Recruitment of Teachers in Unaided Local Body Schools Must Be as Assistant Teachers on Regular Pay Scales.

The Petitioners, all B.Ed. graduates who cleared the Teachers’ Aptitude and Intelligence Test (TAIT), applied for recruitment as Assistant Teachers through the Pavitra Portal.

An advertisement dated 23.01.2024 sought recruitment for Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) schools.

The Government’s Select List dated 25.02.2024 and the General Merit List specifically categorized the Petitioners under "unaided" posts with a prescribed pay scale of S-14 (Rs. 38,600–1,22,800).

However, on 20.06.2024, the PCMC issued appointment orders designating them as "Shikshan Sevaks" on a fixed monthly honorarium of Rs. 18,000 for a three-year probationary period.

The PCMC further compelled the Petitioners to sign indemnity bonds/undertakings accepting these terms.

Whether the Municipal Corporation can appoint candidates as "Shikshan Sevaks" on a fixed honorarium when they were selected for "unaided" posts carrying a regular pay scale.

Whether the "Rule of Waiver" applies to candidates who signed undertakings accepting inferior appointment terms due to a lack of bargaining power.

The Court applied the Shikshan Sevak Scheme formulated under Government Resolutions (GR) dated 13.10.2000 and 26.04.2006, which stipulates that the scheme is mandatory for 100% grant-in-aid schools but inapplicable to unaided or partially aided establishments where teachers must be appointed on regular pay scales.

The Court also invoked the doctrine against "contracting out" of statutory or legal entitlements and the principle that a "model employer" cannot extract undertakings under economic duress or coercion.

The Court observed that the recruitment advertisement and the General Merit List explicitly promised the Petitioners the S-14 pay scale as Assistant Teachers in unaided sections.

The Court rejected the PCMC’s reliance on GR dated 07.02.2019, noting that once a candidate is selected for a specific post with a defined pay band, the appointment order cannot deviate from those terms.

Regarding the undertakings signed by the Petitioners, the Court held that these were obtained under "coercion and duress" from unemployed youth with no bargaining power.

It characterized the Corporation’s act as "pulling a fast one" and "unethical," concluding that a contract contrary to the terms of the recruitment process amounts to illegal "contracting out."

The Court held that the Petitioners are entitled to be designated as Full-Time Assistant Teachers in the S-14 pay matrix from their original date of appointment (21.06.2024).

The PCMC was directed to: (i) issue fresh appointment orders within ten working days; and (ii) pay the differential salary (after deducting the Rs. 18,000 already paid) within forty-five days, failing which the arrears will carry 5% per annum simple interest.