Daily wage service must be counted towards pension eligibility, allowing employees to qualify for benefits despite insufficient regular service years.

JUDGMENT :

Jyotsna Rewal Dua, J.

This writ petition has been filed for grant of following reliefs: -

1. That the petitioner be considered for pensionary benefits and payment thereof with effect from the date of his retirement under the old pension scheme.

2. That the respondents may very kindly be directed to grant the pension to the petitioner after counting the daily wage service for the purpose of completion of requisite years period for pension keeping in view of judgments dated 8.3.2018 passed in Civil Appeal No. 6309 of 2017 Sunder Singh Vs. The State of Himachal Pradesh & Ors. and Civil Appeal No. 4792 of 2022 Balo Devi Vs, State of H.P & Ors., passed by the Hon'ble Apex Court.

3. That due and admissible arrears be also paid to the petitioner alongwith interest and other consequential benefits.”

2. Petitioner was initially engaged in the respondent- H.P. Public Works Department as Daily Wage Beldar in February 2002. Treating his daily wage service in each calendar year w.e.f. 2008 as 240 days and more, the respondents regularized petitioner’s services on 18.08.2015. Petitioner took up the matter before the learned Labour Court-cum-Industrial Tribunal, Dharamshala, District Kangra, H.P for counting the daily wage service rendered by him w.e.f. 2002 onwards on the ground that he had actually rendered 240 days’ service in every calendar year w.e.f. 2002. The award was passed on 24.02.2016 in petitioner’s favour. It was acted upon by the respondents. Petitioner’s services were regularized w.e.f. 18.08.2012, vide order dated 20.09.2017. Petitioner superannuated on 30.04.2022. Petitioner rendered total of nine years, eight months and fourteen days of regular service. The service fell short of ten years of qualifying service required for pensionary benefits, therefore, the respondents did not grant pensionary benefits to the petitioner.

3. Feeling aggrieved, petitioner has instituted this writ petition, seeking direction to the respondents to count the daily wage service rendered by him for the purpose of pensionary benefits in view of the decisions in Sunder Singh Versus The State of Himachal Pradesh & Ors., Civil Appeal No.6309 of 2017, decided on 08.03.2018 and Balo Devi & others Versus State of Himachal Pradesh and others, Civil Appeal No.4792 of 2022, decided on 18.07.2022.

4. The stand of the respondents is that the judgment in Sunder Singh (supra) is applicable only to Class-IV Workmen, who were engaged before 31.12.1993 and were granted work charge status/regularization in accordance with the verdict in Mool Raj Upadhaya Vs. State of H.P. and others, 1994 Supp. (2) SCC 316; The judgment is not applicable to the petitioner as he was engaged in February 2002.

The aforesaid stand of the respondents is absolutely contrary to the dictum in Sunder Singh (supra) , Balo Devi (supra) and Roop Lal Versus State of H.P. & Others, LPA No.196 of 2022, decided on 11.10.2023. In Sunder Singh (supra) , the Hon’ble Apex Court held that w.e.f. 01.01.2018, the appellants (therein) or other similarly placed class-IV employees will be entitled to pension, if they have been duly regularized and have completed eligible service for more than ten years. Daily wage service of five years will be treated to equal one year of regular service for pension. If on that basis, their service are more than eight years but less than ten years, then their service will be reckoned as ten years. The relevant para from the decision is as under:-

“6. Accordingly, we direct that w.e.f 01.01.2018, the appellants or other similarly placed Class-IV employees will be entitled to pension if they have been duly regularized and have been completed total eligible service for more than 10 years. Daily wage service of 5 years will be treated equal to one year of regular service for pension. If on that basis, their services are more than 8 years but less than 10 years, their service will be reckoned as ten years.”

The above was further clarified in Balo Devi (supra) as under :-

“We fi