IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No.14119 of 2007 CHHEDI PRASAD SINHA Versus THE STATE OF BIHAR & ORS ----------- 04/ 28.01.2010 Heard Mr. Shri Prakash Srivastava, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner and Mr. Indeshwari Prasad Mandal, learned assisting counsel to G.A. 8. The writ petition was filed for a direction to the respondent authorities for payment of the retiral benefits admissible to the petitioner on the basis of the last pay drawn. The facts of the case in brief is that the petitioner was appointed in the Sone Canal Tube well Division of the Irrigation Department on 4.8.1961 on the post of Assistant and was subsequently promoted to the post of Head Clerk. His services were subsequently transferred to the Bihar Water Development Corporation and after the closure of the Corporation the services of the petitioner were assigned to the Department of Finance on provisional basis and where he joined on 15.3.1986. The petitioner was also granted promotions by the Tube well Division being his parent Division but the same was cancelled on grounds that his services stood transferred to the Bihar Water Development Corporation 2 and finally to the Department of Finance and hence the promotion was not in accordance with law. Some similarly situated employees who also had faced similar situation moved this Court in C.W.J.C. No. 6298 of 1988 and the writ petition was disposed of by a Division Bench of this Court by order dated 5.4.1989, copy where is placed at Annexure-1 of the writ petition and whereby it was held that the petitioners of the said case continued to be the permanent employees of the Minor Irrigation Department and that they had not been appointed by the Finance Department on permanent basis and hence the parent department of such employees would be deemed to be the Minor Irrigation Department. Another writ petition was filed by the association giving rise to C.W.J.C. No. 5826 of 1988 seeking similar relief and which was allowed by order dated 26.2.1990 in terms of the order passed in C.W.J.C. No. 6298 of 1988 and C.W.J.C. No. 9067 of 1988. Copy of the said order has been annexed at Annexure-2 of the writ petition. It is submitted that the petitioner was a co-petitioner in C.W.J.C. No. 5826/1988. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner submits that although he at the time of retirement was serving in the Department of Finance after his services were assigned to the said department but in 3 the light of the position emanating from the orders of this Court referred to above he continued to be in the cadre of Minor Irrigation Department. Learned counsel submits that it is an admitted position that the petitioner at the time of his retirement was holding the post of Head Clerk. Learned counsel further submits that the Head Clerks in the Minor Irrigation Department are drawing salary in the scale of Rs. 5500-9000/- and admittedly the petitioner also was drawing his salary in the said scale on the date of retirement. In that view of the matter, it was submitted that the petitioner was entitled for fixation of his retiral benefits on the basis of the said pay-scale. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the State with reference to the counter affidavit filed on behalf of the respondent no. 10 submits that the petitioner and the like were taken over as permanent employees of G.P.F. Directorate and in this regard the Chief Secretary upon consideration of the entire matter has issued an order dated 9.9.2009, copy whereof is placed at Annexure- B of the counter affidavit. It has been noted in the said order that in terms of the Memo No. 1032 dated 10.3.1986, the 295 surplus employees of the Corporation were appointed under the G.P.F. Directorate and that they were not on deputation in the Directorate. The Chief Secretary thus has observed in his order that the Government stand 4 had not been properly placed before the Court in relation to the position of the petitioners and the like, in the earlier proceedings. Be that as it may, it is indisputed that the orders passed by the Division Bench of this Court in C,W.J.C. No. 6298 of 1988 and C.W.J.C. No. 5826 of 1988 referred to above continues to operate and has not been either modified or reversed by a superior Court. This position is also fairly admitted by learned counsel appearing on behalf of the State. Thus having regard to the circumstances where the petitioner under the orders of this Court has been held to be a permanent employee of the Minor Irrigation Department of the Government of Bihar and as admittedly the scale of Head Clerks in the said Department is Rs. 5500-9000/- and the petitioner also was drawing his salary in the said scale, the case of the petitioner should be considered for re-fixation of his retiral benefits in the light of the said position within a period of three months from the date of production/receipt of a copy of this order. Needless to add that the arrears flowing by reason of such re-fixation and re-calculation should be paid to the petitioner within the same period. The writ petition is disposed of. S.Sb/- (Jyoti Saran, J.)