The Tribunal affirms the principle of notional pay fixation to ensure fairness in pensionary benefits for similarly situated retired employees.

ORDER

PER HON’BLE MRS. SHALINI MISRA, ADMINISTRATIVE MEMBER

The applicants have filed this OA, seeking the following relief:

“(a) To direct the respondents to grant the benefit of pay fixation from 01.01.1986 on notional basis for the purpose of pensionary benefits;

b) to set aside the impugned proceedings dt.12.03.2024 in disposing of the representation on the lines of Office Letter dt.30.09.2020; and

c) consequently, direct the respondents to grant pay scale of Rs.1640-2900 from 01.01.1986 on notional basis as was ordered and done in Ο.Α.Νο.280/2016 and in the case of O.A 631 of 2019 before CAT Bangalore Sri V.Kunhi Krishnan, Pvt. Secretary, retired from Karnataka, GDC, SOI, Bangalore, and to pass further order that may deem fit and proper in the interest of justice.”

2. The brief facts of the case are that the applicants are all retired Stenographers in the Respondents/Department. They earlier filed O.A No. 280 of 2016 before this Tribunal, aggrieved by non-consideration of their representation for upgrading the post of Stenographer III to Grade II with effect from 01.01.1986 in the pay scale of Rs. 1400-2500/-, and thereafter for replacing the aforesaid scale with pay scale of Rs.1640-2900/- in the light of OM dated 06.02.1989 of the DoPT. Subsequently, they have retired from service. However, they, in continuation of their representations to the respondents, have filed O.A. No.021/280/2016 before this Tribunal. The Respondents therein in their counter to the above O.A.No.280/2016, re-iterated. that "the case of similarly placed persons will be considered after the outcome of the Review Petition is known." This had allowed the above O.A.No.280/2016, vide orders dated 02.02.2018. When the respondents failed to implement the orders dated 02.02.2018 in O.A.No.021/280/2016, the Applicants filed Contempt Petition No.79/2018 before this Tribunal on 16.08.2018. After filing of Contempt Petition No.79/2018, the respondents issued orders dated 27.12.2018 to the Addl. SG, IISM, Hyderabad, and to the Directors of APGDC and GIS & RS, Hyderabad, to implement the above orders dated 02.02.2018 in OA.No.021/280/2016. After several months of proceedings, the respondents, finally filed their counter to the Contempt Petition, and also vide Compliance Affidavit dtated -07-2021, stating that the Respondent-office has partly complied with the order dated 02.02.2018 passed in O.A.No.280/2016, and re-fixation of pay in respect of the applicants is done 'notionally' with effect from 01/01/1986 in the pay scale of Rs.1640-60-2600- EB-175-2900/-, their periodical increments were granted and their pay has been re-fixed on getting their regular promotions. Since the applicants have retired before the date of filing the O.A. i.e., 11.03.2016, they are not entitled to draw the actual benefit out of the aforesaid fixation as per the Rule 33 of CCS (Pension) Rules, 1972 & Rule 9(21)(a)(i) of Fundamental Rules and that the pension is fixed based on the last pay actually drawn, but, not on the socalled "notional pay fixation". After this Tribunal passed Orders on 02.02.2018 in O.A. No.280/2018, the Hon'ble High Court of Orissa at Cuttack, had dismissed the Review Petition No. 140/2010 in O.A.No.475/1998, filed by the Respondents, during the month of March, 2018. However, the Respondents did not disclose the fact to this Tribunal, that the outcome of their Review Petition No. 140/2010 in O.A.No.475/1998 is since known.

3. The applicants have further submitted that they made several representations to the Respondents, while they were in service and aft