Point of Law: It is settled position that merger of a post into a cadre or one cadre into another cadre is an executive act and it is entirely within the administrative domain of the State Government.

JUDGMENT :

1. The writ petition has been instituted under Article 226 of the Constitution of India with two-fold prayers, firstly, for setting aside and quashing of an order dated 12.09.2019 passed by the respondent no. 3, that is, the Commissioner and Secretary to the Government of Assam, Secretariat Administration Department [SAD], and secondly, for a direction to the State respondents to consider the case of the petitioner for merger of the post of Data Entry Operator in which he is currently serving, with the post of Junior Administrative Assistant [Jr.A.A.] in the establishment of the General Administration Department [GAD], Assam Secretariat, Government of Assam in terms of the Resolution made in the Report of the 7th Assam Pay and Productivity Pay Commission and the Report of the Committee constituted to examine the Report of the 7th Assam Pay and Productivity Pay Commission, by giving the consequential service benefits to him as per the provisions of the Assam Secretariat Subordinate Service Rules, 1963, as amended.

2. The case projected on behalf of the petitioner can be exposited as follows :

2.1. By an Office Order dated 16.07.2010 issued under the hand of the respondent no. 4 i.e. the Commissioner & Secretary to the Government of Assam [GoA], GAD, the petitioner came to be appointed as Data Entry Operator in the GAD, GoA in the Scale of Pay of Rs. 5,200/-- Rs. 20,200/- with Grade Pay of Rs. 2,500/-p.m. plus other allowances as admissible under the law. On receiving the Office Order dated 16.07.2010, the petitioner joined in the post of Data Entry Operator on 17.07.2010. It is the case of the petitioner that by various Office Orders, dated 02.08.2010, 07.12.2010, 13.11.2013, 08.02.2016 & 14.06.2017 respectively, the General Administration Department [GAD] distributed the works amongst the employees in the Department and from the said Office Orders, it is clearly discernible that the petitioner has since long been entrusted with works which are ordinarily done by a Jr.A.A.

2.2. As the petitioner was discharging the similar kind of duties as like the Jr.A.A., a member in the Assam Secretariat Subordinate Service, and was granted same pay scale like the Jr.A.A., the petitioner submitted a Memorandum before the 7th Assam Pay and Productivity Pay Commission on 05.01.2016 to examine his case and to recommend for encadrement of the post of Data Entry Operator in the GAD, GoA with the cadre of Jr.A.A. which post is encadred under the Assam Secretariat Subordinate Service Rules, 1963. The Memorandum of the petitioner came to be considered by the 7th Assam Pay and Productivity Pay Commission. In the Report submitted by the 7th Assam Pay and Productivity Pay Commission containing its recommendations, the Commission after examination of the case of the petitioner noted that the petitioner is a graduate and was appointed in a post in the same Pay Band of the Jr.A.A. with Grade Pay of Rs. 3,000/-. With such notes, the Commission had recommended that since the petitioner had the qualification of the Jr.A.A., the single post of Data Entry Operator should be merged with the cadre of Jr.A.A. fixing his seniority in accordance with the principles to be determined by the Personnel Department, GoA.

2.3. The Committee constituted by the State Government to examine the Report of the 7th Assam Pay and Productivity Pay Commission in its Report had also agreed with the 7th Assam Pay and Productivity Pay Commission in so far as the recommendation made with regard to the case of the petitioner was concerned and had advised the GAD to take up the matter with the Personnel Department. Thereafter, the Government after careful consideration of the Report of the 7th Assam Pay and Productivity Pay Commission and the Report of the Committee thereof, had accepted the recommendations of the 7th Assam Pay and Productivity Pay Commission with modifications as suggested by the Committee and any other modifications as have been deemed necessary and publish