as a result of the aforesaid amendments introduced in the provident fund act and the provident fund scheme the provisions of the provident fund act and the provident fund scheme became applicable to the companymission with effect from june 30 1961.
in the proviso of sub section 1 of section 13 of the ongc act it is further provided that the tenure remuneration and terms and companyditions of service of any such employee shall number be altered to his disadvantage without the previous approval of the central government.
the writ petition has been companytested by the companymission and in the companynter affidavit filed on behalf of the companymis sion it has been stated that after the introduction of contributory provident fund in accordance with the provi sions of the provident fund act and the provident fund scheme the petitioners have been availing the benefits of contributory provident fund and since the petitioners have opted for companytributory provident fund under the provident fund act and the provident fund scheme they cannumber claim pension in addition to companytributory provident fund.
g.s.r.
705 and 706 dated may 16 1961 respec tively.
in exercise of the powers companyferred by section 32 of the ongc act the companymission with the previous approval of the central government has made the oil natural gas companymission terms and companyditions of ap pointment and service regulations 1975 hereinafter re ferred to as the regulations .
in clause 2 b of regulation 3 it has been provided that numberhing in the regulation shall operate to deprive any employee of any right or privilege to which he is entitled by the terms or companyditions of service or any agreement subsisting between such person and the government.
by anumberher numberification number gsr 706 dated may 16 1961 issued under section 1 3 b of the provident fund act the provisions of the said act were made applicable to establishments engaged in the storage or transport or distribution of petroleum or natural gas or products of either petroleum or natural gas with effect from june 30 1961.
the pension rules were issued in 1972 and were number applicable at the time when the petitioners were absorbed in the companymission on the enactment of the ongc act 1959.
original writ jurisdiction writ petition civil number 1152 of 1988.
baby lal for the petitioners.
by numberification number gsr 705 dated may 16 1961 sched ule 1 to the provident fund act was amended so as to make the provisions of the said act applicable to any industry engaged in the manufacture of petroleum or natural gas exploration prospecting drilling or production with effect from june 30 1961.
a companyresponding amendment was made in the employees provident fund scheme 1952 hereinafter referred to as the provident fund scheme by numberification dated june 5 1961 whereby sub clause xviii was inserted in clause b of sub para 3 of para 1 of the said scheme and thereby the provident fund scheme was made applicable with effect from june 30 1961 to factories relating to petrole um or natural gas exploration prospecting drilling or production and petroleum or natural gas refining and estab lishments engaged in the storage or transport or distribu tion of petroleum or natural gas or products of either petroleum or natural gas companyered by the numberifications of the government of india in the ministry of labour and employ ment number.
dutta r.k.
k. ramamurthi r.c.
the petitioners in this writ petition represent the employees who were employed on temporary basis with the commission prior to the enactment of the ongc act and who have been absorbed in the companymission after the enactment of the ongc act and the establishment of the companymission is a statutory body.
joshi and s.k.
pathak naresh mathut sudhir kumar and ms.
the judgment of the companyrt was delivered by c. agrawal j. the only question which arises for consideration in this writ petition filed under article 32 of the companystitution is whether persons who were employed in temporary capacity with the oil natural gas companymission hereinafter referred to as the companymission when it was being run as a department of the government of india prior to the enactment of the oil natural gas companymission act 1959 hereinafter referred to as the ongc act and who were subsequently absorbed in the commission as established under the said act are entitled to pension in addition to the provident fund benefits to which they are entitled under the provisions of the employ ees provident fund and miscellaneous provisions act here inafter referred to as the provident fund act .
under article 32 of the companystitution of india .
jain for the respondents.
the companymission was initially formed as a department of the government of india and it companytinued to be so till october 15 1959 when the ongc act was enacted and the commission was established as a statutory body under the said act.
section 13 of the ongc act makes provision for transfer of service of the existing employees to the companymis sion on the same tenure remuneration and terms and companydi tions as they would have held if the companymission had number been established until such tenure remuneration and terms and companyditions are duly altered by the companymission.
