Point of Law: Pension – Not having work charge establishment – Held, entitled for pension.

ORDER :

The petitioner superannuated on 20.8.2018 after rendering 26 years of service in different capacities. Respondents have denied him pension, compelling him to file this writ petition.

2. Facts :-

2(i) Petitioner was appointed as a Forest Worker at Pangi Forest Division Killar on 1.1.1992. An original application No. 342/2001 filed by him before the erstwhile H.P. Administrative Tribunal seeking grant of work charge status w.e.f. 1.1.2002 on completion of ten years of service with 240 days in each calendar year was allowed on 19.6.2007. The respondents were directed to confer work charge status upon the petitioner w.e.f. 1.1.2002 with all consequential benefits.

2(ii) The judgment dated 19.6.2007 passed by learned Tribunal was implemented and work charge status was assigned to the petitioner w.e.f. 1.1.2002 vide order dated 20.7.2011.

2(iii) Vide order dated 15.3.2008 service of the petitioner was regularized w.e.f. 12.10.2007.

2(iv) Petitioner superannuated on 20.8.2018. He has not been paid pension by the respondents.

3. During hearing of the case, learned counsel for the petitioner confined his submission only for the grant of pension to the petitioner.

4. Observations :-

I have heard learned counsel for the parties and with their assistance, considered the material on record as well as the applicable legal position. On consideration of the entire material on record and the legal position, I am of the considered view that this petition deserves to be allowed for the following reasons:

4(i) Petitioner has rendered more than 26 years of service. He rendered 10 years of daily waged service w.e.f. 1.1.1992 to 1.1.2002, 5 years 9 months of work charge service w.e.f. 1.1.2002 to 12.10.2007 and 11 years of regular service w.e.f. 12.10.2007 to 20.8.2018. Even after rendering more than 26 years of service, the petitioner is still waiting for his pension.

4(ii) The stand of the respondent-State for denying pension to the petitioner is based on three grounds. Firstly that conferment of work charge status is not included under CCS (Pension) Rules and is not on a post. Therefore, such service cannot be counted as qualifying service for pension. Secondly, that the petitioner was regularized on 15.3.2008. His date of regularization falls beyond the cut off date of 15.5.2003 indicated in new Pension Scheme 2006. The petitioner, therefore, is to be construed as an appointee subsequent to the cut off date of 15.5.2003. The CCS (Pension) Rules, 1972 will not be applicable to the case of petitioner in view of H.P. Civil Services Contributory Pension Rules, 2006 which came into force w.e.f. 15.3.2003. Third ground urged is that the respondent-department does not have any work charge establishment. Therefore, the petitioner is not entitled for the grant of pension by counting the work charge service rendered by him prior to his regularization.

4(iii) The issue whether work charge service is to be counted towards qualifying service for the purpose of pension and other retiral benefits is no more res integra. Hon’ble Division Bench of this Court in CWP No. 2384 of 2018, titled State of Himachal Pradesh & Others versus Sh. Matwar Singh & Another, decided on 18.12.2018 has held that the work charge status followed by regular appointment has to be counted as a component towards qualifying service for the purpose of pension and other retiral benefits. Executive instructions to the contrary, are liable to be ignored. Matwar Singh’s was a case where the writ petitioner, a daily waged worker in the Forest Department was retrospectively conferred work charge status w.e.f. 1.5.2002. His services were regularized w.e.f. 6.9.2007. Pension was declined to him on the ground that he did not possess the requisite qualifying service. In the backdrop of these facts, the Hon’ble Bench observed as under:

“3. It is by now well settled that the work charge status followed by regular appointment has to be counted as a component of qualifying service for the purpose of pensio