2025:CGHC:15155 AFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR WPS No. 4266 of 2020

1 - Smt. Umthi Bai @ Khorbahrin Sahu W/o Late Barsen Aged About 62 Years R/o Village Boierdih, Tehsil - Chhuriya District - Rajnandgaon (Chhattisgarh), District : Rajnandgaon, (C.G.)

... Petitioner versus

1 - State Of Chhattisgarh Through The Secretary, Public Works Department, Mantralaya, Naya Raipur, Raipur (Chhattisgarh), District : Raipur, (C.G.)

2 - Superintendent Engineer Pwd Durg Mandal District - Durg (Chhattisgarh), District : Durg, (C.G.)

3 - Excutive Engineer Pwd (B And R) Division Office, Rajnandgaon District -

Rajnandgaon. (Chhattisgarh), District : Rajnandgaon, Chhattisgarh ... Respondents For Petitioner : Mr. H.S. Ahluwalia, Advocate.

For Respondents : Mrs. Mukta Tripathi, Panel Lawyer.

Hon’ble Mr. Justice Naresh Kumar Chandravanshi

Order on Board

27/03/2025

1. By way of this petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner is seeking following relief :-

“10.1 The Hon’ble Court may kindly be pleased to command the respondents to produce the entire records for perusal of this Hon’ble Court.

10.2 The Hon’ble Court may kindly be pleased to allow the present writ petition and direct the respondents to grant fixed regular pay scale under the rules from the date when the petitioner attained the status of permanent workcharged paid employee.

10.3 The Hon’ble Court direct the respondents to give all benefits payable to a permanent workcharged paid employee.

10.4 Any other relief which this Hon’ble Court may deem fit and proper may also be passed in favour of the Petitioner together with cost of the petition.”

2. Facts of the case, in nutshell, are that the petitioner was appointed on 24.05.1999 under compassionate appointment scheme after death of her husband namely Late Barsen, who was working as a Permanent Gangman in the PWD (B&R) Department at Sub- Division Khairagarh, Dist – Rajnandgaon. The petitioner was appointed as permanent Gangman in service and even after lapse of 20 years, till filing of instant petition, she had not been paid regular pay scale, therefore, the petitioner has filed instant petition seeking aforesaid reliefs.

3. Learned counsel appearing for the petitioner would submit that since the petitioner was appointed as “permanent Gangman” in the Respondents- Department, as such, her service condition will govern under 'Model Rule' namely Work-charged and Contingency Paid Employees Recruitment and Condition of Service Rule, 1975. He would further submit that as per Rule 2(c) of Madhya Pradesh (Now Chhattisgarh) (Work Charged and Contingency Paid Employees) Pension Rules, 1979 (henceforth “ Pension Rule, 1979”), contingency and work-charged employees, who has completed fifteen years of service or more on or after the 1^st January, 1974 would be permanent employee. In the instant case, the petitioner has completed 15 years of service as work-charged employee with the Respondents-Department, therefore, for pension purpose, she had completed requisite requirement of 15 years on 23.05.2014, as such, she is entitled to get pay scale as per Madhya Pradesh (Now Chhattisgarh) Work-charged and Contingency Paid Employees Revisions of Pay Rules, 1977, wherein the post of ‘Gangman’ was shown at Serial No. (xxvii) in Annexure-1, Revised Scale of Pay (See Rule 3), under the column “name of the post held by a workcharged or contingency paid employee”, therefore, relief, as sought for, may be granted to the petitioner. He placed reliance upon the judgment of the Full Bench in the matter of Vishnu and others vs. State of Madhya Pradesh & others ¹

4. Per contra, learned counsel for the State while referring to its reply would submit that petitioner’s husband was a permanent Gangman and after his death, the petitioner was appointed on compassionate ground, as such, her salary was paid as per Collector rate. Since the employment of the petitioner was not regularized by the Department, as she was appointed in the year 1999, whereas, cut o