The Punjab Privately Managed Recongnised Schools Employees (Security of Service) Act, 1979 Complete Act - Bare Act

THE PUNJAB PRIVATELY MANAGED RECONGNISED SCHOOLS EMPLOYEES (SECURITY OF SERVICE) ACT, 1979

[Act No. 18 of 1979]

PREAMBLE

An Act to provide for security of service to employees of privately managed recognised schools in the State of Punjab and for matters connected therewith and inciden tal thereto.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Punjab in the The thireeth Year of the Re public of India as follows ."

(1) This Act may be entitled the Punjab Privately Managed Recognised Schools Employees (Security of Service) Act, 1979.

(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Punjab.

(3) It shall come into force on such date as the State Government may by notification appoint.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, -

(a) "aided post" means the post on the establishment of a privately managed recognised school against which such a school gets grant-in-aid from the State Gov ernment;

(b) "Director" means the Director of Public Instruction (Schools), Punjab and Di rector of Public Instruction (Primary Education), as the case may be, and in cludes any other officer authorised by him in this behalf;

(c) "employee" means any person employed on an aided post in any privately man aged recognised school for hire or reward (whether the terms of employment be express or implied) and for the purposes of any proceedings under this Act in re lation to any employment dispute includes the person dismissed or removed from service but does not include a part-time employee;

(d) "existing school" means a privately managed recognised school which is in ex istence at the commencement of this Act;

(e) "managing committee" means the body of the individuals who are entrusted with the management of any privately managed recognised school;

(f) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;

(g) "privately managed recognised school" means a school, which is not run by the Central Government, the State Government, a local authority or any other authority designated or sponsored by the Central Government, State Govern ment or local authority, as the case may be, and is recognised by the State Gov ernment for imparting pre-primary, primary middle, high and higher secondary education or training below the degree level, but does not include an institution which imparts technical education;

(h) "School Tribunal" means a School Tribunal constituted under section 8 of this Act.

The minimum qualifications for recruitment and the conditions of service of the employees shall be such as may be prescribed :

Provided that neither the salary nor the rights in respect of leave of absence, age of retirement and pension of an employee of an existing school shall be varied to the disadvantage of such employee :

Provided further that every such employee shall be entitled to opt for the terms and conditions of service as were applicable to him immediately before the com mencement of this Act.

(1) Subject to any rule that may be made in this behalf, no employees shall be dismissed, removed of reduced either in rank or within a time scale nor shall his services be otherwise terminated except with the prior ap proval of the Director.

(2) Any employee who is dismissed, removed or reduced either in rank or within a time scale under sub-section (1) may, within three months from the date of communication to him of the order of such dismissal, removal or reduction, appeal against such order to the School Tribunal.

(3) The managing committee aggrieved with the order of the Director may also appeal to the School Tribunal within a period of three months from the date of communication of the order.

No employee shall be kept under suspension for a pe riod exceeding six months without the prior approval of the Director.

Every employee shall be gov erned by such Code of Conduct as may be prescribed and on the violation of any provision of such Code of Conduct the employee shall be liable to such disciplinary action as may be prescribed.

Notwithstanding anything contained in section 3, the scale of pay and dearness allowance of the employees shall not be less than those of the employ ees of the State Government holding corresponding posts in the schools run by the State Government:

Provided that where the scales of pay and dearness allowance of the employees are less than those of the employees of the State Government holding correspond ing posts in the schools run by the State Government, the Director shall direct the concerned managing committee to bring the same at par with those of such employees of the State Government.

(1) The State Government may, by notification, constitute one or more School Tribunals for the purposes of this Act for such area as may be specified in such notification.

(2) A School Tribunal shall consist of one person only to be appointed by the State Gov ernment.

1[Provided that no person shall hold office as the Presiding Officer of a School Tri bunal beyond the age of sixty- five years]. [(3) A person shall not be qualified for appointment as a Presiding Officer of a School Tribunal unless he is or has been a Judge of the High Court or an Officer of the State Government not below the rank of a Commissioner of a Division.]

(4) The terms and conditions of service of the Presiding Officer of the School Tribunal shall be such as may be prescribed.

(5) If any vacancy, other than a temporary absence, occurs in the office of the Presiding Officer of a School Tribunal, the State Government shall appoint another person in ac cordance with the provisions of this section, to fill the vacancy and the proceedings may be continued before the School Tribunal from the stage at which the vacancy is filled.

(6) The State Government shall make available to the School Tribunal such staff as may be necessary in the discharge of its functions under this Act.

(7) All expenses incurred in connection with the School Tribunal shall be borne by the State Government.

(8) The School Tribunal shall have power to regulate its own procedure in all matters arising out of the discharge of its functions including the place or places at which it shall hold its sittings.

(9) The School Tribunal shall for the purposes of disposal of an appeal preferred under this Act have the same powers as are vested in a court of appeal by the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, and shall also have the power to stay the operation of any order appealed against on such terms as it may think fit.

(10) The order of the School Tribunal made in any appeal preferred under section 4 shall be final.

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See Punjab Act 19 of 1986.

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No civil court shall have jurisdiction in respect of any matter in relation to which the State Government or the Director is empowered by or under this Act to exercise any power, and no injunction shall be granted by any civil court in respect of anything which is done or intended to be done by or under this Act.

No suit, prosecution or other legal pro ceedings shall lie against the State Government or the Director for anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done in pursuance of this Act or any rule made there under.

Without prejudice to any other action, that may be taken under any other provision of this Act, the failure to carry out any orders of the School Tribunal or of any direction of the Director under this Act, the State Gov ernment may take such action as it may think fit including stoppage of the grant-in-aid.

Any person who entrusted with the management of the affairs of a pri vately managed recognised school omits or fails, without any reasonable excuse to carry out any orders made by the School Tribunal shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three months or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees or with both.

(1) Where an offence under this Act has been commit ted by a company, every person who, at the time the offence was committed, was in charge of, and was responsible to, the company for the conduct of the business of the com pany, as well as the company, shall be deemed to be guilty of the offence and shall be' liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly :

Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section shall render any such person li able to any punishment, if he proves that the offence was committed, without his knowledge or that he had exercised all due diligence to prevent the commission of such offence.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), where any offence under this Act has been committed by a company and it is proved that the offence has been com mitted with the consent or connivance of, or is attributed to, any neglect on the part of, any director, manager, secretary or other office of the company, such director, manager, sec retary or other officer shall be deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.

Explanation."

For the purposes of this section."

(a) "company" means any body corporate and includes a firm or other association of individuals; and . .

(b) "director" in relation to a firm, means a partner in the firm.

If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of His Act, the State Government may by order not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, remove the difficulty :

Provided that no such order shall be made after the expiry of a period of two years from the commencement of this Act.

(1) The State Government may, by notification and subject to the conditions of previous publication, make rules for carrying out the purposes of this Act.

(2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely ."

(a) the minimum qualifications for, and method of recruitment and terms and con ditions of service of employees;

(b) the Code of Conduct for the employees and the disciplinary action to be taken for the violation thereof;

(c) the terms and conditions of service of Presiding Officer of the School Tribunal;

(d) any other matter which is to be or may be, prescribed under this Act.

(3) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be, after it is made, before the House of the State Legislature while it is in session for a total period of ten days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions and if, before the expiry of the sessions aforesaid, the House agrees in making any modification in the rule or the House agrees that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect, only in such modified form or be of no effect as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything ' previously done under that rule.

(1) The Punjab Aided Schools (Security of Service) Act, 1969, is hereby repealed.

(2) Notwithstanding such repeal, -

(i) anything done or any action taken under the Act so repealed shall be deemed to have been done or taken under the corresponding provisions of this Act;

(ii) any case pending before the Deputy Commissioner under sub- section (2) or sub-section (4)of section of the Act so repealed shall stand transferred to and be dealt with by director in accordance with the provisions of the Act so re-repealed and the rules made thereunder as if he were Deputy Commissioner;

(iii) until the School Tribunal is constituted under this Act, the Commissioner of a Division shall be deemed to be a School Tribunal constituted under this Act, and any appeal pending before him under sub- section (5) of section 3 of this Act so repealed or any appeal preferred under sub-section (2) or sub-section (3) of sec tion 4 of this Act shall be dealt with by him under the provisions of this Act;

(iv) on the constitution of the School Tribunal under this Act, all appeals which could not be decided by it under the provisions of this Act and rules made there-under.