Hon’ble Sunil Hali, J.—All the petitioners retired upon completion of 60 years of age prior to 1.7.2003. Case set out by the petitioner is that the State Government vide its G.O. dated 31.3.1978 put the teachers in non-Government aided Institution at par with the teachers in the Government Institution for the purpose of drawing pension and gratuity. Aforesaid parity was made effective from 1.3.1977. It was also provided that those teachers who are retiring on or after 1.3.1977 would be entitled to pension calculated at the same rate and in the same manner as was admissible to their counter part employees in Government Colleges except the benefit of death-cum retirement gratuity.

2. State Government issued another G.O. dated 10.8.1978 with the prior permission of the Governor whereby death-cum-retirement gratuity was made applicable to teachers serving in non-Government aided Institutions to bring them at par with the teachers serving in Government Institution. The age of retirement of teachers in the Government Institution was 58 years whereas the age of retirement of teacher in the non-Government aided Institution was 60 years. The aforesaid parity was available only in case teachers opted to retire at the age of 58 years instead of 60 years. Homogeneous class was formed by the State Government for the teachers as a whole whether they served in the Government Institution or in the non-Government aided Institution. This parity was brought about w.e.f. 30.6.1978. The parity was permissible in case the teachers working in the non-Government aided Institution opted to retire at the age of 58 years which would entitled them to get death cum retirement gratuity.

3. State Government issued the G.O./notification dated 28.11.2001 with prior consent of the Governor whereby the age of superannuation of Government Servant was increased from 58 years to 60 years. Consequently, G.O. dated 20.6.2002 was issued by the Government to the effect that all service benefits i.e. payable to Government servant at the age of 58 years will be payable at the age of 60 years w.e.f. 28.11.2001. Consequence of this order was that the death-cum-retirement gratuity would be payable to the teachers working in Government Institution who retired at the age of 60 years. Same benefit was to be given to the persons working in non-Government Institution who opted to retire at the age of 58 years instead of 60 years which was date of retirement of Government teachers prior to this order.

4. Government issued G.O. dated 4.2.2004 extending this benefits to non-Government teachers who would opt to retire at the age of 60 years instead of 62 years which is the age of retirement fixed for non-Government Institutions. Condition No. 3 of this order provides that the benefit would be effective from 1.7.2003. By means of the said G.O. the superannuation of the teachers in the non-Government aided Institution was increased from 60 to 62 years and the service benefits available at the age of 58 years were made payable at the age of 60 years. However, instead of giving the aforesaid parity from the date when it was given to the counterparts in the Government, it has been delayed uptill 1.7.2003, as a result of which the benefit has been denied to the teachers who have retired during the period from 28.11.2001 till 1.7.2003, the date fixed for giving such benefits. Representations made by the petitioners in questioning the impugned paragraph No. 3 of the G.O. dated 4.2.2004 was rejected vide order dated 13.6.2006. It is under these circumstances the present writ petition has been filed.

5. Heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the material on record.

6. Three fold contentions have been raised by learned counsel for the petitioners in this behalf.

(a) that the petitioners who were working in the non-Government Institution constituted homogeneous class with teachers working in the Govt Institutions and they have been discriminated by conferring the benefit w.e