The court emphasized the employer's discretion in fixing the age of superannuation and upheld the validity of Rule 19 of the 1974 Rules, highlighting the State's decision not to implement the UGC Regulations for retirement age.

JUDGMENT :

S. Muralidhar, J.

1. This batch of writ petitions raises a similar question of law concerning the age of superannuation of teachers and staff of aided educational institutions. In each writ petition, there is a challenge to the validity of Rule 19 of the Orissa Education (Recruitment and Conditions of Service of Teachers and Members of the Staff of Aided Educational Institutions) Rules, 1974 (1974 Rules) insofar as it prescribes that "every employee shall retire on completion of sixty years of age". The consequential prayer is for a direction to the Higher Education Department (HED) of the Government of Odisha and the Director of Higher Education (DHE) to allow each of the Petitioners to retire on completion of 65 years of age. The interim order passed if at all in all these writ petitions is that the retirement of the Petitioner would be subject to the outcome of the writ petition.

2. Although the facts in each of the petitions is more or less similar as regards the central issue, for the sake of convenience, the Court would like to set out in some detail the facts in W.P.(C) No.13666 of 2020 filed by Dr. Asit Kumar Jenamani.

The petitions

3. The background facts in W.P. (C) No. 13666 of 2020 are that the Petitioner was, at the time when the writ petition was filed on 5th June 2020, working as Reader in Odia-cum-Principal-in-Charge of Hindol College, Khajuriakata, District-Dhenkanal, which got the Government concurrence and affiliation in Intermediate in Arts with 128 seats from the academic session 1981-82. Further, the +2 seats in Arts were increased from 128 to 256. From 1985-86, affiliation in the +2 science course, 128 seats were accorded. In 1988-89, the College was accorded Government concurrence to start a 3 year degree course in Arts with 128 seats. Permission was granted for Honours in Education, History, Political Science, Odia, Sanskrit and Physics.

4. It is stated that the Hindol College was receiving grant-in-aid with effect from 1st June, 1987. It is thus an aided educational institution within the meaning of Section 3 (b) of the Orissa Education Act, 1969 (OE Act).

5. The Petitioner (Dr. Asit Kumar Jenamani) was appointed as Lecturer in Odia on 2nd January 1984 in the second post. The said post was allowed to receive 1/3rd grant-in-aid from 1st June, 1990. Subsequently, the Petitioner was promoted as Reader in 2012. Given the date of birth of the Petitioner, at the time of filing of the petition on 5th June 2020, he was on the verge of retirement i.e. nearing 60 years of age. His central plea was that in view of the judgment of the Supreme Court in Dr. R.S. Sohane v. The State of Madhya Pradesh (2019) 16 SCC 796, the Petitioner is entitled to benefit of the enhanced age of superannuation of 65 years in terms of the Regulations of the University Grant Commission (UGC) on "Minimum Qualifications for Appointment of Teachers and other Academic Staff in University and Colleges and measures for the maintenance of standards in Higher Education, 2010 (hereafter "the UGC Regulations") framed in exercise of powers conferred on the UGC under Section 26 (1) (d)(e) of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956 (UGC Act). The Appendix to the UGC Regulations contains the conditions of service of teachers which indicates the age of superannuation to be 65 years. It is claimed that in terms of the said provisions in Appendix-I to the UGC Regulations, the Petitioner has a right to continue in service till attaining the age of 65 years.

6. It is stated that corresponding amendments have been carried out in West Bengal and Jharkhand allowing teachers of Universities or Colleges to retire on attaining the age of 65 years. However, as far as Odisha is concerned, by virtue of Rule 19 of the 1974 Rules, which prescribes that every employee shall retire on completion of the age of 60 years, the benefit of the UGC Regulations is being denied. It is pointed out that in similar circumstances, in Dr. R.S. Sohane (supra) case, the Supre