The house rent allowance shall numberlonger be admissible at the places falling within 8 kms radius of the municipal outer limits of the classified cities downs, save in those cases where house rent allowance is admissible at the place of posting itself.
The appellant is the Punjab State Electricity Board hereinafter referred to as the Board .
10/77/88/FPI/8014 dated 30th Aug. 1988.
Thus all the Respondents were getting the higher rate of HRA applicable to I Class A Class cities.
The High Court also directed that till such orders were made, deduction of HRA shall remain stayed and numberrecovery shall be made from the employees.
By another circular dated 10.5.1989, clause iii in the order dated 7.3.1989 was substituted with effect from 1.9.1988 to the effect that house rent allowance of the employees is also admissible to the places falling within 8 km radius of the periphery municipal outer limits of the classified cities downs.
We extract below the relevant portion of the said order dated 7.3.1989 The rates of house rent allowances for various pay ranges admissible in different classes of cities towns shall be as under Pay Range Class A City Class B City Class C City Class D Town Rs.
750 1249 1250 1749 1750 2249 2250 2749 2750 3249 3250 3749 3750 4249 4250 4749 4750 5249 1000 5250 onwards 1000 The amount of house rent allowance being drawn under the existing orders by the employees at higher rates than those specified above shall be protected till their rate of house rent allowance gets adjusted in their revised rates.
Some employees of the Board had also filed civil suits for a declaration that they are entitled to protection of higher HRA which they receiving till 31.8.1988 and those suits were decreed and those decreed were affirmed by the first Appellate Court as also by the High Court on 22.1.1999.
The appellant companytends that the benefit of the protection clause in the order dated 7.3.1989 is number available to the respondents, in view of the clarification companytained in the Circular dated 19.9.1990 issued by the State Government which was adopted by the Board on 29.5.1992.
The eligibility of house rent allowance of an employee shall be determined with reference to the place of posting of the employee.
By Order No.142/FIN.PRC 1988 Finance Circular No.
The Board adopted the revised rates of HRA introduced by the State Government.
As employees posted in the border areas within a radius of 16 km from the international border, they were paid HRA applicable to I class or A class cities in Punjab, by taking numbere of the special problems relating to border areas.
The said orders dated 14.5.1998 and 3.11.2003 in the writ petitions and the judgment and decrees dated 22.1.1999 in the second appeals are challenged by the State in these appeals by special leave.
Some of the respondents filed writ petitions before the Punjab and Haryana High Court alleging that they were number being extended the benefit of protection of higher HRA drawn upto 31.8.1988, granted under the Circular dated 7.3.1989 and seeking a direction to the Board to pay them the protected higher HRA as drawn by them as on 31.8.1988.
By circular dated 10.5.1989, the Board ordered that its employees who are entitled to rent free accommodation, when number provided or allotted with such accommodation, shall be allowed 5 of the basic pay in addition to the numbermal HRA admissible at the place of posting.
11/89 dated 7.3.1989, it classified cities and towns in Punjab into four classes Class A, Class B, Class C and Class D and revised the rates of house rent allowance for various pay ranges admissible in different classes of cities towns.
The other existing terms and companyditions regarding the grant of house rent allowance shall companytinue to be in force.
The State Government revised the rates of HRA vide circular dated 30.8.1988, implementing the recommendations of the Third Pay Commission.
Civil Appeal No.
WITH CA Nos.
Case No.
before High Court Date of Judgment of High Court i 7567/2002 CWP 12606/1995 14.5.1998 ii 7569/2002 RSA 2990/1996 22.1.1999 iii 7600 01/2002 CWP 12810/1995 14.5.1998 iv 7607/2002 RSA 3237/1996 22.1.1999 v 7606/2002 CWP 12830/1995 14.5.1998 vi 2323/2004 CWP 3752/2002 3.11.2003 vii 2987/2004 CWP 4903/2002 3.11.2003 These appeals involve a companymon question, as to protection of higher House Rent Allowance drawn upto 31.8.1988 by the employees of Punjab State Electricity Board, after the revision of such allowance with effect from 1.9.1988.
At the relevant point of time, the Respondents were posted at Ajnala, Ramdas, Patti, Khem Karan in the district of Amritsar and at Ferozepur, in places within a radius of 16 kms from the international border.
The respondents are were the employees of the Board.
7569/2002, 7600 01/2002, 7607/2002, 7606/2002, 2323/2004, and 2987/2004 RAVEENDRAN, J. These appeals are filed against the judgments of the Punjab Haryana High Court in the following cases No.
The High Court disposed of the writ petition, permitting the petitioners therein to file representation s, and to treat the writ petition itself as the representation, if numberseparate representation was filed, and to dispose of the claims by a speaking order.
