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SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
SANJAY KISHAN KAUL, HRISHIKESH ROY, JJ.
UNION OF INDIA & ORS. - APPELLANTS
VERSUS
MANOJ KUMAR & ORS. - RESPONDENTS
CIVIL APPEAL NOS. 913-914 OF 2021
Decided on : 31-08-2021
Service Law – Pay Scale – Parity – Principle of equal pay for equal work cannot be applied merely on basis of designation – Aspect of disparity between Secretariat and field offices was a matter taken note of by Pay Commission itself while making recommendations – Yet to some extent, a separate recommendation was made qua Secretariat Organizations and non-Secretariat Organizations – Once these recommendations are separately made, to direct absolute parity would be to make separate recommendations qua non-Secretariat Organizations otiose – There would have been no requirement to make separate recommendations if everyone was to be treated on parity on every aspect – In its wisdom while giving better scales it has still sought to maintain a separate recommendation for non-Secretariat Organizations – Impugned judgment, which in turn relies upon other orders passed by different Tribunals and Courts unsustainable, accordingly set aside. (Paras 19, 20 and 21)
Facts of the case:
Court is concerned in present matter with claims made by Private Secretaries (Grade-II) (“PS-II”) employed in Eastern Central Railways (Field Office/Zonal Railways), for parity in pay with their counterparts working in Central Secretariat Stenographers Service (“CSSS”)/Railway Board Secretariat Stenographers Service (“RBSSS”)/Central Administrative Tribunal (“CAT”). There have been conflicting judicial views on the claim for such parity.
Findings of Court:
Pay Commission is a specialized body set up with objective of resolving anomalies. It is relevant to note that the anomaly in question was referred to Pay Commission at the request of candidates similarly situated to the respondents and thus, the 6th CPC was aware of claim for parity and the requirement of making a recommendation in that regard.
Result : Appeals allowed.
JUDGMENT :
SANJAY KISHAN KAUL, J.
1. Indian Railways is the largest civilian employer in the country comprising of six production units and eighteen zones, with each zone having three to six divisions. 1[Indian Railways Annual Report and Accounts 2019-20 pg. 6.] The total number of employees as on 31.03.2005 was stated to be about 14 lakh with the following distribution of staff strength:
| Group | In position |
| A | 8285 |
| B | 7247 |
| C | 873536 |
| D | 521578 |
| Total | 1410646*[As per the Indian Railways Annual Report and Accounts 2019-20, the current strength is about 12,53,592 as on 31.03.2020.] |
2. The Sixth Central Pay Commission (“6th CPC”) report in chapter 7.36 deals with the Ministry of Railways and shows that it has fourteen departments, including the Railway Board. The report examined the demands of these different departments seeking higher pay-scales and allowances for various categories in different departments. We are concerned in the present matter with claims made by Private Secretaries (Grade-II) (“PS-II”) employed in the Eastern Central Railways (Field Office/Zonal Railways),for parity in pay with their counterparts working in the Central Secretariat Stenographers Service (“CSSS”)/Railway Board Secretariat Stenographers Service (“RBSSS”)/Central Administrative Tribunal (“CAT”). We may note at this stage itself that there have been conflicting judicial views on the claim for such parity which we will come to later.
3. We may notice that the 6th CPC referred to the demands made by common category posts relating to certain cadres in the Ministry of Railways in para 7.36.95.One of the common category posts is that of “Typists and Stenographers”. Thereafter, in para 7.36.96, it was observed that these common categories have been covered by the Commission elsewhere in the report. It was stated that the recommendations made therein shall apply in respect of the common category posts in the Ministry of Railways as well, there being no separate recommendations made for this category. In the aforesaid conspectus we have to turn to Chapter 3.1 of the report of the 6th CPC, which deals with “Headquarters Organisations in Government of India & Office Staff in field offices”. The disparity between Secretariat and Field offices is set out in clauses 3.1.2 and 3.1.3, which read as under:
3.1.2 The senior administrative posts in the Secretariat are mainly filled by officers of All India Services and Central Group A services on deputation under the Central Staffing Scheme. Some of the posts in the middle level are also held by officers of the Central Secretariat Services, Railway Board Secretariat Service in Ministry of Railways, Defence Forces Headquarters Services in Ministry of Defence and by Indian Foreign services (B) in Ministry of External Affairs. Historically, various services in the Secretariat have been given an edge over analogous posts in the field offices. This was done on the ground that office staff in the Secretariat performs complex duties and are involved in analyzing issues with policy implications whereas their counter parts in field offices perform routine work relating to routine matters concerning personnel and general administration, etc. Another argument that is used to justify the edge for various posts in Secretariat is that in Secretariat, level jumping occurs and personnel in the grade of Assistant etc. submit files directly to decision making levels of Under Secretary, Deputy Secretary, etc.”
3.1.3 Higher pay scales in the Secretariat offices may have been justified in the past when formulation of proper policies was of paramount importance. The present position is different. Today, the weakest link in respect of any Government policy is at the delivery stage. This phenomenon is not endemic
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