First meeting of Second National Judicial Pay Commission held in Mumbai -Governance Now

First meeting of Second National Judicial Pay Commission held in Mumbai

Judicial representatives from Gujarat, Goa and Maharashtra participated in the conference

Geetanjali Minhas | October 3, 2018 | Mumbai

#Second National Judicial Pay Commission #pay scale #judiciary

The first regional conference of the Second National Judicial Pay Commission was held in Mumbai on October 2. The conference was held to take inputs of judicial officers of lower judiciary on pay scale, emolument, service conditions, retirement benefits, post-retirement jobs in judiciary, infrastructure and environment of the lower court and judicial working conditions. Judicial representatives from Gujarat, Goa and Maharashtra participated in the conference.

“By virtue of duties performed by judicial officers they are not equated with state government officers, even though it is essentially a state subject. Though there is revision of pay scales for employees of the central government, judicial officers are governed by old pay scales. We have given an interim report recommending interim pay benefits which are substantially benefiting the judicial officers. They are getting maximum DA of more than 140 percent against the existing pay scales and more than 30 percent of the basic pay,” said, Justice (retd) PV Reddy, chairman, Second National Judicial Pay Commission.

He also said that despite lack of proper infrastructure and utilities in villages and slow response from high courts and state governments, the commission is working expeditiously. Court infrastructure and working conditions have to be congenial for judicial officers and this will be done in the next phase, he added.

The consultation paper on pay scales, allowances and pensions, which will be finalised after similar conferences in the southern, central and eastern parts of the country, will form part of the final report.

After the sixth central pay commission and the first judicial pay commission report, the supreme court in 2002 constituted Padmanabhan Commission to give recommendations on pay scales, allowances and perquisites of judicial officers. The commission’s report was submitted in 2009 and accepted by the SC.

“‘Due to some anomalies, the All India Judges Association filed a writ petition in the SC for constitution of a separate pay commission for judicial officers. The SC in May 2017 allowed constitution of the Second Judicial Pay Commission. In March 2018, in an interim relief the SC directed all the states to implement the interim report of the commission by June 30. While many complied, some states did not implement the order. Thereafter responses of high courts, state governments , judicial officers association, retired and service officers that formed part of consultation paper have been added to report which was submitted in July 2018,” said VK Gupta, member secretary, Second National Judicial Pay Commission.

Commenting on filling up the vacancies and having good judges, retired justice and senior advocate, SC and member of the commission, Basant R said, “While filling up vacancies is not our concern but if the service conditions are attractive enough, we will be able to attract good talent.”

Comments

Other News

‘World’s biggest festival of democracy’ begins

The much-awaited General Elections of 2024, billed as the world’s biggest festival of democracy, began on Friday with Phase 1 of polling in 102 Parliamentary Constituencies (the highest among all seven phases) in 21 States/ UTs and 92 Assembly Constituencies in the State Assembly Elections in Arunach

A sustainability warrior’s heartfelt stories of life’s fleeting moments

Fit In, Stand Out, Walk: Stories from a Pushed Away Hill By Shailini Sheth Amin Notion Press, Rs 399

What EU’s AI Act means for the world

The recent European Union (EU) policy on artificial intelligence (AI) will be a game-changer and likely to become the de-facto standard not only for the conduct of businesses but also for the way consumers think about AI tools. Governments across the globe have been grappling with the rapid rise of AI tool

Indian Railways celebrates 171 years of its pioneering journey

The Indian Railways is celebrating 171 glorious years of its existence. Going back in time, the first train in India (and Asia) ran between Mumbai and Thane on April 16, 1853. It was flagged off from Boribunder (where CSMT stands today). As the years passed, the Great Indian Peninsula Railway which ran the

Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam: How to connect businesses with people

7 Chakras of Management: Wisdom from Indic Scriptures By Ashutosh Garg Rupa Publications, 282 pages, Rs 595

ECI walks extra mile to reach out to elderly, PwD voters

In a path-breaking initiative, the Election Commission of India (ECI), for the first time in a Lok Sabha Election, has provided the facility of home voting for the elderly and Persons with Disabilities in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Voters above 85 years of age and Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) with 4