IMPORTANT POINTS
(1) Classification based upon educational qualification for grant of higher pay scale to a trained person or a person possessing higher qualification is a valid classification.
(2) There cannot be any estoppel against law.

JUDGMENT :

HEMANT GUPTA, J.

1. The challenge in the present appeal is to an order passed by the High Court of Orissa on March 3, 2016 whereby, the writ petition filed by the appellant challenging the order passed by the Odisha Administrative Tribunal [for short ‘the Tribunal’] on February 19, 2010 remained unsuccessful. The Tribunal has directed the appellant to grant pay scale of Trained Intermediate Arts Teacher i.e. Rs.1080/--Rs.1800/-.

2. The respondent was appointed under the Rehabilitation Assistance Scheme bearing order dated August 06, 1988 after death of his father Basanta Kumar Sahoo. He joined on August 10, 1988 as Primary School Teacher in pursuance of the said order in the pay scale of Rs.780/--Rs.1140/-with D.A. as admissible. The respondent has intermediate qualification at that time and had appeared for B.A. examination when he was appointed as Primary School Teacher against the Matric Teachers Certificate Post. The said pay scale is payable to Untrained Teachers having Matric qualification, whereas pay scale of Rs.840/--Rs.1240/-is the pay scale granted to Trained Matric Teachers.

3. The Orissa Revised Scales of Pay (Amendment) Rules, 1990 were published by the Government of Odisha on September 12, 1990 amending the Orissa Revised Scales of Pay Rules, 1989. The aforesaid Amendment Rules of 1990 laid down a separate scale of pay for all posts of Trained Matric Teachers and non-Trained Matric Teachers. The relevant clause reads as under:-

“6. In the said Rules, in the First Schedule,

(i) For the scale of pay appearing against Sl. No. 2 in Col. (4) under the heading “Revised Scales of Pay”, the following scale of pay shall be substituted, namely;-“Rs. 775-12-871-E.B.-14-1025”.

(ii) For the scale of pay appearing against Sl. No. 6 in Col. (4) under the heading “Revised Scales of Pay”, the following scale of pay shall be substituted namely:-

(a) Rs. 975-25—1, 150-E.B.-30-1,660 (For all posts except Trained Matric Teachers)”

4. Thereafter, a corrigendum was issued on August 27, 1992 stating the scales of pay for the Untrained Intermediate Teacher and Trained Matric Teacher. The said corrigendum reads as under:

5. The respondent claimed that he is entitled to pay scale of Rs.840/--Rs.1240/-from the very day of his appointment and pay scale of Rs. 1080-1800 after Orissa Revised Scales of Pay Rules, 1989 as amended in the year 1990. Since the said pay scale was not granted to him, he invoked the jurisdiction of the Tribunal when he filed O.A. No.831(C) of 1998. The basis of argument is that he is intermediate and, thus, he is to be treated as a Trained Teacher which will entitle him to the pay scale of Rs.1080/- - Rs.1800/-.

6. Before the learned Tribunal, the counsel for the appellant conceded that the Teachers having intermediate qualification are entitled to the scale of pay as is available to Trained Matric Teachers. On the basis of such concession, the learned Tribunal allowed the Original Application on February 19, 2010.

7. The appellant filed an application, interalia, on the ground that wrong submission was made by the counsel for the appellant. Such application was dismissed on the ground that the remedy of the appellant was either by filing an application of review or modification but since such application has been filed after two years of the order having been passed by the Tribunal, the same was dismissed on the ground of laches as well as there is no error apparent on the face of the order. Thereafter, the appellant filed the review petition which was dismissed on January 22, 2015. It is thereafter the writ petition was filed which was dismissed vide the order impugned in the present appeal.

8. Learned counsel for th