The Director General, Csir And ... vs Shri Seravjeet Singh
2005 Latest Caselaw 831 Del

JUDGMENT

Mukundakam Sharma, J.

1. The petitioners herein issued a circular dated 6th November, 1990, relevant portion of which is extracted herein below for ready reference and for proper appreciation of the facts of the present case:

"To

The Directors/Heads of all National Labs/Instts.

Sub: Incentives for acquiring higher qualifications.

Sir,

I am directed to state that the Governing Body at its meeting held on 25.9.1990 has approved as under:

"Those employees who were in position on 31.12.1981 and have acquired/will acquire entry level qualifications of next group may be assessed once to the next higher grade in the same group two years earlier than the normal period of assessment prescribed in NRAS/MANAS provided they attain the prescribed threshold".

2. The condition of first class M.Sc/B.E.,as laid down for entry in Group-IV will not apply in such assessments.

3. Other conditions prescribed in MANAS will continue to apply except that such employees will be assessed only once in the grade under this provision.

4. The above decision will come into force w.e.f. 25.9.1990. However, scientific and technical employees due for assessments from earlier dates will be allowed notional benefit from the date of assessment with/actual monetary benefit w.e.f. 25.9.1990.

"Subsequent thereto another circular was issued by the petitioners on 24th May, 1996 whereby the competent authority of the petitioners removed the cut off date 31.12.1981 for determining the eligibility for grant of the benefit of two years earlier assessment on acquiring qualification of the next higher group. The respondent herein claimed benefit of the said circulars dated 6th November, 1990 and 24th May, 1996 contending. inter alia, that he had acquired higher qualification of M.Sc in August 1994 i.e., after he had joined the petitioners in May 1984 as Technical Assistant Group-VIII.

It is also required to be noted at this stage that when the respondent joined the petitioners in May 1984 he was having the qualification of B.Sc and for promotion to the next grade the eligibility criteria was M.Sc or B.E. The respondent at the time of joining had only acquired the qualification of B.Sc and had also passed the first year of M.Sc. But he could acquire the M.Sc qualification only in the month of August, 1984, i.e., after he joined the petitioners. Under the aforesaid circumstance the respondent made a plea for consideration of his case for higher promotion to the next grade seeking the benefit provided by the said circular of two years earlier assessment than the normal period of assessment. However, the aforesaid plea of the respondent was not accepted by the petitioners on the ground that he had not acquired the higher qualification after joining the service and that also after taking due permission from the authorities. Being aggrieved by the aforesaid rejection of his claim and the plea, the respondent filed an appeal dated 6th February, 2000, contending, inter alia, that he appeared in the examination for M.Sc before joining the petitioners while the persons junior to him who acquired the same higher qualification after him have been given the benefit of circular dated 6th November, 1990. The petitioners rejected the appeal vide letter dated 22nd April, 2002 by stating therein that the incentive of two years earlier assessment than the normal period of assessment on acquiring higher qualification of next group is admissible only to those employees who acquired the entry level qualification of next higher group by undergoing the full process of acquiring the relevant study after joining CSIR service and that also after obtaining due permission from the competent authority. The respondent being aggrieved, filed further representation which was also rejected.

Consequently the respondent filed an Original Application before the Central Administrative Tribunal(for short the 'Tribunal'), wherein a prayer was made to promote the respondent along with his batch mate to the next higher group and grant other consequential benefits. It was contended by the applicant(respondent herein) before the Tribunal that he and one Ajay Gupta joined the petitioners on 18th May 1984 against the same advertisement for the post of Junior Technical Assistant Group III when he was also studying in M.Sc. Group-4. It was submitted that Ajay Gupta was given the benefit of two years earlier assessment w.e.f. 18th May, 1997 while the respondent was denied the same, consequent to which Ajay Gupta had become senior to him. He also cited another case which pertained to the case of Shri C.D. Sharma who was also similarly situated. It was submitted by him that the aforesaid circular dated 6th November, 1990 having nowhere provided that the aforesaid qualification of M.Sc was to be acquired only after undergoing the course and upon taking the examination with due permission of the authorities and that also after joining the petitioners. It was stated that on the other hand it clearly provided that those employees who were in position and have acquired/would acquire entry level qualification of next group may be assessed for giving the benefit of next higher grade in the same group two years earlier than the normal period of assessment. The said benefit was clearly applicable to the respondent as he satisfied the requirement. The aforesaid plea of the respondent was considered by the Tribunal and by a very detailed and well reasoned order the said plea was upheld. The Tribunal, on consideration of the record found that Ajay Gupta, whose instance was quoted by the respondent was junior to the respondent yet he was considered for grant of two years earlier assessment because he got himself enrolled for acquiring his Ph.D degree after joining the Institute. The Tribunal found the reasoning given by the petitioners that the said higher qualification is to be acquired by the candidate only after joining the service and that also with due permission from the authorities as arbitrary and quashed the same by issuing a direction that the petitioners shall consider the claim of the respondent for next promotion w.e.f. 1997 when his junior was considered by giving him the benefit of two years earlier assessment as per circular dated 6th November, 1990. It was also head that if the case of the respondent is recommended by the Assessment Committee he shall be granted proforma promotion to the next grade w.e.f., the date his junior was promoted but only by giving him the benefit of notional promotion as far as fixation of his salary was concerned. The aforesaid decision of the learned Tribunal is under challenge before us.

We have heard the learned counsel appearing for the petitioners who has drawn our attention to the contents of the aforesaid circular, relevant portion of which is extracted above as also the circular dated 24th May, 1996 and also the records which have been placed before us.

The issue that is raised before us is that since the respondent did not acquire the higher qualification after joining the service and that also without taking any permission from the authorities, therefore, the respondent would not be entitled to the benefit of the aforesaid circulars. It was contended before us that the very purpose of issuing the aforesaid circulars was to give incentives to such of the employees who acquire a better qualification after entering the service by giving them the benefit of accelerated promotion. According to the learned counsel, the respondent did not satisfy the aforesaid requirement as he had already appeared in the M.Sc examination at the time when he joined the service and, therefore, he cannot get the benefit of the said circulars only on the ground that he had obtained the degree after joining the Institute and that also without getting any permission from the authorities.

We have given our thoughtful consideration to the aforesaid submissions of the learned counsel appearing for the petitioners and find that at the time when the respondent joined the Institute he was only a B.Sc. It is true that by the time he joined the Institute he had cleared the 1st year of M.Sc degree but he passed the M.Sc examination only after joining the Institute. The circular provides a benefit to those employees who have acquired entry level qualification of next group after joining the Institute by giving them an accelerated promotion two years earlier than the normal period of assessment. Ajay Gupta whose case was cited by the respondent and considered by the Tribunal got himself enrolled for acquiring the Ph.D degree after joining the Institute. It is also stated that B.R. Nautiyal and Manoj Kumar also acquired qualification of higher group with due permission from the petitioners. Therefore, the only ground that appears to us for denying the benefit to the respondent was that he did not enroll himself for the higher degree after joining the Institute and no permission from the authorities was taken. The aforesaid criteria which weighed with the petitioners to deny the benefit to the respondent, however, does not find mention in both the circulars which were relied upon and referred to by counsel appearing for the petitioners as also by the respondent. The benefit of two years earlier assessment is provided by circular dated 6th November, 1990. The cut off date given the ein, i.e., 31.12.1981 was also removed by the subsequent circular dated 24th May, 1996. The intention of the said circular is clear and explicit which was issued in order to grant benefit of two years earlier assessment to such of the employees who have acquired/would acquire entry level qualification of next group. Therefore, any person who acquires or would acquire a higher qualification required for promotion to the next group would be entitled to the benefit of two years earlier assessment

The learned Tribunal was justified in observing that the circular nowhere states that the higher qualification should be acquired after joining the service and after taking due permission from the authorities which was the stand taken by the petitioners herein. The respondent acquired his M.Sc degree in August 1984, i.e., after he joined the Institute in May 1984. Therefore, when he joined the Institute he did not have the qualification of M.Sc which he had acquired only after he had joined the Institute. Therefore, the respondent would definitely fall in the category of acquiring higher qualification of next group after joining the service and, therefore, he is entitled to get the benefit of provisions of the said circular dated 6th November, 1990. We find that the learned Tribunal, therefore, committed no error in allowing the claim of the respondent. We find no infirmity in the order of the learned Tribunal.

The writ petition has no merit and is dismissed accordingly.