I.P.Mukerji, J. - (1.) THE retired employees of the United Bank of India have formed an association called the United Bank of India Retirees' Welfare Association. This association has affiliated itself to an All India Association of similarly placed employees known as the All India Bank Retirees' Association. The second writ petitioner is the general secretary of the association in Kolkata having its office at 20, Hemanta Basu Sarani, 4th Floor, Kolkata - 700001. The third and fourth writ petitioners are former employees of the United Bank of India. Both of them retired prior to 1st November, 2002. They and the association, for the pre 2002 retirees of the respondent bank claim 100% dearness relief to tackle the difficult financial situation caused by price rise over the years.
(2.) A Memorandum of Settlement was entered into on 29th October, 1993. Fifty eight banks were involved. It was between the management and the workers of the banks, represented by IBA and AIBEA respectively. Paragraph -6 of the Settlement provided that "dearness relief would be granted to pensioners at such rates as may be determined from time to time in line with the dearness allowance formula in operation in RBI." In furtherance of this Settlement the Pension Regulations of 1995 were adopted by the bank. Appendix -2 to the regulations provided for the rates, and computation of payment of dearness relief based upon quarterly average of the All India Price Index for the industrial workers being followed by the Reserve Bank of India. Full compensation against price rise was not provided by these provisions for dearness relief. The Reserve Bank of India was not providing full compensation against price rise, as dearness relief. We are not concerned here with the details of the calculation of dearness relief. They have been provided in the petition.
(3.) NOW by a circular dated 20th February, 2006 the Reserve Bank of India, started giving full compensation against price rise, in the shape of dearness relief to employees who retired post 1st November, 2002, as would appear from clause 14.1 of the instructions of 2009 for implementation of their Pension Regulations, 1990.;