1976 (12) TMI 2

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....e described as the employer). With respect to the dearness allowance (D.A.) of the workers under the employer there was a reference No. 70/70 before the Industrial Tribunal at Ahmedabad. The parties had arrived at a settlement of the said industrial dispute and an award was passed in terms of the settlement. According to the award the employer was to pay D. A. to its employees at the rate of the quarterly average cost of living index as settled by the Simla Bureau, popularly known as "All India Consumers Price Index " for the relevant quarter. Thus, for the months of January, February and March, 1974, the rate of D.A. was on the basis of the average cost of living index for the months of July, August and September, 1973, as published by ....

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....force immediately before the date from which such sanction of additional dearness allowance is to take effect. Explanation I.--Where payment of dearness allowance is linked to a cost of living index or any other factor, any automatic payment, after the appointed day, of dearness allowance in consequence of any rise in such cost of living index or in consequence of any change in such other factor shall, notwithstanding the provisions of this clause, be deemed to be the additional dearness allowance ". It is clear under section 2(b) that additional D.A. has to be sanctioned after the appointed day. " Sanctioned " is the heart of the definition clause. Since additional D.A. is defined to mean such D.A. as may be sanctioned from time to t....

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....loyees. The High Court also granted certificate to appeal to this court. It is common knowledge that when D.A. is linked to a cost of living index, actual determination of the D.A. takes place after the index is published and known. The index, therefore, is always of a past period by the yardstick of which D.A. is adjusted. This being the concept about linkage of D.A. to cost of living index, Explanation I makes it clear that when payment of D.A. is linked to a cost of living index any automatic payment after the appointed day of D.A. in consequence of any rise in the cost of living index shall, notwithstanding the provisions of this clause, be deemed to be the additional D.A. The non obstante clause in the Explanation takes note of t....