Extension of 7th CPC benefits to those employees having date of birth on 01/01/1956 and retired on 31/12/2015: An Apeeal

Hence, this genuine issue may please be raised at the appropriate forum.

AS YOU ARE AWARE PRESENTLY VARIOUS MINISTRIES/DEPARTMENTS ISSUE ORDERS TO RETIRING OFFICIALS ON SUPERANNUATION, BORN ON THE 1st OF A MONTH, ON THE LAST DAY OF THE PRECEDING MONTH. ACCORDINGLY, SIMILAR ORDERS ISSUED TO ME EFFECTING FROM 31ST DECEMBER, 2015. AS A RESULT OF WHICH, I WOULD BE CATEGORIZED AS PRE-2016 PENSIONER.

IN THIS CONNECTION I BEG TO SUBMIT AS FOLLOWS:

(i) Prior to the practice/instructions/rules of retiring on superannuation of all those born on the 1st of a month on the afternoon of the last day of the preceding month, Article 14 of the Civil Service Regulation which were being followed for decades provided that an officer whose date of birth was the 1st day of a month ceased to be on duty on attaining the age of superannuation on his 61st Birthday. Besides, the AUDIT INSTRUCTIONS below FR 56 as existed then had similar provision. This rule applied to all Government servants, whether civil or military.

(ii) The other statutory Rule 5(2) of the Central Civil Service (Pension) Rule, 1972 framed under Article 309 of the Constitution of India also provided that “The day on which a Government servant retires or is retired or is discharged or is allowed to resign from service, as the case may be, shall be treated as a non-working day.

(iii) According to Rule 83(1) of the Pension Rules, 1972 framed under the Article 309 of the Constitution of India, as existed earlier also provided that pension becomes payable from the date on which Government servant ceases to be born on the establishment.

(iv) Even at present, Leave Preparatory to retirement has to be till the date one attains the age of superannuation. According to the Rules/instructions one retires on superannuation on the date of birth of the relevant year and pension is payable from that date.

(v) According to the Halsbury’s Law of England “In computing a period of time, at any date, when counted in years or months, no regard is generally paid to fractions of a day, in the sense that the period is regarded as complete although it is short to the extent of fraction of a day. Similarly, in calculating a person’s age, the day of his birth counts as a whole day; and he attains a specified age on the day next before the anniversary of his birth day.”

(vi) As the current practice/instructions/rules was discriminatory against all those born on the 1st of a month and harshly operating against them, particularly with reference to pensioners / terminal benefits.

(vii) When, those born on other than 1st, attained the age of superannuation they were deemed not to have attained the same and allowed to continue till the last of the month, whereas those born on the 1st deemed to have attained the age superannuation on a day before the last day of the preceding month. In other words the date of birth of those born on the 1st , is being changed from the 1st to the last day of the preceding month.

(viii) The applicant would not be at par with those born on the 2nd on wards in as much as they would superannuate on the last day of January, 2016 as against 3Ist December, 2015 for the applicant. As a result, there would be two separate groups- one those born between 2nd and 31st and the other those born on the 1st – resulting in discrimination against those born on the 1st.

(ix) Based on the recommendations of the 3rd CPC it was decided that the date of annual increment would be the 1st of a month irrespective of fact whether one completes one year on the last day of the month. Similarly, it was also decided that all those born on the 2nd on wards would retire on the last day of the month irrespective of the fact whether he attains the age on the age of superannuation on the 1st of the month. Based on the principle of annual increment it was also decided that enhanced pension at the age of 80 years etc. would also be granted from the 1st of a month irrespective of the fact whether one attains that age on the 30th of the month.

(X) I WOULD BE ATTAINING THE AGE OF SUPERANNUATION ON THE 31ST DECEMBER, 2015, WHICH WOULD BE A WORKING DAY FOR ME AND I WILL BE PAID PAY AND ALLOWANCES FOR THAT DAY ALSO.

(XI) I WOULD NOT START GETTING PENSION FROM THAT DATE, I.E., THE 31ST DECEMBER, 2015. PENSION WOULD START WEF 1ST OF JANUARY, 2016. AS SUCH I WOULD BECOME A PENSIONER FROM 1ST OF JANUARY, 2016.

(XII) WHILE GRANTING COMMUTATION FACTOR, FOR THE INDIVIDUAL HAVING DATE OF BIRTH FROM 2ND TO 31ST OF THE PRECEDING MONTH AND THE INDIVIDUAL HAVING DATE OF BIRTH 1ST OF NEXT MONTH ALSO HAVING SAME FIGURE IN BOTH THE ABOVE, NEXT BIRTH DAY DATE WILL BE DIFFERENT AND COMMUTATION FIGURE ALSO SHALL BE DIFFERENT.

(XIII) FR 5-A STATES “WHERE ANY MINISTRY OR DEPARTMENT OF GOVERNMENT IS OF OPINION THAT THE OPERATION OF ANY OF THESE RULES MAY CAUSE UNDUE HARDSHIP TO ANY PERSON, THAT MINISTRY OR DEPARTMENT, AS THE CASE MAY BE, MAY BY ORDER, FOR REASONS TO BE RECORDED IN WRITING, RELAX THE REQUIREMENT OF THAT RULE TO SUCH EXTENT AND SUBJECT TO SUCH CONDITIONS AS IT MAY CONSIDER NECESSARY FOR DEALING WITH THE CASE IN A JUST AND EQUITABLE MANNER”.

It is also to bring to your kind notice that I will be incurring a huge financial loss by effecting my retirement on 31st Dec, 2015, the day on which my pay & allowances are paid and treated as in service.

IN VIEW OF THE FACTS AND LEGAL POSITION MENTIONED ABOVE IT IS REQUESTED THAT ORDERS MAY KINDLY BE GET ISSUED, RETIRING ME EFFECTIVELY WITH EFFECT FROM THE 1ST JAN, 2016, ON ATTAINING THE AGE OF SUPERANNUATION ON THE 31ST DECEMBER, 2015. AS A RESULT, TREATING THE INDIVIDUAL AS POST-2016 PENSIONER.