IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT : THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE KURIAN JOSEPH & THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE C.T.RAVIKUMAR FRIDAY, THE 18TH SEPTEMBER 2009 / 27TH BHADRA 1931 WP(C).No. 4009 of 2007(S) ------------------------- OA.80/2004 of CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL,ERNAKULAM BENCH .................... PETITIONER(S): PETITIONERS -------------------------- 1. V.S.S.C., REPRESENTED BY ITS DIRECTOR, I.S.R.O. P.O., THIRUVANANTHAPURAM. 2. ADDITIONAL SECRETARY, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA, DEPARTMENT OF ATOMIC ENERGY, ANUSHAKTI BHAVAN, C.S.M. MARG, MUMBAI - 400 039. 3. UNION OF INDIA, REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA, DEPARTMENT OF ATOMIC ENERGY, ANUSHAKTI BHAVAN, C.S.M. MARG, MUMBAI - 400 039. 4. THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF SPACE, ANTHARIKSH BHAVAN, NEW BEL ROAD, BANGALORE - 500 094. BY ADV. SRI.TPM.IBRAHIM KHAN,SENIOR PANEL COUNSEL. RESPONDENT(S): RESPONDENT ------------------------- JEEVAN CHACKO, SON OF M.A.CHACKO, STORES & PURCHASE OFFICER, RAJEEV GANDHI CENTRE FOR BIOTECHNOLOGY, THYCAUD P.O., POOJAPPURA, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - 695 014, RESIDING AT C-50, MYTHRI NAGAR, VALIAVILA, THIRUMALA P.O., THUIRUVANANTHAPURAM - 695 006. ADV. SRI.G.SASIDHARAN CHEMPAZHANTHIYIL SRI.S.VISHNU. THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 18/09/2009, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: W.P.C.NO.4009/2007 A P P E N D I X PETITIONER'S EXHIBITS : EXT.P1 : TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER DT. 10.11.2006 OF THE CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL ERNAKULAM BENCH IN ORIGINAL APPLICATION NO.80 OF 2004. EXT.P2 : TRUE COPY OF THE ORIGINAL APPLICATION NO.80 OF 2004 ALONG WITH ITS ANNEXURES FILED BY THE RESPONDENT/APPLICANT BEFORE THE CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL, ERNAKULAM BENCH. EXT.P3 : A TRUE COPY OF THE REPLY STATEMENT ALONG WITH ITS ANNEXURE FILED BY THE PETITIONERS/RESPONDENTS BEFORE THE CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL, ERNAKULAM BENCH. EXT.P4 : TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER DT. 24.4.2000 OF THE CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL MUMBAI BENCH IN ORIGINAL APPLICATION NO.115 OF 2000. EXT.P5 : TRUE COPY OF THE LETTER NO.1144/RGCB/07 DATED 25.5.2007 ISSUED BY THE ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE, RAJIV GANDHI CENTRE FOR BIOTECHNOLOGY, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM. RESPONDENTS' EXHIBITS : EXT.R1A : TRUE COPY OF THE PENSIONERS IDENTITY CARD ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF ATOMIC ENERGY, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA. EXT.R1B : TRUE COPY OF THE COMMUNICATION NO.6.22/96-GSS/1245 DATED 31.12.1998 ISSUED BY THE PETITIONERS. TGS KURIAN JOSEPH & C.T.RAVIKUMAR, JJ. ---------------------------------------------- W.P.(C) No.4009 of 2007 ---------------------------------------------- Dated 18th September, 2009. J U D G M E N T Kurian Joseph, J. Respondents in the Original Application No.80/2004 on the file of the Central Administrative Tribunal, Ernakulam are the petitioners in this writ petition. They are aggrieved since the Tribunal issued a direction to extend the benefit of Contributory Health Services Scheme to the applicant. Annexure A5 in Ext.P2 is the Scheme. Paragraph 2.1 of Annexure A5 reads as follows :- “2.1 The Scheme is compulsory for the serving employees of the Department of Atomic Energy who are stated at Thiruvananthapuram. Retired employees who have completed a minimum of five years in this department prior to their retirement and who are members of the CHSS at the time of retirement and who have settled down in and around at Thiruvananthapuram may have the option to join the scheme.” Paragraph 3.1, to the extent relevant reads as follows :- “3.1 The retired employees of DAE who are engaged in any trade, business or profession or are employed in any capacity either under Government or otherwise are also eligible to the benefits of the scheme subject to the payment of additional contributions indicated below.” The conditions thus required for the eligibility are, (1) he should be a retired employee with a minimum of five years of service in the Department prior to the retirement, (2) he should be a member of the Scheme at the time of retirement and (3) he WP(C) NO.4009/07 2 should be a person settled down in and around Thiruvananthapuram. At the outset, it is to be noted that as per Annexure A3, the applicant has been granted pension by the Department of Atomic Energy. It is not in dispute that the pension is granted counting his 11 years of service in the Department of Atomic Energy. It is seen from Annexure A3 in Ext.P2 that the applicant “retired on 4.8.1997 FN.” The contention of the learned Assistant Solicitor General is that though in the Pension Payment Order, the expression used is that the applicant has retired from service, actually he has resigned from service. He has resigned from service so as to take up employment in the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology. We are afraid, the contention cannot be appreciated. It can be seen from Annexure A2 memorandum that the petitioner has only been absorbed in the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology from the Department of Atomic Energy. Rule 37 of the CCS (Pension) Rules provides that “ A Government servant who has been permitted to be absorbed in a service or post in or under a Corporation or Company wholly or substantially owned or controlled by the Central Government or a State Government or in or under a Body controlled or financed by the Central Government or a State Government, shall WP(C) NO.4009/07 3 be deemed to have retired from service from the date of such absorption and subject to sub-rule (3) he shall be eligible to receive retirement benefits if any, from such date as may be determined, in accordance with the orders of the Central Government applicable to him.” It is not in dispute that Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology is a central sector establishment. Thus under law, the original applicant is deemed to have retired from service on the date of absorption in the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology. If that be so, the original applicant satisfies all the requirements in Annexure A5 Scheme - he is a retired employee who is receiving pension from the Department of Atomic Energy, he has completed more than five years of service in the Department prior to retirement, he was a member of the Scheme at the time of retirement from the Department of Atomic Energy and he has settled down at Thiruvananthapuram. That being the factual and legal position, we do not find any basis for the contentions taken by the learned Assistant Solicitor General that the original applicant cannot be treated as a retired employee. As we have already stated above, the Department itself has treated the original applicant as a retired employee by granting him pension. Under Rule 37 of the CCS(Pension) Rules, he is deemed to be a WP(C) NO.4009/07 4 retired employee. Apart from all these, it can be seen from paragraph 3.1 of the Scheme that the Scheme is applicable to the retired employees of the Department of Atomic Energy, who are engaged in any trade, business or profession or are employed in any capacity either under Government or otherwise. Therefore, the Central Administrative Tribunal is right and justified in issuing the direction to extend the benefit of Contributory Health Services Scheme to the respondent/original applicant. There is no merit in the writ petition. It is accordingly dismissed. I.A.No.10290/09 : Dismissed. C.M.Appln.No.3905/07 : Closed. KURIAN JOSEPH, JUDGE. C.T.RAVIKUMAR, JUDGE. tgs KURIAN JOSEPH & C.T.RAVIKUMAR, JJ. ---------------------------------------------- W.P.(C) No.4009 of 2007 ---------------------------------------------- J U D G M E N T Dated 18th September, 2009.