More than 1,700 headmasters working under various Municipal Corporation Delhi (MCD) schools in the city have a good reason to cheer as a division bench of the Delhi high court on Tuesday asked the state government to increase the retirement age of government school headmasters by two years from 60 to 62 like those of teachers.
The division bench comprising Justices Pradeep Nandrajog and Siddharth Mridul said that the headmasters are also entitled to all the benefits granted to teachers as they also teach students besides performing other administrative duties.
The bench passed the order after dismissing a plea by the MCD, which had contended that the benefits granted to teachers cannot be extended to headmasters.
The MCD had moved the high court challenging the Central Administrative Tribunal’s (CAT) direction to raise the retirement age of headmasters from 60 to 62.
Hearing the petition filed by headmasters seeking raise in their retirement age by two years from 60 to 62, like those of teachers, the CAT had said that the headmasters, basically being teachers, continue to work as teachers and teach students till their retirement while performing additional administrative duties.
“In view of the matter, they cannot be denied the benefit of the government of NCR resolution merely because their incidental working is on the administrative side,” the tribunal had said.