WPSS/1027/2022
2022 Latest Caselaw 1743 UK

                Office Notes,
             reports, orders or
SL.           proceedings or
      Date                                    COURT'S OR JUDGES'S ORDERS
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             Registrar's order
              with Signatures
                                  WPSS No. 1027 of 2022
                                  Hon'ble Manoj Kumar Tiwari, J.

Mr. Anup Kumar Verma, learned counsel for the petitioner.

                                       Mr.     Mukesh        Rawat,        Advocate
                                  holding    brief   of    Mr.    S.S.     Chauhan,

learned counsel for respondent Nos. 1 &

Mr. P.S. Bisht, learned Additional C.S.C. for the State of Uttarakhand.

According to petitioner, he was appointed on contract as House Tax Surveyor in Nagar Palika Parishad Kichha, District Udham Singh Nagar in the year 2012 and he continued in the said capacity till July, 2018. In the month of August, 2018, petitioner was engaged through outsourcing to discharge duties as House Tax Surveyor and he continued in the said capacity till April, 2021. It is further the contention of the petitioner that in the month of May, 2021, he was again appointed on contract to discharge duties as House Tax Surveyor and presently also he is continuing in the same capacity. Grievance of the petitioner is that despite discharging same duties, as regular House Tax Surveyor (which is now re-designated "Tax Collector and Tax & Revenue Moharir"), he is being paid only Rs. 455/- per day as wages.

In this writ petition petitioner has sought a direction to the Competent Authority to grant same salary, as regular Tax Collector Surveyor is getting by invoking principle of equal pay for equal work.

Learned counsel for the petitioner has placed reliance upon judgments rendered by Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of State of Punjab & others v. Jagjit Singh & others reported in (2017) 1 SCC 148 and Sabha Shanker Dube vs Divisional Forest Officer & others reported in (2019) 12 SCC 297 in support of his contention that even a daily-rated employee is entitled for minimum of pay scale as long as he continues in service.

Learned counsel for respondent nos. 1 & 2 points out that petitioner has already made a representation 23.05.2022 claiming regular salary and he assures the Court that decision on the said representation would be taken by the Competent Authority within six weeks.

Accordingly, writ petition is disposed of with direction to Executive Officer, Nagar Palika Kichha to consider and decide petitioner's representation dated 23.05.2022 as early as possible, but not later than six weeks from the date of production of certified copy of this order. Till decision on petitioner's representation, he shall be paid minimum of pay scale, payable to a regular House Tax Surveyor.

(Manoj Kumar Tiwari, J.) 10.06.2022 Aswal