IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB & HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH Date of decision: 05.05.2025 Mrs. Raksha Devi and others ...Petitioners VERSUS Union of India and others ...Respondents CORAM : HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE VINOD S. BHARDWAJ Present :- Mr. R.K. Arora, Advocate and Mr. Jugam Arora, Advocate;

Mr. Prabhat Kashyap, Advocate for the petitioner(s).

Ms. Anita Balyan, Advocate for the respondent(s)-UOI.

Mr. I.S. Sidhu, Advocate for respondent No.4.

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VINOD S. BHARDWAJ, J. (Oral)

1. Prayer in the present petition is for directing the respondents to release the pay-scale of Rs.1640-2900 w.e.f. 01.01.1986 alongwith the arrears and interest @18% per annum to the petitioners at par with what has been granted to the Senior Stenographers/Stenographers Grade ‘C’ working in the Central Secretariat Stenographers Services (CSSS), who were earlier placed in the same unrevised scale of Rs.1400-2600 alongwith the petitioners.

2. Learned counsel has argued that the petitioners were working as Senior Stenographers in the Technical Teachers’ Training Institute (hereinafter referred to as ‘the TTTI’), which is an autonomous body set up by the Union Government on the recommendations of All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to promote technical education. He contends that the said Institute is being run as per the Rules, Regulations, recommendations, pay-scale and other service conditions applicable to the Central Government Employees. It is argued that the Senior Stenographers who were working with the respondents were being given the pay-scale of Rs.425-700, which was revised to Rs.1400-2300 w.e.f. 01.01.1986 on the recommendations of the 4^th Pay Commission. The said pay scale and pay revision were adopted uniformly for the employees of the Central Government, irrespective of whether they were working with other statutory/autonomous bodies of the Government of India or were the employees of the Central Government. It is contended that the aforesaid pay- scale of Rs.1400-2300 was undisputedly made applicable and released to the petitioners as well. The same was later revised to Rs.1400-2600 w.e.f. 01.01.1986 vide orders dated 04.05.1990 and 05.10.1990. The aforesaid revision of the pay-scale was again extended to all subordinate offices and autonomous organizations as well as to the offices non-participating in Central Secretariat Services. The said revision of the pay scale was also made applicable universally and without any discrimination, including the petitioners. He contends that since the pay scale of the petitioners as the Senior Stenographers was at par with the Central Government Employees, hence, they are entitled to the same allowances/pay revisions.

3. He submits that vide order dated 31.07.1990, the pay scale of Senior Stenographers working in the Central Secretariat Services was further revised to Rs. 1640-2900 w.e.f. 01.01.1986 whereas the pay of the petitioners was retained at Rs.1400-2600.

4. It is contended that the petitioners raised the aforesaid issue of anomaly with the respondent-Department who also forwarded their representation(s) with their positive recommendation, to the higher authorities for revision of their pay scale at par with the further revision of pay as granted to the Central Government Employees w.e.f. 01.01.1986 vide letter dated 31.07.1990. He submits that the respondents however refused to revise the pay scale of the petitioners at par with the employees of the Central Secretariat Services on the ground that as per the office memorandum dated 31.07.1990, the aforesaid further revision was restricted only to the employees of the Central Secretariat Services and Central Secretariat Stenographers Services and was not applicable or available to the employees of other subordinate office/organization. He contends that the said ground is not tenable as the same Clause was brought under challenge before the Division Bench of Delhi High Court in LPA-301-1997 decided on 31.05.2002 titled as ‘Yogeshwar Prasad and others V