Central Administrative Tribunal - Ernakulam
Santhosh S Menon vs M/O Railways on 26 March, 2019
1 OA 917-15
Central Administrative Tribunal
Ernakulam Bench
OA/180/00917/2015
Tuesday, this the 26th day of March, 2019.
CORAM
Hon'ble Mr. E.K.Bharat Bhushan, Administrative Member
Hon'ble Mr. Ashish Kalia, Judicial Member
1. Santhosh S. Menon, aged 27 years
S/o Sudhakara Menon
Travelling Ticket Inspector, Sleeper Section.
Kannur Railway Station.
Residing at Unnikattil House
P.O.Mulanguthukavu, Near Milk Society,
Thrissur-680 581.
2. Krishnadas A., aged 37 years
S/o Appukuttan K.,
Travelling Ticket Inspector
Office of the Chief Ticket Inspector
Kerala Mangala/Palakkad, Palakkad Jn Railway Station
Residing at"Ardram', Palakkal Parambu,
Vallikkode P.O., Palakkad-678 594.
3. V.L.Narayanan, aged 36 years
S/o Lakshmanan Iyer, Travelling Ticket Inspector
Office of the Chief Ticket Inspector
Kerala Mangala/Palakkad, Palakkad Jn., Railway Station.
Residing at "Sai Ganesh",
Ramachandra Colony, Kalpathy, Palakkad.
4. P.K.Sathyanandan, aged 53 years
S/o Late Kannan P.T.,Travelling Ticket Inspector
Office of the CTTI Shornur.
Residing at "Karthika", East Hill,
Calicut-5.
5. Mr.M.R.Ragesh, aged 31 years
S/o Raghavan M.K.
Travelling Ticket Inspector
Office of the Chief Ticket Inspector
Palakkad Railway Station.
Residing at Mangalathuvalappil House
Kothachira O.O., Peringode
Palakkad-679 535.
2 OA 917-15
6. Mr.Jayaraj A.S., aged 38 years
S/o A.G.Sukumaran
Travelling Ticket Inspector
Office of the Chief Ticket Inspector
Sleeper Section, Shornur, Shornur Railway Station
Residing at Anthikkat House, Sankara Iyer Road
Thrissur-680 004.
7. Mr.N.Janardhanan, aged 43 years
S/o K.Narayanan nair
Travelling Ticket Inspector
Sleeper Depot, Southern Railway, Shornur.
Residing at "Sree Narayanan" House
P.O.Ernhikkal, (via) Mokavoor
Calicut.
8. Mr.K.Vijayan Nair, aged 49 years
S/o Krishnan Nair,
Travelling Ticket Inspector
Sleeper Depot, Shornur.
Residing at "Chaithanya"
Ponkam P.O., Mavelikkara.
9. Mr.Edwin Jayaraj, aged 58 years
S/o Joseph, Travelling Ticket Inspector
Office of the Chief Ticket Inspector
Kerala Mangala/Palakkad
Palakkad Junction Railway Station
Residing at Poyayil House, Industrial Estate
Puthupariyaram, Palakkad.
10. Sivadasan K.V., aged 49 years
S/o Velayudhan, Office of the Chief Ticket Inspector
Sleeper Section/Shornur, Shornur Railway Station.
Residing at "Thapass" 20 Vidya Nagar
Kakkani, Hemambika Nagar
Railway Colony, Palakkad. Applicants
[Advocates: Smt. Shameena Salahudheen]
versus
1. Union of India represented by
the Chairman, Railway Board
Ministry of Railways, Rail Bhavan,
New Delhi-110 001.
2. The General Manager
Southern Railway
Park Town, Chennai-600 003.
3 OA 917-15
3. The Divisional Railway Manager
Palakkad Division, Palakkad-2.
4. Sr.Divisional Personnel Officer
Southern Railway
Palakkad-2. Respondents
[Advocate: Smt.K.Girija]
The OA having been heard on 15 th March, 2019, this Tribunal delivered
the following order on 26.03.2019:
ORDER
By Ashish Kalia, Judicial Member The applicants while working as Senior Ticket Examiners were granted promotion as Travelling Ticket Inspectors in the scale of Rs.9300-34800 w.e.f. 1.11.2013. The Travelling Allowance attached to the post of Sr.TE is at the rate of Rs.262/- per point (12 hrs point) and the Night Duty Allowance was Rs.145/-. On 1.1.2014, the same was revised to Rs.315 and there was consequent increase in the Night Duty Allowance as well. The respondents restructured the department with effect from 1.11.2013 and was implemented at Palghat Division only after a lapse of more than a year. The applicant who were entitled to these fringe benefits were denied the same. The applicants represented their grievance but to no avail. Therefore they have approached this Tribunal for redressal.
2. Notices were issued, upon which the respondents filed their reply statement. It is submitted in the reply that the applicants had not adduced any rule or law in support of their claim and in the absence of which, they are not entitled to the relief prayed for. The respondents have quoted Para 1602(2) of Indian Railway Establishment Code, which has a statutory force and which reads as follows:
4 OA 917-15 "Where a railway servant is promoted or reverted or is granted an increased rate of pay with retrospective effect, no revision of claims for traveling allowance is permissible, in respect of the period intervening between the date of promotion or reversion or grant of increased rate of pay and that on which it is notified, unless it is clear that there has been an actual change in duties".
3. It is further submitted that "the implementation of cadre restructuring is to be done by offering matching surrender of posts from the same category as it is on the proposition of "self financing and expenditure neutral", in terms of item No.12 o Railway Board's order No.102/2013 dated 8.10.2013. In terms of item 12 (1) of Annexure A1, for implementation of cadre restructuring, "after working out the financial implications, the matching savings should be arranged from the department at the divisional/zonal level. But, before restructuring the cadre as per the revised percentage distribution of posts, matching savings will have to be ensured and if the Department/Railways are not able to provide the matching savings, the particular category/department will not be restructured." In view of these terms and conditions, it is mandatory that matching savings by way of surrender of posts from the same category/department is a pre-requisite for restructuring the cadre. As per Annexure-B to RBE no.102/2013 the category of Ticket Checking Staff is to be restructured as under:
Pay Band Grade Pay Existing % Revised % PB-2 4600 12 20 PB-2 4200 43 46 PB-1 2400 28 22 PB-1 1900 17 12
4. The money value for matching surrender required for implementation of cadre restructuring in the category of Ticket Checking cadre has been worked out to Rs.13,94,828/-, which required surrendering 44 posts of Sr. Ticket Examiners 5 OA 917-15 and 22 posts of Ticket Examiners. Since there has been an increase in the commercial activities in Palghat Division, further reduction in the cadre strength of the categories of Ticket Checking and Commercial Clerk would not be desirable as it may led to closure of counters or leaving coaches unmanned, thereby resulting in leakage of revenue as well as inconvenience to the traveling public. To overcome the stipulation of matching savings by surrender of posts from the same category/department, the issue was taken up with Railway Board through the zonal Headquarters for permitting the implementation of cadre restructuring in these categories without offering matching surrender. In the meanwhile, OA No.98/2014 was filed before this Tribunal challenging the provision for reservation contained in Railway Board's Annexure A1 order. An interim order was passed by this Tribunal staying the implementation of cadre restructuring. Subsequently, this Tribunal was pleased to allow the implementation of the cadre restructuring. Feeling aggrieved by the order of this Tribunal, the applicants in OA No.98/2014 approached the Hon'ble High Court of Kerala and vide its order dated 2.4.2014, the High Court stayed the operation of this Tribunal's order dated 20.3.2014. Subsequently, by another interim order dated 11.4.2014, the Hon High Court was pleased to allow the respondents to implement the cadre restructuring in all other categories, except the category of Commercial Clerk.
5. In view of the non-feasibility of further surrender of posts from the above mentioned two categories of Commercial Department in certain zones due to existing shortage of staff in these categories, the General Managers may consider the possibility of surrender of posts against matching savings from alternate cadres at the Divisional/Zonal level, wherever absolutely must. Thereafter 6 OA 917-15 Southern Railway Headquarters, after due examination and process, communicated its approval for implementation of cadre restructuring in these categories duly offering matching surrender of posts from Commercial/Catering Branch at Southern Railway Headquarters, vide letter dated 6.11.2014. Another OA No.1037/2014 was filed on 25.11.2014 by certain Ticket Examiners challenging the provision of reservation in cadre restructuring, wherein this Tribunal had occasion to consider the same but later the interim order passed was vacated. The respondents have denied that there is any undue delay in implementation of the cadre restructuring in the category of Ticket Examiners. Thus the respondents have prayed for dismissal of the OA in terms of the rule position emphasized herein above.
6. After considering the rival contentions, this Tribunal is of the view that the applicants are not entitled for these allowances as it emerges from restructuring of cadre for which the mandatory condition was the matching savings meaning thereby the self financing scheme where equal number of posts has to be surrendered by the department or zone, then only this benefit could have been availed. In view of the various litigations, the implementation has been deferred for more than a year or so. So the department is not at fault. It is the employees who have approached the court who are more or less responsible for the same. In view of the above, we find no merit in the present OA. The OA is dismissed. No order as to costs.
[Ashish Kalia] [E.K.Bharat Bhushan]
Judicial Member Administrative Member
aa.
7 OA 917-15
Annexures filed by the applicants:
Annexure A1: Copy of the Railway Board Order No.102/2013 dated 8.10.2013.
Annexure A2: Copy of the order No.J/P.524/II/TCS/CRC-2013 dated 26.11.2014
issued by the 4th respondent.
Annexure A3: Copy of the representation dated 10.4.2015 submitted by the
Union.
Annexure A4: Copy of the order No.J/P 483/VIII/Bills II dated 14.5.2015 issued
by the 4th respondent.
Annexures filed by the respondents:
Annexure R1: Copy of Railway Board letter no.78/2014.
Annexure R2: Copy of memorandum regarding surrender of posts in commercial/
catering department at Southern Railway Headquarters vide letter dated 6.11.2014.
Annexure R3: Railway Board's letter dated 15.101997.
Annexure R4: Railway Board's letter dated 17.10.2011.