Policy decisions by the Railway Board regarding multi-skilling are valid unless proven arbitrary or in violation of statutes; failure to object to seniority lists undermines claims for promotion.

ORDER \

Per : Hon’ble Mr Justice Rameshwar Vyas

By way of filing the instant OA, the applicant is seeking direction against the respondents to promote him on the post of Senior Technician in the Moulder Cadre in terms of Railway Board policy decision regarding the diminishing cadre/surplus cadre ignoring respondents’ various letters being illegal. In alternate, he prays to quash and set aside the Notification dated 14.09.2016 (Annex. A/2) and letter dated 20.05.2017 (Annex. A/1), whereby, provisional seniority list as on 20.05.2017 was published inviting objections within ten days.

2. The facts necessary to adjudicate this OA are as under:-

2.1 The applicant was appointed on the post of Khalasi in erstwhile grade of Rs 196-2023 on 15.07.1981 in Carriage & Wagon Workshop. He was promoted as Moulder Grade III in the year 1995 and further promoted as Moulder Grade II in the year 1997. Then, as per available avenue, the applicant was further promoted as Moulder Grade I in the year 2006. Since then, he has been working as Moulder Grade I.

2.2 The respondents vide Notification dated 14.09.2016 (Annex. A/2) have taken a decision to implement the scheme of multi-skilling by merging small and diminishing cadre in one new cadre with a view to optimum utilization of manpower and accordingly issued provisional seniority list as on 20.05.2017 of employees working in 13 trades including the Moulder. The applicant’s name stands at serial number 53 of the provisional seniority list as on 20.05.2017. Notification dated 14.09.2016 (Annex. A/2) stipulates that after merging 13 trades by multi-skilling, the employee working in a particular trade will remain on their existing post and their inter-se seniority will be prepared from the date of their promotion in the cadre. Promotion to the higher vacant post will be made in accordance with the seniority so fixed.

2.3 It is the case of the applicant that merged 13 trades have been shown as diminishing cadre, therefore, these are covered under the definition of surplus cadre, but to escape from the formalities required for surrendering of post in surplus cadre and creation of post for new cadre, the respondents have tried to circumvent the impact of the existing different circulars and the policy benefiting the diminishing or the surplus cadre. The respondents without any concrete policy decision, in a hasty manner, created a new cadre as Mechanical Fitter with the scheme known as multi-skilling. It is an arrangement to eyewash the requirement of re-deploying surplus cadres. It is further averred that the applicant submitted representation on 17.05.2017 (Annex. A/7) for providing him the benefit of promotion to the post of Senior Technician mentioning about the diminishing of his cadre. The respondents vide reply dated 19.06.2017 denied the benefit on the pre-existing cadre of the Moulder Trade. The applicant while referring to various orders of Railway tried to establish that the merger of these 13 trades in the name of multi-skilling is mere eyewash to circumvent the existing policy decision of the respondents themselves.

2.4 It is further averred that the seniority of staff intended to be merged in one cadre is required to be kept separate for the reason to protect the promotional prospectus of the staff as per the guidelines issued by Railway Board from time to time. The post of Senior Technician has been vacated by the retirement in the Moulder cadre in the month of February, 2017 and the applicant being senior most in the Moulder cadre, is due to be promoted against that post. The applicant would retire on 31.07.2017 and if he is not granted promotion to the post of Senior Technician, then he would be put to serious pecuniary loss as well as loss of the status achieved throughout his life.

2.5 With the above case, the applicant has filed this OA with a prayer to direct the respondents to promote him to the post of Senior Technician and in alternate, prayed to quash and set aside Notification dated 14.0