JUDGMENT 1. K. Suri, Member—The facts of the case, which are not in dispute, are as follows, The applicant is an ex-serviceman and is presently posted as a clerk in the Zila Sainik Welfare Office, Kulu. He had joked the Army as a Combatant Clerk in 1963 and was released on pension on 1-9-1982. In February 1985, he was selected and nominated by the State Selection Committee, Ex-Servicemens Cell, established under the Directorate of Employment and Training, for appointment as a clerk in Zila Sainik Welfare Office, Kulu. Pursuant to the said selection/nomination, the applicant was appointed as a clerk in the said office in the scale of Rs. 400-600 vide appointment order Annexure A-2, dated 18th February, 1985. He joined the Zila Sainik Welfare Office, Kulu, as a clerk on 26th February, 1985, and is working as such since then. 2. On re-employment in the Zila Sainik Welfare Office, Kulu, the applicants pay was fixed at Rs. 495 p. m. plus Rs. 13.50 as personal pay to be absorbed in future increments. The order of fixation of salary is Annexure A-6, dated 26th July, 1986. Not satisfied with the said fixation of pay, the applicant made a representation, Annexure A-7, which was rejected by the State Government vide its letter of 26th September, 1986, a copy whereof was sent by the Director Sainik Welfare, HP to the Zila Sainik Welfare Officer, Kulu on 12-11-1986 vide Annexure A-9. The applicant is aggrieved by the aforesaid order of fixation of pay, Annexure A-6, as also by the rejection of his representation by the State Government. He claims that under the relevant Rules his pay as a clerk in the pay scale of Rs. 4C0-6G0 was required to be fixed at Rs. 600 p. m. basic with effect from the date of his appointment i. e., 26-2-1985, and prays that the respondents be directed to reflx his pay accordingly and pay him arrears of difference of pay consequent to such re-fixation. 3. We have carefully considered the matter with reference to the relevant Rules and Government orders on the subject. There is no dispute that the applicant is an ex-serviceman who had joined the Army after 1-11-1962 and was released from the Army on pension in the year 1982. 3. We have carefully considered the matter with reference to the relevant Rules and Government orders on the subject. There is no dispute that the applicant is an ex-serviceman who had joined the Army after 1-11-1962 and was released from the Army on pension in the year 1982. His case is therefore, covered under the provisions of the Demobilised Armed Forces Personnel (Reservation of Vacancies in Himachal State Non-Technical Services) Rules, 1972. Rule 5 of the Rules ibid provides that the period of approved military service rendered after attaining the minimum age prescribed for appointment to the service concerned by the candidate appointed against vacancies reserved for the released Indian Armed Forces personnel, shall count towards fixation of pay and seniority in that service. The reserved vacancies are offered first to those ex-servicemen who joined military service on or after 1st day of November, 1962 and whatever vacancies in the reserved quota are filled up by persons who joined military service after 1st November, 1962. The guidelines for fixation of pay of Ex-Military personnel on their re-employment under the Government of Himachal Pradesh have been laid down in the Finance Department O. M. No. Fin (C)-B (7)-(25)/76, dated the 2nd August, 1983, which has been reproduced in Appendix 9 of the "Booklet on Service Matters Relating to Ex-servicemen" issued in December, 1983 by the Government of Himachal Pradesh, Department of Personnel (Appointment-II), These guidelines have been explained and illustrate in it Chapter 3 of the said Booklet, as extracted in Annexure A-15. According to these guidelines, the pay of Ex-servicemen who are not covered under the Demobilised Armed Forces Personnel (Reservation of Vacancies in Himachal State Non-Technical Services) Rules, 1972, is to be fixed as under: "(a) When a Commissioned Officer formerly in Military Service obtains employment ia Civil Department after having been granted military pension he shall continue to draw military pension. His pay on re-employment shall be fixed at the minimum of the time scale of the civil post in which he is re-employed. He shall be allowed to draw usual annual increments till the pay in the civil post plus pension and pension equivalent of other retirement benefits taken together minus Rs. His pay on re-employment shall be fixed at the minimum of the time scale of the civil post in which he is re-employed. He shall be allowed to draw usual annual increments till the pay in the civil post plus pension and pension equivalent of other retirement benefits taken together minus Rs. 250 (Rupees two hundred and fifty) do not exceed the maximum of the scale of the civil post on which re-employed." "(b) When a Junior Commissioned Officer or other ranks formerly in military service obtains employment in Civil Department, after having been granted military pension, he shall continue to draw his pension His pay in the civil post shall be fixed at a stage in the time scale of the civil post which is equal to the basic pay, including dearness pay, Dearness allowance. Interim relief and Additional Dearness Allowance sanctioned upto 12 monthly consumer price Index-320 (1960—100), which have been merged in the new scales introduced from l-l-l97r, drawn at the time , of retirement or if there is no such stage, the stage next below that pay plus personal pay equal to the difference to be absorbed in the next increments, subject to the condition that it shall not in any case be below the minimum and above the maximum of time scale of the civil post in which re-employed. He will be allowed to draw usual annual increments in the time scale of the civil post. Illustration the Date of joining the army 2-10-1961 2. Date of Discharge from the army 10-12-1982 3. Date of joining Civil post 1-7-1983 4. Pay last drawn in the army 540-00 (as defined in tb discharge certificate). 5. Pension — 6. DCRG — 7. Pension equivalent to DCRG _ 8. Gross amount of pension — 9. Pension to be ignored fall 10. Pay to be fixed in the scale of Rs. 400-10-450/15-525/15-600, with effect from 1-7-1983 540.00 11. Date of next increment 1-7-84." 4, The pay of ex-servicemen re-employed against reserved vacancies is to be regulated under sub-rule (1) of Rule 5 of the Rules aforestated, taking into account the approved military service rendered after attaining the minimum age prescribed for appointment to the post to which he is appointed. The illustration given under this head in Chapter 3 ibid is reproduced below 5 Illustration 1. Date of joining the army 2-10-1961 2. The illustration given under this head in Chapter 3 ibid is reproduced below 5 Illustration 1. Date of joining the army 2-10-1961 2. Date of release from the army 10-12-1982 3. Age on the date of enrolment in the army 20 years 4, Approved military service 21 years 5. Pension Rs. 200 6. DCRG Rs. 4050 7. Pension equivalent to DCRG Rs. 20 8. Gross amount of pension Rs. 200+20=220.00 9. Date of appointment in the civil post 6-10-1983 10. Pension to be counted Nil 11. Pay proposed to be fixed w. e. f. 6-10-1983 in the scale of Rs. 400-600 Rs. 600.00 12. Date of next increment 1-10-1984. 5. Even though the applicant falls within the purview of the Demobilised Armed Forces Personnel (Reservation of Vacancies in Himachal State Non-Technical Services) Rules, 1972, having been enrolled in the Army after 1-11-1962, his pay has not been fixed as provided under sub rule (1) of Rule 5 of the said Rules, in the manner indicated in para 4 above for fixation of pay of an ex-serviceman. The only explanation given by the respondents for denying this benefit to the applicant is that the provisions of the Demobilised Armed Forces Personnel (Reservation of Vacancies in Himachal State Non-Technical Services) Rules, 1974 cannot be invoked in the case of appointments made to posts under the Sainik Welfare Department as there is 100% reservation for Ex servicemen in this Department. In our view, this contention is not tenable. The fact that all posts in the Sainik Welfare Department are reserved for Ex-servicemen does not mean that these pasts are to bs treated as unreserved. It only means that every post reserved for ex-servicemen and those appointed thereto are, therefore, entitled to the benefit of seniority and pay fixation as permissible to Ex-servicemen appointed to reserved posts. Para 8 of Chapter I of the Booklet on Service Matters relating to Ex-servicemen, makes it clear that Ex-servicemen sponsored and nominated by the Ex-servicemens Cell in the Directorate of Employment and Training are considered to have been selected for the reserved posts. This para which indicates the procedure to be followed by the Ex-servicemen for vacancies reserved for them reads as under: "The Ex-servicemen shall get their names registered at the nearest Employment Exchanges. This para which indicates the procedure to be followed by the Ex-servicemen for vacancies reserved for them reads as under: "The Ex-servicemen shall get their names registered at the nearest Employment Exchanges. The Employment Exchange will despatch duplicate cards to the Ex-servicemens Cell established in the Directorate of Employment and Training, H. P , Simla. There is a State Selection Committee in this Cell which interviews the Ex-servicemen for various posts and prepares a panel of eligible candidates. The Departments send requisitions in respect of reserved vacancies for Ex-servicemen to the Cell which sponsors the names of Ex-servicemen for the reserved posts. The Ex-servicemen sponsored by this Cell are considered to have been selected for the reserved posts. The Departments have to issue appointment letters to the Ex-servicemen candidates sponsored by the Cell without any interview/test." 6. The Sainik Welfare Department is a department specially and specifically created to look after the Welfare of Ex-servicemen, and it will be highly strange and anomalous if benefits which are admissible to Ex-servicemen on their appointment in other Departments of the Stats Government are denied to them if they are appointed in the Sainik Welfare Department. The applicant was selected by the Ex-servicemen Cell for appointment in the Zilla Sainik Welfare Office, Kulu under the Sainik Welfare Department. Concededly he would have got the benefit of pay fixation under Rule 5(i) of the Rules, if he had been appointed against a reserved vacancy in any other Department of the State Government. We see no reason why the said benefit should be denied to him merely because he was appointed in the Sainik Welfare Department where all posts are reserved for Ex-servicemen, 7. For the reasons stated above, we hold that the applicant is entitled to fixation of pay as provided under Rule 5 (I) of the Demobilised Armed Forces Personnel (Reservation of Vacancies in Himachal State Non-Technical Services) Rules, 1*72, in respect of Ex-servicemen appointed against reserved vacancies. The application is accordingly allowed, and it is directed that the pay of the applicant be refixed accordingly with effect from the date of his appointment with all consequential benefits.