IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No 5934 of 2007 Sheo Nr Jha, son of late Ram Prasad Jha, resident of village - Kahangawn Kayasth Tola, P S : Kahalgaown, Dist : Bhagalpur - Petitioner Versus 1 The State of Bihar 2 The Secretary, Land Reforms & Revenue, Government of Bihar, Patna 3 The Director, Land Reforms, Government of Bihar, Patna 4 The District Collector, Bhagalpur 5 The Registrar, Bhagalpur Collectorate, Bhagalpur 6 The District Sub-Registrar, Bhagalpur, Dist : Bhagalpur 7 The Accountant General, Bihar, Patna - Respondents ----------- 2 12.02.2009 The petitioner worked as an Extra Clerk in the Bhagalpur Registration Department for the period 02.11.1964 to 31.03.1971. He was then appointed as a Clerk in the said Department and superannuated on 31.07.1997. The pensionary benefits have been fixed taking into account his services as a Clerk and no benefit has been given to him for the period he had worked as Extra Clerk. In the present writ application, he has sought a direction to the respondents to give him benefit of the said period for calculation of his pensionary benefits as well. Learned counsel for the State submits that as per Government circular, the only benefit, that is available for this period that is when he worked as Extra Clerk, is that he was otherwise eligible to get pensionary benefits. That period would be reckoned and benefits granted accordingly. For the said purpose, he has relied on Annexure-C being Government resolution in the Department of Finance dated 22.07.2003. In my view, learned counsel for the State is not wholly correct. A full reading of the Government circular No 2378 dated 22.07.2003 would show that earlier the position was as stated by the 2 State. The position was that to complete the period qualifying for pensionable service, the service rendered as Extra Clerk would be counted but that circular itself notices in paragraph-4 that on a writ petition being filed before this Court, this Court held, with reference to Rule 59 of the Bihar Pension Rules that once the period is to be taken into account for counting period qualifying for pensionable service it has to be taken into account for all purposes. The circular then notices that following the said judgment, large numbers of writ petitions were filed and similar relief was granted to all persons who approached the Court but there were people who had not approached the Court and had superannuated. It is under those circumstances the circular was issued whereby what was held in the judgment aforesaid was made available to all generally. In my view, the effect of the circular is that not only the period would be reckoned for calculating pensionable service period but for all purposes that is pay scale, pension, gratuity etc. My view is consistent with the view of this Court including recent judgment annexed as Annexure-3 to the writ petition itself being judgment in CWJC No 8154 of 2005 delivered on 07.04.2006 wherein the prayer for grant of pension and gratuity taking into account petitioner’s service period as Extra Clerk was allowed. While allowing the prayer, reference was also made to the circular aforesaid. Following the said judgment and the circular, I direct that the period the petitioner served as an Extra Clerk in the Registration Department would also be taken into account for purposes of pensionary benefit and gratuity as well. 3 On making a representation by the petitioner alongwith a copy of this order to Registrar, Bhagalpur Collectorate, Bhagalpur, the Registrar would examine the matter in light of the observations made above and determine petitioner’s correct pensionary benefit including gratuity and ensure that the same is paid to the petitioner within two months of his passing order in that regard. The order must be passed within one month of petitioner’s making such a representation. With the aforesaid observation/direction, the writ application stands disposed of. M.E.H./ (Navaniti Prasad Singh)