By Arun Pratap Singh
Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 22 May: Sources claim that the government is considering yet another revision in cut off dates for equal pay for equal work to UPNL employees. It may be recalled that the Dhami Cabinet had taken a decision to provide equal pay for equal work to UPNL employees working in Uttarakhand and, significantly, formal orders in this regard had also been issued at the government level following the Cabinet decision. However, in a surprising development, after one amendment has since already been made to the order issued on the basis of the Cabinet decision, the government is again reported to be preparing for a second revision regarding the cut-off date.
It may be recalled that the government has been actually forced to agree to grant the benefit of equal pay for equal work to UPNL employees who have been hired by various government departments as outsourced employees in compliance to the orders of the High Court and the Supreme Court. However, instead of following the court orders in toto, the government had announced the cut-off date for the UPNL employees having completed ten years of service as on 12 November, 2018, instead of extending the benefits to all the UPNL employees. This was challenged by the UPNL employees in Uttarakhand High Court. It may be also recalled that UPNL employees have been demanding regularisation for several years and had also approached the court over the issue. Notably, the employees had achieved a major legal victory in 2018 when the High Court ruled in their favour and directed the state government to regularise them. The government, however, challenged the High Court order in the Supreme Court and the matter remained pending there for nearly six years.
The UPNL employees were elated when the Supreme Court also dismissed the State Government’s petition and upheld the High Court order. After the Supreme Court rejected the government’s plea in 2024, the Dhami Government became legally bound to act in accordance with the High Court’s direction regarding regularisation of UPNL employees. In spite of the court orders, the state government opted not for regularisation, but for granting the benefit of equal pay for equal work to them. Accordingly, orders were issued by the government with a specified cut-off date in line with the Cabinet decision.
Under the order, UPNL employees who had completed 10 years of service by 25 November, 2025 were to be given benefits in the first phase. Simultaneously, 12 November, 2018 was fixed as the cut-off date for extending the benefit of equal pay for equal work. This meant that UPNL employees appointed between 2015 and 2018 were to receive the benefit in the second phase.
However, shortly after the order was issued, the government released another amended order. In this revised order too, 12 November, 2018 was retained as the final cut-off date. However, it was decided that employees appointed before January 1, 2016 would receive benefits in the first phase, while those appointed after January 1, 2016 and up to November 12, 2018 would be covered in the second phase. After the revised order was issued in February this year, the government also issued contract agreements, which triggered considerable resentment among UPNL employees. Subsequently, the employees approached the High Court with a contempt petition against the government.
During the hearing of the contempt petition in the High Court, the Uttarakhand Government appears to have taken yet another U-turn. In a recent meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Anand Bardhan, consensus was reportedly reached once again on revising the cut-off date. Sources claim that a proposal in this regard is now being prepared by the Sainik Welfare Department for presentation before the Cabinet shortly.
Under the proposed revision, the government is now considering fixing another date of the Supreme Court order as the cut-off date for extending the benefit of equal pay for equal work. The Supreme Court had issued its order in the matter on 15 October, 2024. The sources claim that now the government is now considering 15 October, 2024 as the revised cut-off date and preparations are underway to bring a related proposal before the Cabinet soon.
Meanwhile UPNL employees have continued to mount pressure on the government over the issue and have maintained that the High Court order specifically pertains to regularisation. They have argued that the government should take a decision not only on equal pay for equal work but also on regularisation in accordance with the court’s direction.
Vinod Kavi, president of the Urja Samvida Karmachari Sangathan, asserted that the government should comply with the High Court’s order in its true spirit. However, it appears that the government is attempting to take the matter in a different direction.
