2026:HHC:29538 IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH, SHIMLA CWP No.8208 of 2025 Decided on: 20.07.2026 Arvind Pal & others … Petitioners Versus State of Himachal Pradesh and others … Respondents Coram Hon’ble Mr. Justice Ajay Mohan Goel, Judge. Whether approved for reporting?1Yes ____________________________________________________ _ For the petitioners: Mr. Dilip Sharma, Senior Advocate, with Mr. Manish Sharma, Advocate. For the respondents: Mr. R.P. Singh, Deputy Advocate General, for respondents No.1 to 3. Mr. Manohar Lal Sharma, Advocate, for respondent No.4. Ajay Mohan Goel, Judge (Oral) By way of this petition, the petitioners have, inter alia, prayed for the following relief:. “That respondents may be directed to grant regular pay scale and allowances to the petitioners on completion of 8 years of contract service under RKS in terms of Notification dated 28.03.2016, Annexure P.4 w.e.f. 01.04.2022, with all consequential benefits including the pay fixation from due date and arrears of salary with interest at market rate on delayed payments.” 2. Learned Senior Counsel for the petitioners submitted that petitioners No.1 to 31 before this Court were initially engaged as Data Entry Operators and petitioners No.32 to 34 were hired as Assistant Project Coordinator, Network Engineer and Hardware 1 Whether reporters of the local papers may be allowed to see the judgment? 2 2026:HHC:29538 Engineers, respectively with the Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital, Shimla through an Outsource Agency in the year 2011. Their recruitment was from DOEACC Society and NIELIT on contract basis. Learned Senior Counsel, by referring to Office Orders dated 26.12.2013 (Annexure P-3 Colly), submitted that in terms of these Office Orders, the petitioners were appointed as Data Entry Operators, Assistant Project Coordinator, Network Engineer and Hardware Engineers, respectively on contract basis for a period of one year with the Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC) and Kamla Nehru State Hospital for Mother and Child through Rogi Kalyan Samiti, w.e.f. 02.12.2013 on the terms and conditions mentioned therein. Learned Senior Counsel submitted that the said appointment of the petitioners on contract basis was in compliance with the decision of the Governing Body of Rogi Kalyan Samiti held on 25.07.2013. Learned Senior Counsel further submitted that in terms of Notification dated 28.03.2016 (Annexure P-4), the State Government decided that employees recruited through various Societies in the Health Department as per prescribed procedure laid down in Recruitment & Promotion Rules (R&P Rules) for the concerned posts will be eligible for conversion into Rogi Kalyan Samiti/Society contract after three years. They would be given regular pay scale after completion of 8 years as on 31st March of the preceding year, subject to the condition that they will continue to 3 2026:HHC:29538 work in the same Society. He submitted that even before the issuance of this Notification, the services of the petitioners stood converted on contract basis in the Rogi Kalyan Samiti. Learned Senior Counsel, thereafter, drew the attention of this Court to Annexure P.7, i.e., proceedings of the 12th meeting of the Governing Body of Rogi Kalyan Samiti, Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital, Shimla, held on 09.02.2022. By referring to Agenda Item No.12.13, learned Senior Counsel submitted that on the Agenda of grant of regular pay scale after completion of 8 years of service in Rogi Kalyan Samiti, it was mentioned in the said proceedings that there were 53 contractual employees, who had completed 8 years of service in Rogi Kalyan Samiti on 31.12.2021 and they had made representations for grant of regular pay scale after completion of 8 years of service, more so, in light of the decision of of Notification dated 28.03.2016. He submitted that a perusal of the said proceedings demonstrates that the Governing Body approved the proposal and recommended that the same be implemented after the approval of the Government. 3. Learned Senior Counsel submitted that the grievance of the petitioners is that despite all this, till date, they are not being granted regular pay scale upon completion of 8 years of service on contract basis in terms of Notification (Annexure P-4), though other persons, who were brought on contract basis by Rogi Kalyan Samiti, 4 2026:HHC:29538 after completion of 8 years of service, are being granted the regular pay scale. To demonstrate this fact, learned Senior Counel referred to Annexure P-5 appended with the petition, which are the order passed by the Rogi Kalyan Samiti, i.e. Rogi Kalyan Samitis of IGMC and Hospital, Shimla, Dr. Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College, Tanda at Kangra as also Dr. Y.S. Parmar Government Medical College, Nahan. 4. On the other hand, the learned Deputy Advocate General referred to the reply filed to the petition and submitted that the petitioners are not entitled for the relief, being prayed for. He submitted that the appointment of the petitioners was not made by Rogi Kalyan Samiti, but was through an Outsource Agency. He further submitted that services of the petitioners were never engaged pursuant to any specific approval of the Government/Department against sanctioned posts. The petitioners have not been paid any salary by the Government and they have been continuously working under the Society and their emoluments have to be made good by the resources being generated by the Society. He further submitted that as far as their claim qua Annexure P-4, Notification dated 28.03.2016 is concerned, the same is not sustainable, because the said Notification nowhere provides for regularization. He further submitted that Annexure P-4 provides for eligibility of conversion of only those employees into Rogi Kalyan Samiti on contract basis, 5 2026:HHC:29538 who were recruited under various Societies in the Health Department, as per the prescribed procedure laid down in the R&P Rules. He submitted that on this count also, the petitioners are not entitled for the benefit of Annexure P-4, because their initial engagement was on outsource basis and they do not fulfill the pre- requisite conditions as are mentioned in Notification dated 28.03.2016. 5. With regard to the conferment of benefit to other persons engaged on contract basis, learned Deputy Advocate General submitted that each case is dependent upon its own facts and the ones, who have been given the benefit were fulfilling the requisite criteria provided in Annexure P-4, hence, they were given the benefits, to which they were entitled. 6. In rebuttal, learned Senior Counsel submitted that the Department is completely misreading Notification (Annexure P-4). He submitted that the petitioners are not claiming regularization and in fact, they are claiming grant of regular pay scale upon completion of 8 years of contract service with Rogi Kalyan Samiti. He drew the attention of the Court to Annexure P-2 and submitted that perusal of this communication demonstrates that when the services of the petitioners were converted to contract basis, the same was done after scrutinizing the eligibility of each and every candidate, which is further evident from the fact that one Mr. Sameer Salhotra, who was 6 2026:HHC:29538 also engaged on outsource basis, was not converted to contract, as he was not fulfilling the eligibility criteria. He, thus, submitted that services of the petitioners were converted into contract basis only, as they were fulfilling the eligibility criteria mentioned in Annexure P-4. Learned Senior Counsel further submitted that had it been a case that the petitioners were not fulfilling the eligibility criteria, then their case would not have been recommended by the Governing Body of Rogi Kalyan Samiti in its meeting held on 09.02.2022. Accordingly, he submitted that as the denial of regular pay scale to the petitioners upon completion of 8 years of service on contract basis is bad in law, the petition be allowed. 7. Learned Counsel appearing for the Rogi Kalyan Samiti submitted that it is a matter of record that the petitioners are serving on contract basis with Rogi Kalyan Samiti and they have completed 8 years of service as such. He further submitted that the case of the petitioners already stands recommended by the Rogi Kalyan Samiti for the grant of higher pay scale on completion of 8 years of service on contract basis, but until and unless the recommendations of the Rogi Kalyan Samiti are approved by the Government, no benefit as is being claimed by the petitioners, can be granted to them by the Rogi Kalyan Samiti. 8. I have heard learned Senior Counsel for the petitioners as also learned Deputy Advocate General and learned Counsel 7 2026:HHC:29538 appearing for Rogi Kalyan Samiti. 9. It is not in dispute that though the petitioners were initially engaged as Data Entry Operators, Assistant Project Coordinator, Network Engineer and Hardware Engineers in Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital, Shimla on outsource basis, subsequently their services were converted to contract basis in Rogi Kalyan Samiti. This is evident from the documents appended with the petition as Annexures P-2 and P-3, as also the reply filed by Rogi Kalyan Samiti to the writ petition, wherein these facts have not been disputed. 10. Notification dated 28.03.2016 (Annexure P-4) is not in dispute, which reads as under:- “The Governor, Himachal Pradesh, is pleased to order that the employees recruited under various societies in the Health Department as per prescribed procedure laid down in the R&P rules for the concerned post will be eligible for conversion into RKS/Society contract after three years and they will be given regular pay scales after completion of eight years as on 31 March of the preceding year subject to the condition that they will continue to work in the same society.” 11. According to the petitioners, despite being covered by the said Notification and the recommendation made by the Governing Body of the Rogi Kalyan Samiti in terms of Annexure P-7, dated 09.02.2022, needful is not being done to grant regular pay 8 2026:HHC:29538 scale to the petitioners on completion of 8 years of service on contract basis in Rogi Kalyan Samiti. 12. As per the Rogi Kalyan Samiti, the cases of the petitioners stand duly recommended by them, but they are awaiting the nod of the Government to do the needful. 13. According to the Government, the petitioners are not covered by Notification dated 28.03.2016, because they do not fulfill the eligibility conditions mentioned therein, nor were they engaged at any stage by the State Government, in terms of the procedure prescribed in the R&P Rules. 14. A perusal of Annexure P-2, i.e. proceedings of the meeting of Screening Committee, inter alia for hiring the services of Data Entry Operators, Assistant Project Coordinator, Network Engineer and Hardware Engineer directly through the Rogi Kalyan Samiti, held on 24.12.2013, demonstrates that it was decided to hire services of Project Coordinator, Assistant Project Coordinator, Hardware Engineer, Networking Engineer and Data Entry Operator, directly through Rogi Kalyan Samiti, IGMC. The proceedings further demonstrate that in terms thereof, except one Shri Sameer Salhotra, other incumbents, which includes all the petitioners herein, were found eligible for being engaged as Data Entry Operators, Assistant Project Coordinator, Network Engineer and Hardware Engineer, as it was found that their qualifications were in-conformity with the 9 2026:HHC:29538 eligibility criteria, as per the criteria in the R&P Rules. These proceedings further demonstrate that the services of the workers whose names were mentioned in Annexure ‘A’, were recommended by the Screening Committee, for being hired through Rogi Kalyan Samiti. This culminated into the issuance of Annexure P-3 (Colly), in terms whereof, the petitioners were engaged on contract basis through Rogi Kalyan Samiti in Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital, Shimla against the posts of Data Entry Operators, Assistant Project Coordinator, Network Engineer and Hardware Engineer. 15. Therefore, Annexure P-2 and Annexure P-3 (Colly) satisfy the condition of Notification dated 28.03.2016, that the persons had to be recruited through various Societies in the Health Department and as per the procedure laid down in the R&P Rules, because in terms of Office Order Annexure P-3, the petitioners stood appointed on contract basis through Rogi Kalyan Samiti and as pursuant to the said engagement of theirs on contract basis, they were to continue working in the same Society, they had been continuing to work as such till date. Therefore, this condition mentioned in Notification dated 28.03.2016 is also fulfilled. 16. In terms of Annexure P-7, i.e. proceedings of the Governing Body of Rogi Kalyan Samiti, IGMC, Shimla, dated 09.02.2022, the case of the petitioners for grant of regular pay scale 10 2026:HHC:29538 on completion of 8 years of contract service in Rogi Kalyan Samiti stands duly recommended. In fact, this was re-affirmed again by the Governing Body of the Rogi Kalyan Samiti in its meeting held on 08.12.2023, copy whereof is appended with the petition as Annexure P-8 and relevant Agenda whereof is reflected as Agenda Item No.13.07. 17. Therefore, in light of above discussion, the stand of the Department that the petitioners are not entitled for the benefit of Notification dated 28.03.2016, is not sustainable in the eyes of law. The contention of the State that the petitioners were not engaged by the Department or their engagement was not in terms of R&P Rules has no force in law. This is for the reason that in terms of Notification dated 28.03.2016, it was not a condition precedent that the persons who are to be given the benefit of this Notification, should have been recruited by the Department itself. In fact, their recruitment was to be through a Society in the Health Department. The petitioners were recruited on contract basis through the Rogi Kalyan Samiti, which is a Society in the Health Department. 18. It is also clearly borne out from the record that other persons, who were recruited along with the petitioners in various Medical Colleges, have been given the benefit of said Notification. This has not been disputed by the State in its reply also. Under these circumstances, the discrimination which has been meted out to the 11 2026:HHC:29538 petitioners is totally unsustainable in the eyes of law. The petitioners indeed were entitled for the grant of regular pay scale on completion of 8 years of service on contract basis and denial thereof to the petitioners on the grounds, as are taken in the reply by the State are not sustainable. 19. Accordingly, this petition is allowed. The act of the Department of not granting benefit of regular pay scale to the petitioners on completion of 8 years of contract service is held to be bad in law. A mandamus is issued to the respondents to grant regular pay scale to the petitioners of the posts being manned by them upon completion of 8 years of service on contract basis with Rogi Kalyan Samiti. 20. It is clarified that this Court is not making any observation with regard to the regularization of the petitioners and it is only directing the respondents to pay to the petitioners the regular pay scale of the posts being manned by them, upon completion of 8 years of service on contract basis, in terms of Notification dated 28.03.2016 from the due date, i.e. 01.04.2022, i.e. the date on which they complete 8 years of service on contract service. 21. With the aforesaid observations, this petition is disposed of. The respondents are directed to pay the regular pay scale to the petitioners from the month of August, 2026 onwards. As far as arrears are concerned, it is directed that in case arrears in favour of 12 2026:HHC:29538 the petitioners are paid to them within a period of three months from today, then the same shall not entail any interest, but if needful is not done within three months, then the petitioners shall be paid simple interest @ 6% per annum from the date of the filing of the writ petition. Pending miscellaneous application(s), if any also stand disposed of accordingly. (Ajay Mohan Goel) Judge July 20, 2026 (Rishi)