Inside Raisina Hill: Weekly Wrap From The Power Corridor-XII

As one walks down the Hill along the Rajpath, now renamed Kartavya Path, come other edifices — Rail Bhavan, Krishi Bhavan, and Shashtri Bhavan on one side and Sena Bhavan, Udyog Bhavan and Vanijya Bhavan on the other. The bureaucrats who adorn the offices in these buildings decide on India's economic, social, and industrial policies. There are many tales to be told from the corridors of these grandiose buildings. We let you in on some of them here in this week's edition of "Inside Raisina Hill".

Is Keeping Kaushal Bhawan Escalators Shut During Afternoons Saving Costs?

Kaushal Bhawan, a swank building — a few steps away from the five-star hotel The Leela, Chanakyapuri, showcases everything that New India aims to be — smart, modern and next-gen ready.

The building houses the all-important Ministry of Skill Development. The only glitch: Authorities have now decided to keep the escalator shut in the afternoon. So, visitors, officials and other staff members either have to use the staircase or the elevator. One of the elevators, of course, is reserved for senior officials.

The move has led to murmurs, with many claiming at an internal meeting that this has been done to save costs. The authorities said it was done to discourage people from “loitering around” using the escalator.  

“It is inconvenient at times, especially in these summer months, and to take the elevator, you often have to wait,” a person who visits the office regularly, said.

The building, inaugurated in January 2024 by President Draupadi Murmu, is meant to be a symbol of India's unwavering dedication to empowering the country’s youth through skills.

According to a press statement, the design of the building incorporates the preservation of two towering trees, including a majestic banyan, symbolising environmental responsibility. “This architectural marvel serves as a model for sustainable development, blending progress with the preservation of nature,” it said.

As skill development has been one of the key thrust areas for the Narendra Modi government, important meetings with various stakeholders are regularly held at the premises.

‘JP Sir’ Of Netflix Movie The Diplomat Is IFS Officer Jitendra Pal Singh

Bollywood actor John Abraham-starrer The Diplomat was recently unveiled on the OTT platform Netflix. Abraham played the role of ‘JP Sir’, who helped Indian citizen Uzma Ahmed return from Pakistan.

The character is based on a career diplomat and 2002-batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer Jitendra Pal Singh, who played the key role in solving the real-life crisis, as depicted in the movie.

Earlier this year, Singh was appointed India’s Ambassador to Israel. It is perceived as the government’s appreciation of his ability to handle critical international issues. He succeeded Sanjeev Singla, a 1997-batch IFS officer.

Singh was sent to Tel Aviv at a time when tensions in the Middle East continued to be high, making his role even more significant in strengthening India-Israel relations.   

Previously, seasoned diplomat Singh served as the Joint Secretary in the crucial Pakistan-Afghanistan-Iran (PAI) division of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

As India’s point person for Afghanistan, Singh played an important role in the execution of India’s policy approach towards the Taliban, who captured power in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of US forces.

In November 2024, he met Taliban’s acting defence minister Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob and discussed ways to expand relations between the two sides. This paved the way for Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri's talks with the Taliban regime's acting Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, in Dubai, later in December 2024.

However, one of the most challenging cases in Singh’s career was the rescue of Uzma Ahmed, who had travelled to Pakistan to meet Tahir Ali, a man she had befriended online.

But after reaching there, she was forced into marriage at gunpoint and subjected to abuse. Later, she managed to escape and sought refuge at the Indian High Commission in Islamabad. 

All this took place in May 2017, when Singh was serving as India’s Deputy High Commissioner in Pakistan. Given the status of the Indo-Pak relationship, the rescue of Uzma needed to be taken up carefully to avoid any diplomatic fallout.

A legal battle ensued in the Islamabad High Court, where Tahir Ali challenged her right to leave. Singh and his team worked tirelessly to ensure that Uzma’s rights were upheld, and after a prolonged court proceeding, the verdict was in her favour. 

Now, thanks to Netflix, the story is here for everybody to watch.

Supreme Court Grants OROP For High Court Judges

Earlier this week, the Supreme Court (SC) of India delivered a landmark judgment. After the armed forces, now judges will also be entitled to OROP (One-Rank-One-Pension).

The apex court has ruled for OROP to be granted to all retired High Court judges, including additional judges, irrespective of their date of superannuation and sources of entry.

The top court held that no discrimination can be made in giving the pension to High Court judges, based on when they entered service and whether they are appointed from judicial service or the bar.

“We hold that all the retired judges of the High Court, irrespective of the date on which they were appointed, will be entitled to receive full pension,” the bench comprising Chief Justice of India B R Gavai, Justice A G Masih and Justice K Vinod Chandran ruled in the order.

The SC ruled that the Union of India has to pay full pension of Rs 15 lakh per annum to a retired Chief Justice of the High Court and full pension of Rs 13.50 lakh per annum to a retired High Court judge.

The court has also clarified that the rank of retired High Court judge will also include those who retired as Additional Judge.

The SC has also observed that any denial would amount to a violation of the right to equality under Article 14 of the Constitution. While giving the ruling, the court said that the families of deceased additional High Court judges are also entitled to the same pension and retirement benefits as families of permanent judges.

Delhi Govt To Tackle Stray Cattle Problem

Delhi’s new Chief Minister wants to tackle the problem of stray cows on city streets. She has asked her bureaucrat team to pay immediate attention and find ways to rehabilitate the cows in such a way that citizens of Delhi find the streets free of stray cattle.

She recently convened a meeting by gathering gaushala owners, city officials, and other assorted bovine stakeholders. The simple message was — make Delhi streets free of stray cattle and associated problems.

At present, Delhi’s traffic consists of pedestrians, cars, scooters, the occasional elephant, and around 80,000 cows roaming around the streets. These bovine occupiers often munch on plastic bags, putting their own health at risk.

Needless to say, this bovine population often wanders into rush hour traffic, causing delays and increasing the chances of accidents. On top of all these, many car and two-wheeler drivers stop at the roadside to feed them. That also causes inconvenience.

The reasons behind this bovine population explosion on Delhi streets are varied. The growth of illegal dairies in the city is one. On the other hand, there are few proper cow shelters, resulting in the stray menace. Migration of cows from the neighbouring states adds to the menace.

Being the capital of the country, there is no dearth of policymaking bureaucrats. If the intent is there, this is a problem that can be amicably resolved.

The CM is quite clear about the roadmap. She wants more gaushalas to be built and official grazing zones created. Most importantly, she wants to establish a strict set of rules and their timely implementation.

Hopefully, Delhi’s cow conundrum will be resolved soon.

SC Ruling Paves Way For Notional Pension Increment For Retiring Employees

Good news for central government employees: The Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) has issued an order saying that those retiring a day before the official annual pay hike is announced, will still get an increment for the calculation of their pension.

The DoPT has decided to grant a notional increment on July 1 or January 1 to employees who retire from the service on June 30 or December 31, for calculating their pension benefits, by an Office Memorandum dated May 20, 2025, a copy of which is with The Secretariat.

Rule 10 of the Central Civil Services (Revise Pay) 2006 norms stipulate that the date of annual increment was made uniform by fixing July 1 every year from January 1, 2006.

Subsequently, through Rule 10 (1) of the Central Civil Services (Revise Pay) Rules, 2016, it was decided that there shall be two dates for the grant of increment, namely January 1 and July 1 of every year.

Later, in an order dated September 15, 2017, the Madras High Court allowed the grant of notional increment to a petitioner on the day following the date of his retirement from service for the calculation of pensionary benefits.

This order was implemented by DoPT just for the petitioner. But, the department later received several representations from other employees, who superannuated on June 30 or December 31, claiming similar benefits.

A large number of court cases were also filed on this issue before administrative tribunals, High Courts, and the Supreme Court (SC). In one such case in 2023, the SC had allowed the grant of one annual increment, which the petitioners earned on the last day of their service for rendering services during the preceding year. In 2024, the apex court gave effect to this for all related cases, subject to certain conditions.

The DoPT has now finally decided to grant the notional increment for the calculation of pension benefits for all eligible persons.

(Contributed by Pawan Kumar, Mahua Venkatesh & Jayanta Roy Chowdhury; curated by Abhijit Mukhopadhyay)