CWP 12732/09 [1] IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN AT JAIPUR BENCH S.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 12732/2009 The Non Teaching Staff Association & ors. Versus . Malviya National Institute of Technology & ors. DATE OF ORDER : 21/10/2009 HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE AJAY RASTOGI Mr. Anurag Sharma, for petitioners *** Instant writ petition has been filed by three Unions of Subordinate Staff assailing the order dated 06/07/2009 (Anx.12) whereby it has been informed by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Department of Higher Education, Government of India to the Malviya National Institute of Technology, Jaipur that the Ministry had taken a decision to adopt the ACP scheme issued by the DOPT, Government of India dt. 09th August, 1999 which shall be applicable to all similarly placed employees of NITs. The main grievance of the Association for filing the instant petition is that those employees, who were working prior to the MREC is concerted into NITs with the condition that they will be entitled for selection scale on completion of 9, 18 and 27 years of service which is basically the scheme introduced by the State Government in lieu of promotion vide its circular CWP 12732/09 [2] dt. 25/01/1992. It appears from the record that at one stage when the dispute was raised by the Associations of Subordinate Staff, the MNIT, Jaipur vide its resolution dt. 24/11/2007 (Anx.8) favourably recommended to the Ministry of Human Resource Department, Government of India for reconsideration of the issue in regard to grant of selection scale and since it was pending consideration, writ petition preferred by the petitioners bearing CWP-2689/2004 was disposed of by this Court vide order dated 12/01/2009 with the direction to the Ministry of HRD to take a final view in the matter within three months. In compliance of the order passed by this Court, the Ministry of HRD examined the issue and vide its order dated 06/07/2009 finally observed that so far as the department of HRD is concerned, the decision was taken way back on 09/11/2003 (Anx.6) in regard to the service conditions of the employees of Regional Engineering Colleges upon their conversion as National Institutes of Technology (NITs) with the provisions of the ACP i.e. Assured Career Progression Scheme issued by the DOPT, Government of India vide its memorandum dt. 09th August, 1999 for employees of Central Government having no CWP 12732/09 [3] promotional avenues shall be applicable to the similarly placed employees of the NITs and in view of its decision already conveyed disposed of the representation and recommendations made by the MNIT vide its order referred to (supra). It has also come on record that the scheme applicable for non-teaching staff of ACP has been modified vide Circular dt. 03/09/2009 and became applicable to the employees on completion of 10, 20 and 30 years of service. Counsel submits that the terms and conditions on which the Regional Engineering College was converted into NIT, as is evident from letter dated 26/06/2002 (Anx.1), has been violated by the respondents and it was agreed that the terms, conditions and privileges including the retiral benefits will remain the same. As such altering their condition of service in regard to applicability of ACP on conversion of NITs, certainly affects the service conditions which has been violated by them as is evident from Annexure-1. Counsel further submits that the matter when came up before this Court in the earlier writ petition preferred by the petitioners it was directed to reconsider and re- examine the matter in the light of the recommendations made by the MNIT in its meeting CWP 12732/09 [4] dt. 24/11/2007 and what has now been informed is not of fresh look of the matter but it is a reiteration of their earlier decision which was already available with the respondents at the time when the earlier writ petition was decided on 12/01/2009. It is not the case of the petitioners that the other institutions or NITs or such Regional Engineering Colleges, which stood converted as NITs, the scheme of ACP or the standard laid down by the Government of India, Ministry of Home Resource Development are different, this Court can presume and can also infer from what has been referred to in the order dated 06/07/2009 that the scheme of ACP is being uniformally applicable to all such employees of Regional Engineering Colleges upon their conversion as NITs in terms of the scheme of ACP of Government of India dated 09th August, 1999, which is applicable to all employees of the Central Government having no promotional avenues. The submission made by counsel for the petitioners is of no substance for the reason that the letter dated 26/06/2002 para 3 on which the petitioners made their emphasis only discloses about the same terms and conditions and with the same rights and privileges available to CWP 12732/09 [5] the employees will remain intact even after the Regional Colleges are concerted into NITs. It confines to terms, conditions & privileges. Grant of Selection scale or enforcement of ACP scheme is supplementing the terms and conditions which are applicable to all the employees of NITs uniformally and in the opinion of this Court, the scheme which has been introduced of ACP in no manner affects the terms and conditions of the employees which has been notified and circulated by the Ministry of Human Resource Development vide communication dt. 16/06/2002. If different standards are laid down by the Ministry in regard to applicability of the ACP scheme for NITs, the question may be different, but as already observed, it is not the case of the petitioners that the scheme is not being rationally applicable upon all such Regional Colleges which were later on converted into NITs. So far as the submission made by counsel for petitioner in regard to the observation made by this Court while disposing of their earlier writ petition is concerned, suffice it to say that this Court had directed the respondents to take decision on the recommendations made by the Board of Governors in the meeting held on 24/11/2007 and it was open for the Ministry to take its CWP 12732/09 [6] independent decision and as already observed, if the decision once taken is made applicable or the same has been reiterated, it does not mean that the judgment of this Court has been misinterpreted by the respondents. As already observed, the ACP scheme has been further modified for non-teaching staff and employees on completion of 10, 20 and 30 years, certainly there is a change in their conditions but as already observed, it cannot be said that the act of the authority in any manner was in violation of any statute or of the constitutional mandate which may require any interference of this Court. Consequently, I find no substance in the instant petition and the same is accordingly dismissed. [AJAY RASTOGI], J. Raghu-12732-cw-2009-final.doc