JUDGMENT

AHMADI, J. : — This petition under Art. 32 of the Constitution of India is preferred by and on behalf of the retired employees of the Imperial Bank of India (IBI) which has since been taken over by the State Bank of India (SBI) constituted under the provisions of the State Bank of India Act, 1955 (Act 23 of 1955). Petitioners Nos. 2, 3 and 4 are the pensioners of IBI. Petitioner No. 1, the IBI Pensioners Association, is impleaded as a party to give the petition a representative character. The grievance of the petitioners is that the instant Pension-Plan governing the employees of the erstwhile IBI is out-dated and does not provide reasonable pension required for survival. Several contentions have been raised in the petition but is is not necessary to traverse them because the pension-plan has undergone a change during the pendency of the petition. The question of suitably revising the IBI Employees Pension and Gratuity Fund Rules and Regulations (hereinafter called the Rules) was taken up by the Bank in consultation with the Central Government. The proposal submitted by the Bank has now received the approval of the Central Government as well as the Reserve Bank of India. Copies of the approved proposal are placed on record. To give effect to the said proposal, Rules 18 and 20 of the Rules are proposed to be amended. It was also decided to introduce a Family Pension Scheme for the benefit of the family members of the pensioners. These changes are intended to be given effect from January 1, 1987.

2. In order to appreciate the changes sought to be brought about in the pension-plan of IBI employees, it would be advantageous to read the extant rules and the proposed rules in juxtaposition. Old Rules 18 and 20 and the proposed Rules 18 and 20 read as under :

"Existing Rules Proposed Rules

18 Subject to the other provisions of these rules and regulations pensions shall, in the case of members on the staff in India, be payable at the rate of one-sixtieth part for every years service of the average monthly substantive salary drawn during last five years service and in the one-sixtieth part for years service of the salary at State of retirement. Subject to the provision of Rule 20, the amount of pension payable under this Rule or any other rule, if it contains element of paise, will be rounded off to the next higher rupee. Subject to the other provisions of these rules and regulations pensions shall, in the case of members on the staff in India, be payable at the rate of one-sixtieth part for every years service of the average monthly substantive salary drawn during last twelve months pensionable service and, in the case of members on the staff in London; one-sixtieth part for every years service of the salary at date of retirement. Subject to the provision of Rule 20, the amount of pension payable under this rule or any other rule if it contains element of paise, shall be rounded off to the next higher rupee.

20(1) The maximum pension (except in cases which the trustees in their discretion may unanimously consider special) shall not exceed Rs. 750/- per mensem and in no case shall it exceed Rs. 1000/- per mensem in India and £ 600 per annum in the case of employees on the staff in London who have not done previous service in India. The maximum pension shall not exceed :(a) in the case of employees on the staff in India, one-half of the average monthly substantive salary drawn during last twelve months pensionable service or Rs. 1300/- p.m. whichever is less; provided that the limit of Rs. 1300/- p.m. may be relaxed up to Rs. 2400/- p.m. in the case of officer employees;

(b) in the case of employees on the staff in London who have not done previous service in India £ 600 per annum.

Provided that the pension payable to the staff in India under the revised rules from 1-1-87 shall not be less than that payable under the previous Rules.

20(2) The minimum pension shall not be less than Rs. 200 p.m. to the employees on staff in India