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Petitioner, prior to her joining as a Teacher under the SSA Authority, Punjab, was a mother of a female child. During her service, she became pregnant and delivery was expected in first week of December, 2012. She applied for maternity leave and was granted the same for 90 days which ended on 02.03.2013. She gave birth to a male child on 05.12.2012. The son of the petitioner was not keeping well and was admitted in hospital on 08.12.2012 and was discharged on 11.12.2012. At the time of discharge, the doctor advised breast feeding to the child for at least six months. Much prior to the date of expiry of her maternity leave, she sent application dated 06.02.2013 (Annexure P-4) to respondents No. 2 and 3 vide registered post to grant her maternity leave up to 180 days in view of Rule 8.137-A of Punjab Civil Services Rules Volume-I Part-I. Reliance was also placed upon the circular dated 19.10.2012 (Annexure P-5) issued by the Director Education Department (Secondary Education), Punjab, which dealt with entitlement of different kinds of leave to the employees appointed on contract basis. In the said letter, reference has been made to the Punjab Government, Finance Department (Finance Personnel) Circular Letter dated 25.12.2011, which clarified that under Rule 8.57 of the Punjab Civil Services Rules Volume-I Part-I, employees appointed on contract basis are entitled to different kinds of holidays. Appendix 16 of the Punjab Civil Services Rules Part-I Volume-II provides for model terms regarding holidays of the employees, who have been appointed on contract basis, but the same do not deal with maternity leave. Reference has been made to Rule 8.133 to 8.138 of the Punjab Civil Services Rules Volume-I Part-I, which deals with the different kinds of leave to the temporary Government employees, under which maternity leave for female employees for 180 days has been provided under Rule 8.137-A. On the basis of this letter, petitioner had sought extension of her maternity leave for 180 days.

When no decision was taken on the application submitted by the petitioner for extension of her maternity leave up to 180 days despite various efforts and visits made in this regard, she was compelled to file CWP No. 3995 of 2013 in this Court praying for decision on the representation submitted by the petitioner for extension of her maternity leave. The said writ petition was disposed of by this Court vide order dated 22.02.2013 directing respondent No. 2 to decide the representation of the petitioner dated 06.02.2013 within a period of one week from the date of receipt of certified copy of the order. In compliance with the order passed by this Court, respondent No. 2 proceeded to decide the same and rejected the claim of the petitioner for extension of her maternity leave vide order dated 01.03.2013 (Annexure P-7) by stating that the Punjab Civil Services Rules are not applicable to the service conditions of the petitioner as she was working on contract basis in SSA Society. This society has framed its own regulations which govern the services of its employees and have been incorporated in the contract of appointment of the petitioner. As per the said regulations/instructions of the SSA Authority, petitioner is only entitled to 90 days maternity leave and not beyond that. The petitioner has, thus, approached this Court challenging this order of rejection of her extension of maternity leave.

It is the contention of the counsel for the petitioner that the SSA Authority is a Central Government sponsored scheme of the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India. The Manual on financial management and procurement has been issued by the Department of Elementary Education and Literacy, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India. As per para-2 of the said Manual, provisions outlined in the said Manual are mandatory which empowers the concerned implementing society to formulate Financial Rules and Regulations including the delegation of financial powers for effective implementation of SSA Authority. Regulations and procedure outlined in this Manual have to be formally adopted by the Executive Committee and the Financial Rules and Regulations framed in accordance with the provisions of this Manual. As per para 30.1 (ii) (d), salary of teachers and their service conditions should be similar to that of the Government School teachers. He, on this basis, contends that when the service conditions of the teachers have been mandated to be similar to that of the Government School teachers, there can be no discrimination between the teachers working in the SSA Authority under the SSA Scheme and the teachers, who have been appointed on contract basis by the State Government especially when this is a beneficial legislation and the statutory Rules, which have been framed by the State of Punjab granting maternity leave of 180 days, are in consonance with the basic principles as laid under the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, which has been legislated to give effect to the directive principles as laid down under Articles 39 and 42 of the Constitution of India. He further placed reliance upon the decision of the Government of India, according to which, Rule 43 (1) of the Central Civil Services (Leave) Rules, 1972 has been modified to enhance the maternity leave to 180 days from 135 days, which is in consonance with the recommendations of the Sixth Central Pay Commission relating to Maternity Leave and Child Care Leave. Reliance has also been placed upon the Combined Fourth and Fifth Periodic Reports of the Government of India in the Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination against Women before the United Nations, where in para-27, it has been stated that the maternity leave for Government and Public Sector employees has been increased from 135 days to 180 days. Government of India, while submitting Children's Alternative Report to UNCRC with Child- Friendly Version of Government Report to UNCRC Committee, has stated that maternity leave for Government employees has been increased from 135 to 180 days. The scheme being a central sponsored scheme of the Government of India, the benefit needs to be extended to the employees of the SSA Authority, Punjab also. He, on this basis, contends that both under the Central or the State Rules, 180 days of maternity leave is provided and, therefore, the benefit should be extended to the petitioner. Reliance has also been placed upon the decisions of the Government of West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamilnadu and Jharkhand, who are also running the SSA Scheme sponsored by the Central Government where 180 days of maternity leave has been granted to the female employees. On this basis, it has been contended by the counsel for the petitioner that the writ petition deserves to be allowed.

In the present case, the claim of the petitioner is limited to the extent of grant of maternity leave of 180 days. It is true that under the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, a woman is entitled to maternity leave of six weeks. However, there is no bar to the grant of benefits over and above the said period, as specified in Section 5 of the 1961 Act. The State of Punjab as well as the Central Government having adopted the norm of 180 days to be the maternity leave, the employees, who are working in the State of Punjab under the SSA Society, would be entitled to the same benefit of 180 days. As per Rule 8.137-A of the Punjab Civil Services Rules Volume-I Part-I and the circular dated 19.10.2012 (Annexure P-5) issued by the Director Education Department (Secondary Education) Punjab, petitioner would be entitled to the grant of 180 days of maternity leave. Even under Rule 43(1) of Central Civil Services (Leave) Rules, 1972, maternity benefit has been now enhanced to 180 days from 135 days, which is in consonance with recommendations of the Sixth Central Pay Commission relating to maternity and child care leave. Government of India has itself, in its report submitted before the United Nations in its combined fourth and fifth periodic reports relating to Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, in para 27 stated that maternity leave for Government and public sector employees has been increased from 135 days to 180 days. In its Children's Alternative Report to UNCRC, again the Government of India has stated that the maternity leave for Government employees has been increased from 135 to 180 days. By the Government of West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand, where the SSA Scheme is being run, 180 days of maternity leave is being granted to its employees. The scheme admittedly being a Central Government sponsored scheme, the employees covered under the said scheme would be entitled to the same benefits as the employees of the Government of India as far as the maternity leave is concerned because the said benefit to an employee is a beneficial scheme, which is relatable to the public policy of the Government and in consonance with the Articles 39 and 42, Part-IV of the Constitution of India containing the directive principles of State Policy. There can be no discrimination on this score with regard to the grant of maternity benefits to a female employee especially when the conditions of the scheme clearly lays down that the service conditions should be similar to that of Government school teachers. The judgments relied upon by the counsel for the respondents only deal with a situation where no maternity leave was granted at all there the Court proceeded to grant of benefit under the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 where six weeks of maternity leave stands provided and accordingly, the said benefit was granted by the Courts.