The Hindu: Chennai: Saturday,
August 27, 2016.
The Tamil
Nadu State Information Commission (TSIC) has come to the rescue of a retired
employee who served in the Sornapureeswarar and Prasanna Venkatesa Perumal
Temple at Salavakkam in Kancheepuram district for 25 years but was later
disowned by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE)
Department when he made a claim for wage dues and retirement benefits.
Not paid
for 9 years
G. Ezhumalai Pandithar
(61), who retired in July 2015, was not paid salary for the last nine years of
his service and denied retirement benefits.
Since there
was no perceptible action on his representations, he filed a petition under the
Right to Information Act.
Shocked by a
reply from the HR&CE Department that there were no records of his service
in the temple, he moved an appeal before the TSIC.
During the
enquiry, the temple’s Executive Officer produced a letter from the
‘Arangavalar’ of the temple, who held the position for over eight years,
stating that Ezhumalai had never come to the temple during his tenure and that
there were no records about his employment in the temple.
However, the
petitioner submitted his Service Book issued by the temple in 1990 at the time
of his appointment.
His job was
to beat ‘ damaaram ’ and ‘ melam ’ during daily pooja. The book had entries
till 2006, including the signature of the ‘ Arangavalar ’ for many years. The
petitioner’s claim was that he was paid Rs. 50 per month as salary which was
later enhanced to Rs. 75 per month.
After the
death of the ‘ Dharmakarta ’, the payment of salary was stopped abruptly. The
official in-charge persuaded him to continue working promising salary with
arrears after the appointment of a regular ‘ Dharmakarta ’.
But before a
regular ‘ Dharmakarta ’ could be appointed, the HR&CE Department stepped in
and took over administration of the temple. By then the petitioner was due to
retire from service.
The Service
Book produced by the petitioner carried his horoscope as proof of date of
birth, his nomination of his wife to receive any terminal benefits and other
details of his employment.
Compensation
ordered
State Chief
Information Commissioner K. Ramanujam asked the Joint Commissioner HR&CE to
enquire into Ezhumalai’s petition on his pay arrears and terminal benefits.
Pointing out
that the petitioner had to undergo mental agony owing to the blunt denial of
any record relating to him, Mr. Ramanujam ordered the department to pay the
petitioner a compensation of Rs. 10,000.
Department
asked to inquire into Ezhumalai’s petition on his pay arrears and terminal
benefits.
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