- (1.) The petitioners being doctors of Zilla Parishad of North 24 Pargana have filed this writ petition praying for issuance of direction upon the state respondents to treat the petitioners at par with the employees of Health Services of the Government of West Bengal in matters of pay, pensionary benefits and other pecuniary benefits on the basis of the proposition of law evolved by the Hon'ble Supreme Court that the employees doing similar set of work and status should get "equal pay for equal work".
(2.) At the outset three petitioners, appointed by the North 24 Pargana Zilla Parishad have filed this writ application but subsequently some other petitioners have been added by the order of the Court vide Court's order dated 1st December, 2015(CAN 11153/2015). The specific case of the petitioners is that the petitioners have been enjoying the pay scale like the Government employees but other statutory service benefits have been denied to them though even non-Government or Government sponsored organisation employees namely school teachers and employees of Calcutta Municipal Corporation have been enjoying the equal service benefits at par with the Government employees. Pursuant to the recommendation of 5th pay commission of 2009 the revision of pay and allowances of government employees came into effect on and from 1st January, 2006 and all pecuniary benefits in terms of the recommendation of 5th Pay Commission have been extended to the Government employees including the Medical Officers of the State Government. The present petitioners are not getting any benefit in terms of such recommendation of 5th pay commission though on the earlier occasion they were getting the financial benefits in terms of recommendation of earlier pay commission. There is absolutely no parity in payment of gratuity and other retrial benefits in between the present petitioners and the doctors of Health Services working under the Government of West Bengal.
(3.) The petitioners have thus filed this writ petition praying for issuance of necessary direction to the state respondent to extend similar scale of pay to the petitioners at par with the Medical Officers under West Bengal Health Services as per Ropa Rules 2009 and to remove the disparity in payment of gratuity and other retiral benefits on the basis of the proposition of law that the petitioners being placed under similar situation/similar condition of service should get equal pay for equal work.;