of National Civil Defence College, Nagpur challenges the order of the Central Administrative Tribunal, Nagpur dated 31/07/2012, allowing ::: Uploaded on - 13/07/2017 ::: Downloaded on - 15/07/2017 00:16:35 ::: 1007WP-260.13-Judgment 2/9 the original application filed by the respondent No.1 and directing the petitioner to fix the pay of the respondent No.1 in the pay scale of Rs.4500-7000 with effect from 01/01/1996.
2. The respondent No.1 was working on the post of vehicle mechanic/electrician in the petitioner-National Civil Defence College. The respondent No.1 was an ex-serviceman and according to him, he possessed the requisite qualification for holding the said post. Since the motor mechanic working in the Archaeological Survey of India was receiving the pay in the pay scale of Rs.4500-7000 and the respondent No.1 was receiving the same in the scale of Rs.4000-6000, the respondent No.1 filed an original application before the Central Administrative Tribunal for a direction to the petitioner-college to fix the pay of the petitioner, as was applicable to the post of motor mechanic working with the Archaeological Survey of India. According to the respondent No.1, since the qualifications and duties of the vehicle mechanic/electrician, the post on which the petitioner was working and the motor mechanic working in the Archaeological Survey of India were similar, the petitioner was also entitled to the pay scale of Rs.4500- 7000, as was paid to the motor mechanic working with the Archaeological Survey of India, with effect from 01/01/1996. On an appreciation of the material on record, the tribunal held that since the ::: Uploaded on - 13/07/2017 ::: Downloaded on - 15/07/2017 00:16:35 ::: 1007WP-260.13-Judgment 3/9 qualifications of the vehicle mechanic/electrician working with the National Civil Defence College and the motor mechanic working with the Archaeological Survey of India were the same and since the duties performed by the appointees on the said post in the National Civil Defence College and the Archaeological Survey of India were the same, the respondent No.1 was entitled to the fixation of his pay in the pay scale of Rs.4500-7000 with effect from 01/01/1996, on parity. The order of the Central Administrative Tribunal is challenged by the petitioner-college in the instant petition.
3. Mrs.Venkatraman, the learned counsel for the petitioner, submitted that the tribunal committed a serious error in holding that the qualifications and duties of the vehicle mechanic/electrician working with the National Civil Defence College and the motor mechanic in the Archaeological Survey of India were similar. It is submitted that the qualifications that are required to be possessed by a vehicle mechanic/electrician working with the petitioner-college would be a certificate of vehicle mechanic, recognized by the Government of India, three years experience as a vehicle mechanic and a driving licence preferably for heavy vehicles. It is stated that the qualifications required to be possessed by a motor mechanic working with the Archaeological Survey of India is a secondary school certificate, a ::: Uploaded on - 13/07/2017 ::: Downloaded on - 15/07/2017 00:16:35 ::: 1007WP-260.13-Judgment 4/9 diploma or certificate in automobile engineering and a licence for driving heavy and light duty vehicles. It is submitted that it is apparent from the aforesaid that a vehicle mechanic/electrician working with the petitioner-college would be required to possess a certificate as vehicle mechanic, whereas the motor mechanic working with the Archaeological Survey of India is required to possess a diploma or certificate in automobile engineering. It is submitted that not only are the qualifications of the two posts different, but the duties of the two posts are also not similar. It is stated that the chart of duties of the post of vehicle mechanic/electrician working with the petitioner-college were placed before the Central Administrative Tribunal but the charts as mentioning the duties for the post of vehicle mechanic/electrician and the motor mechanic working with the petitioner-college and the Archaeological Survey of India respectively were not considered by the tribunal. It is submitted that a vehicle mechanic/electrician working with the Archaeological Survey of India is responsible for the repairs of all motor vehicles, trailors, generating set, cycles and other mechanical equipment on the charge of the institute and he is further required to assist and supervise the motor drivers and also submit necessary reports to the controlling authority for vehicles. It is stated that a vehicle mechanic/electrician working with the petitioner is required to carry out weekly inspection of vehicles and to make necessary entries in his ::: Uploaded on - 13/07/2017 ::: Downloaded on - 15/07/2017 00:16:35 ::: 1007WP-260.13-Judgment 5/9 book. It is stated that certain other ancillary duties are also required to be performed by the vehicle mechanic/electrician and he is required to observe the same timings as that of the motor drivers. It is stated that the vehicle mechanic/electrician is required to charge the batteries of the vehicles and the equipments. It is stated that as against this, a motor mechanic working with the Archaeological Survey of India is required to supervise and properly maintain the vehicles, to maintain the log-books, accounts, registers pertaining to the vehicles and any other work relating to his office/ branch and his job, as assigned by the superior officers. It is stated that the duties of the vehicle mechanic/ electrician working with the petitioner-college and the duties of a motor mechanic working with the Archaeological Survey of India are different. It is submitted that without considering these aspects of the matter, the tribunal recorded an erroneous finding of fact that the qualifications and the duties of the two posts were similar. It is submitted that the tribunal failed to consider that the Archaeological Survey of India falls under the Ministry of Human Resources whereas the petitioner-college falls under the Ministry of Home Affairs. It is submitted that the recommendations made by the 5th and 6th pay commissions for the post of motor mechanic in the Archaeological Survey of India are accepted by the Ministry of Human Resources whereas the Ministry of Home Affairs has not accepted any such recommendations as are applicable to ::: Uploaded on - 13/07/2017 ::: Downloaded on - 15/07/2017 00:16:35 ::: 1007WP-260.13-Judgment 6/9 the post of motor mechanic working with the Archaeological Survey of India. It is submitted that in the absence of acceptance of recommendations of the 5th and 6th pay commissions for the post of vehicle mechanic/electrician working with the National Civil Defence College falling under the Ministry of Home Affairs, the tribunal committed a serious error in allowing the original application filed by the respondent No.1.
4. Shri Shrivastava, the learned counsel for the respondent No.1, supported the order of the tribunal. It is submitted that the tribunal had rightly held, on an appreciation of the material on record that the qualifications for the post of vehicle mechanic/electrician and motor mechanic working with the National Civil Defence College and the Archaeological Survey of India respectively are the same. It is submitted that the tribunal rightly held that the duties performed by the appointees on the aforesaid posts are also similar. It is submitted that after having held so, the tribunal rightly held that it was necessary for the petitioner-college to grant a higher pay scale, that was applicable to the post of motor mechanic in the department of Archaeological Survey of India, to the post of vehicle mechanic/electrician, which was a solitary post like the post of motor mechanic. It is submitted that merely because no specific recommendations are made by the 5 th and 6th ::: Uploaded on - 13/07/2017 ::: Downloaded on - 15/07/2017 00:16:35 ::: 1007WP-260.13-Judgment 7/9 pay commissions for the post of vehicle mechanic/electrician working with the National Civil Defence College and there is nothing to show that any such recommendations were accepted by the Ministry of Home Affairs, it cannot be said that the respondent No.1 was not entitled to any relief. The learned counsel sought for the dismissal of the writ petition.
5. On hearing the learned counsel for the parties and on a perusal of the impugned order as also the other documents that are annexed to the petition, it appears that the tribunal was not justified in allowing the original application filed by the respondent No.1. Firstly, the Archaeological Survey of India comes under the Ministry of Human Resources whereas the petitioner-National Civil Defence College falls under the Ministry of Home Affairs. The qualifications for appointment to the post of vehicle mechanic/electrician in National Civil Defence College and the motor mechanic working with the Archaeological Survey of India are different. Apart from the other qualifications which are also different, a vehicle mechanic/electrician working with the National Civil Defence College is required to possess a certificate of vehicle mechanic, whereas a motor mechanic working with the Archaeological Survey of India is required to possess a diploma or certificate in automobile engineering. The basic qualifications that are ::: Uploaded on - 13/07/2017 ::: Downloaded on - 15/07/2017 00:16:35 ::: 1007WP-260.13-Judgment 8/9 required to be possessed by a vehicle mechanic/electrician working with the National Civil Defence College and the motor mechanic working with the Archaeological Survey of India are different. So also, on a perusal of the list of the duties that are required to be performed by the vehicle mechanic/electrician working with the National Civil Defence College and the motor mechanic working with the Archaeological Survey of India, it appears that they are distinct and separate. On a perusal of the duty-list meant for the two posts, that are referred to, is not similar as is observed by the tribunal. There are several duties that are required to be performed by a vehicle mechanic/electrician which are not required to be performed by a motor mechanic and similarly there are duties that are required to be performed by a motor mechanic that are not required to be performed by a vehicle mechanic/electrician. The tribunal committed an error as rightly submitted on behalf of the petitioner in holding that the duties performed by the vehicle mechanic/electrician were similar to the duties performed by a motor mechanic. The tribunal failed to consider that not only were the posts distinct from each other, but they fell under the two different departments of the Central Government. Though the 5 th and 6th pay commissions recommended higher pay scales for the motor mechanic working with the Archaeological Survey of India, no such recommendations were made in respect of vehicle mechanic/electrician ::: Uploaded on - 13/07/2017 ::: Downloaded on - 15/07/2017 00:16:35 ::: 1007WP-260.13-Judgment 9/9 working with the petitioner-college or for that matter working in the department falling within the Ministry of Home Affairs. In this background, the tribunal could not have directed the petitioner to grant the benefit of higher pay scale to the respondent No.1 after holding that the recommendations made by the pay commissions for the post of motor mechanic working in the Archaeological Survey of India should be applied to the post of vehicle mechanic/electrician working with the National Civil Defence College. Since it is not the case of the respondent No.1 that similar recommendations were made by the pay commissions in respect of the post of vehicle mechanic/electrician, working in the Ministry of Home Affairs and that such recommendations were accepted by the government, the tribunal could not have directed the petitioner to grant similar pay scale to the respondent No.1.
6. Hence, for the reasons aforesaid, the writ petition is allowed. The impugned order is quashed and set aside. The original application filed by the respondent No.1 stands dismissed. Rule is made absolute in the aforesaid terms with no order as to costs.
JUDGE JUDGE
KHUNTE
::: Uploaded on - 13/07/2017 ::: Downloaded on - 15/07/2017 00:16:35 :::