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HC dismisses Chandigarh’s plea for more time to increase retirement age of technical institutes’ faculty
The HC bench of justice AG Masih and justice Ashok Kumar Verma also imposed a fine of ₹20,000 on the Chandigarh administration
The Punjab and Haryana high court on Wednesday dismissed a plea from the Chandigarh administration, seeking more time to implement its order on increasing the retirement age of technical institutes’ faculty from 58 to 65 years.
The high court bench of justice AG Masih and justice Ashok Kumar Verma also imposed a fine of ₹20,000 on the administration.
“It is apparent that the competent authority would have taken a decision to implement the judgment passed by this court prior to the actual withdrawal of the SLP (special leave petition), which was pending before the Supreme Court. We, therefore, do not find any ground for extending the time for implementation of the judgment, especially when since withdrawal of the SLP more than two months have passed by and there have not been effective steps taken to give effect thereto. The matter is being tossed from one department to the other without much headway,” the court observed, dismissing the fresh application from the UT.
It was on March 1, 2021, when high court had held that retirement age for faculty of technical institutes will be 65 years and not 58, as fixed by the Chandigarh administration. Against the judgment, the administration had approached the apex court on August 23. However, it withdrew the appeal in December.
In a fresh application before the high court, the administration had sought more time for implementation of the March 2021 order, arguing that its implementation was taking time.
During the course of hearing, it had come to light that in one case where retirement age had to be extended, a rider had been put that the faculty will continue in service beyond the age of retirement till the time no final decision is taken by the central government on this issue.
“This, in our considered view, is clearly against the mandate of the order of the court and contrary to the very spirit of the present application, which has been filed for extension of time. On the one hand, an effort has been made for seeking extension of time for implementing the judgment while on the other…the implementation is partial and that too with a rider,” the bench observed, adding that this amounted to non-compliance of the court orders.
The technical institutes in the city include Punjab Engineering College (PEC), Chandigarh College of Architecture (CCA), Chandigarh College of Engineering and Technology (CCET), Government Polytechnic for Women and Government College of Art Education.
