Heard Sri Y.V. Ravi Prasad, learned senior counsel for petitioners and Sri Deepak Bhattacharjee, learned senior counsel for respondent Osmania University.

2. In these three writ petitions, grievance of the petitioners is not considering service rendered by them on ad-hoc basis for the purpose of extending Career Advancement Scheme benefits (for short CAS). Since the issue being similar in all the three writ petitions, they are disposed of by this common order. For the sake of convenience, facts in W.P. No. 22479 of 2007 are taken into consideration.

3. Petitioner obtained M.Sc degree in the year 1989; M.Phil in the year 1991 and P.hd in the year 1994. Petitioner claims that he worked between 1992-1994 as Part-time Lecturer in Department of Statistics in Osmania University. After undergoing process of selection, he was selected by duly constituted selection committee of University College for Women, Koti (for short Women’s college) and was appointed on a consolidated pay as Lecturer in Statistics on 9.8.1995 to ad-hoc post. He continued to work in the said post till he was regularly appointed. In pursuant to recruitment notification issued by the University in the year 2006, the petitioner was selected and appointed as Assistant Professor in Statistics and joined in the Department of Statistics in Osmania University. Petitioners in W P No. 22466 and 22494 of 2011 were appointed as Lecturers in Chemistry on ad-hoc basis vide orders dated 17.9.1993 and worked in the said capacity from 17.9.1993 to 14.5.2007 continuously without any break. They were regularly selected as Assistant Professors and joined in the University service on 14.5.2007.

4. University Grants Commission (for short UGC) introduced periodical financial upgradation/elevation to teaching faculty more as incentive and to remove stagnation. UGC notified guidelines for consideration of claims to grant such financial upgradation. After the revision of Pay Scales in the year 2006, fresh set of guidelines were notified. The post of Assistant Professor is in Academic Grade Pay (for short AGP) of Rs.7000/-; Assistant Professor (Senior scale) in the AGP of Rs.8000/-; Associate Professor in AGP of Rs.9000/- and Professor in AGP of Rs.10000/-. Assistant Professor with AGP of Rs.7000/- and possessing P.hd degree is eligible to move into AGP of Rs.8000/- after completion of 5 years of service.

5. The guidelines also prescribe computation of the past service for consideration under CAS. Under the heading of Counting of Past Service for Promotion under CAS, there are 8 paragraphs prescribing various conditions of eligibility. The controversy in these writ petitions revolve around the various conditions prescribed in said paragraphs.

6. In December 2007, notification was issued calling for applications for extension of the benefits of CAS. Petitioners were not considered for extension of the said benefit. In the year 2008 and in December 2010 similar notifications were issued; though petitioners responded but they were not selected. Their representations to ascertain the reasons for not considering request were not responded, compelling the petitioners to invoke the jurisdiction of this Court. Petitioners seek extending the benefits of CAS by placing them in AGP of 8000/- attached to the post of Assistant Professor (senior scale) from the year 2007 and AGP Rs.9000/- in the post of Associate Professor from the year 2010 and to release all the consequential benefits.

7.1. According to learned senior counsel Sri Y V Ravi Prasad, the Womens college is autonomous institution; as it requires teaching faculty to fill positions in teaching faculty, it constituted a selection committee; petitioners were selected and appointed on adhoc basis in the year 1995, pursuant to the regular selection process conducted by the duly constituted selection committee; and they are entitled to seek computation of ad-hoc service for the purpose of extension of benefits under the CAS. Not counting said ser