Pension is not a bounty but a recompense for long years of service, and the date from which the pensioner shall be entitled to the benefit of revision cannot be arbitrarily determined by the employer.

JUDGMENT

Ajay Mohan Goel, J. - As similar issues of facts and law are involved in these three writ petitions, they are being disposed of by a common judgment.

2. The petitioner in CWPOA No. 6391 of 2019 retired from the post of Deputy Secretary on 30.11.1988, on attaining the age of superannuation. His grievance is with regard to the in action on the part of the respondents of not revising his pension, in terms of Para 4.2 of Office Memorandum No. Fin(Pen) A(3)-1/09, Part II, dated 14.10.2009, published in Gazette No. 1464/vit/2009, dated 30.10.2009, read with Notification No. Fin(PR) B-7/2009, dated 26.08.2009, published in Gazette No. 108/Gazette 2009, dated 26.08.2009 and Office Memorandum dated 21.05.2013, which according to the petitioner is applicable in his case w.e.f. 01.01.2006 instead of 01.04.2013. Similarly, petitioners in CWPOA No. 6220 of 2019, total 6 in numbers, retired on attaining the age of superannuation before 01.01.2006 and their grievance is also similar. The details of superannuation of the said petitioners are as under:

"1. Tara Dutt Sharma, retired as Deputy Secretary on 30.11.2002, PPO No. 60057/HP.

2. Khem Chand Sharma, retired as Deputy Secretary on 31.01.2002, PPO No. 54722/HP.

3. Virender Kumar Sood, retired as Under Secretary on 31.10.1999, PPO No. 45195/HP.

4. Nand Lal Bhardwaj, retired as Sr. Pvt. Secretary on 31.12.2000, PPO No. 50254/HP.

5. Shanti Swaroop Sood, retired as Deputy Secretary on 31.07.2003, PPO No. 60321/HP.

6. Jugal Kishore Sud, retired as Principal School Cadre on 31.10.1999, PPO No. 48027/HP."

3. Petitioner in CWPOA No. 7876 of 2019 retired from the post of Chief Engineer, I & PH Department on 30.06.2004 and his grievance is also the same.

4. For the sake of brevity, the Court shall be referring to the pleadings and Annexures from CWPOA No. 6391 of 2019.

5. According to the petitioners, pay revision took place on 01.01.2006 and their pre-revised pay scales were accordingly revised vide Resolution dated 29th August, 2008 (Annexure A-3). The Central Government accepted the recommendations of the 6th Pay Commission, in terms whereof, the pension was required to be 50% of the average emoluments, received during past 10 months or the last pay drawn, whichever was more beneficial to the retiring employee. The revised pension structure was to become effective from 01.01.2006 and 40% of the arrears were to be paid in cash for the years 2006-09 and the remaining 60% in the years 2009-10.

6. To be more precise, the relevant recommendation, i.e., recommendation No. 2, which stood accepted by the Government, was as under

"2. Linkage of full pension with 33 years of qualifying service should be dispensed with. Once an employee renders the minimum pensionable service of 20 years, pension should be paid at 50% of the average emoluments received during the past 10 months or the pay last drawn, whichever is more beneficial to the retiring employee. Simultaneously, the extant benefit of adding years of qualifying service for purposes of computing pension/related benefits should be withdrawn as it would no longer be relevant. (5.1.33)"

This was followed by issuance of Office Memorandum, dated 1st September, 2008 (Annexure A-4), on the subject "Implementation of Government's decision on the recommendations of the Sixth Central Pay Commission-Revision of pension of pre-2006 pensioners/family pensioners etc.", vide which, sanction of the President was conveyed qua revision of pension of pre-2006 pensioners. Clause-1 and Clause 4.2 of the said Office Memorandum provided as under:

"1. The undersigned is directed to say that in pursuance of Government's decision on the recommendations of Sixth Central Pay Commission, sanction of the President is hereby accorded to the regulation, with effect from 1.1.2006, of pension/family pension of all the pre-2006 pensioners/family pensioners in the manner indicated in the succeeding paragraphs. Separate orders will be issued in respect of employees who retired/died on or aft