JUDGMENT

L. MOHAPATRA, J. — The petitioners in all the above writ applications have prayed for a direction to opposite parties to pay them salary in the scale of Rs. 2200-4000/- with effect from 1. 1. 1986 and for payment of the differential arrear amount in the revised scale of pay as claimed. Since common questions are involved in all the four writ applications, the same are taken up together and disposed of by this judgment.

2. The petitioner in OJC 15062 of 1996 was appointed as Lecturer in English on 2.11.1979 and pursuant to the decision of the Utkal University to condone the deficiency in qualification of non-Government college teachers dated 20.8.1986, the State Government in the erstwhile Department of Education and Youth Services condoned the deficiency in qualification of teachers appointed on or prior to 31.3.1982 and accordingly the deficiency in qualification so far as the petitioner was concerned was condoned and by order dated 13.7.1988. the petitioner’s appoint¬ment was approved with effect from 2.11.1984 in the scale of pay of Rs. 1350-2975/- and he was admitted and covered under the direct payment scheme with effect from 2.11.1984.

3. The petitioner in OJC No. 15063 of 1996 was appointed as a Lecturer in English on 2.1.1981 and pursuant to the decision of the Utkal University dated 20.8.1986 condoning the deficiency in the qualification of non-Government college teachers, the State Government in the erstwhile Department of Education and Youth Services condoned the deficiency in qualification of the teachers appointed on or prior to 31.3.1982 and accordingly the petitioner’s appointment was approved with effect from 2.1.1981 by order dated 31.3.1990 in the pay scale of Rs. 1350-2975/- and he was admitted and covered under direct payment scheme with effect from 2.1.1986.

4. The petitioner in OJC No. 243 of 1997 was appointed as a Lecturer in English on 1.8.1980 and pursuant to the decision of the Utkal University dated 20.8.1986 condoning the deficiency in qualification of non-Government college teachers, the State Government in the erstwhile Department of Education and Youth Services condoned the deficiency in the qualification of teachers appointed on or prior to 31.3.1982 and accordingly the petition¬er’s appointment was approved with effect from 1.8.1980 in the pay scale of Rs. 1350-2975/- and he was admitted and covered under the direct payment scheme with effect from 1.8.1985.

5. In OJC No. 254 of 1997 the petitioner was appointed as Lecturer in Economics on 17.8.1978 and pursuant to the decision of the Utkal University dated 20.8.1986 to condone the deficiency in qualification of teachers working in non-Government colleges, the State Government in the erstwhile Department of Education and Youth Services condoned the deficiency in qualification of teach¬ers appointed on or prior to 31.3.1982 and accordingly the peti¬tioner’s appointment was approved with effect from 1.6.1980 in the pay scale of Rs. 1350-2975/- and he was admitted and covered under the direct payment scheme with effect from 1.6.1985.

6. Shri P. Acharya, learned counsel appearing for the petitioners in all the four cases, submitted that the petitioners had submitted a memorandum to the Secretary to Government, Education and Youth Services Department for condonation of defi¬ciency in qualification on the ground that insistence on 54 per cent marks in the Master’s Degree Examination as the eligibility criteria for absorption of the Lecturers appointed in private colleges during 1979-80 and 1980-81 had been causing undue hard¬ship especially to those in subjects like English, Economics, Commerce, etc. in which there was paucity of candidates with higher second class marks under the traditional system of Post-Graduate Examination and prayed for condonation of the deficiency in qualification. Government in the Department of Education and Youth Services took a decision on 27.11.1986 that the under qualified teachers appointed in non-Government