Shimla: Following a legal setback in the Supreme Court, the Himachal Pradesh government has initiated an administrative exercise to examine the benefits of counting previous contractual service for employees who have since been regularized in government departments. The government has sought detailed service records of all affected employees from various departments to assess their eligibility and the financial implications of extending these benefits.
The development follows the repeal of the Himachal Pradesh Employees Recruitment and Service Conditions Act, 2024, after the Himachal Pradesh High Court declared it unconstitutional. The Supreme Court subsequently dismissed the state government’s Special Leave Petition (SLP) as well as its review petition, bringing the legal challenge to an end.
The issue came up for discussion during a high-level meeting held at the State Secretariat on Tuesday, chaired by Chief Secretary Kamlesh Kumar Pant. Principal Secretary (Finance) Devesh Kumar, Principal Secretary (Personnel) M. Sudha Devi and other senior officials attended the meeting.
During the meeting, the Chief Secretary directed all departments to promptly compile and submit comprehensive service records of regularized contractual employees. The information will form the basis for examining their claims and determining the financial liabilities associated with granting the benefits of their previous contractual service.
The central issue concerns the long-pending demand of employees to count their contractual service period for calculating seniority, annual increments and pensionary benefits. The Himachal Pradesh High Court, on April 25, 2024, had struck down the state government’s 2024 Act, declaring it unconstitutional. Subsequently, the Supreme Court dismissed the government’s SLP on July 29 and later rejected its review petition.
With the legal proceedings failing to provide relief to the state government, the High Court has directed it to take a final decision on the matter by November 28. The latest administrative exercise is being viewed as an important step towards complying with the court’s directions.
Employees Divided into Three Categories
To ensure a systematic assessment, the government has instructed departments to classify the affected employees into three categories based on their initial mode of appointment.
The first category will include employees recruited through the State Selection Commission or the Himachal Pradesh Public Service Commission. The second will comprise those appointed through interviews or on a batch-wise basis. The third category will cover employees who were initially appointed on a temporary basis before being shifted to contractual employment.
Departments have been asked to provide detailed information about each employee, including the date of initial appointment, mode of recruitment, duration of contractual service and date of regularization. These details will help the government establish the service history of employees and assess their eligibility for the proposed benefits.
Contractual Recruitment Began After 2003
The issue has significant implications for government employees across Himachal Pradesh. Contractual recruitment in state government departments began after 2003. Initially, employees had to serve for up to eight years before becoming eligible for regularization.
Over the years, successive state governments gradually revised the regularization policy, reducing the required contractual service period. Eventually, the waiting period was brought down to two years.
Employees have since been demanding that their contractual service should also be counted for service-related benefits, particularly seniority, annual increments and pension. The government’s latest move to collect comprehensive employee records has renewed expectations among affected employees, who have been waiting for a final resolution of the issue.
