Bengaluru: Considering nearly three decades of service put in by the officer, Karnataka High Court has granted limited relief to N Krishnamurthy, a retired Assistant Environment Officer of the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB).
As the same was not implemented, Krishnamurthy again approached the high court, which on April 17, 2026, directed the extension of the service weightage in terms of Board’s June 7, 2023, order. KSPCB had appealed against the said order, arguing that Krishnamurthy does not possess the mandatory educational qualification prescribed under the Cadre and Recruitment Regulations, 1992, as amended, namely, a first-class degree, and therefore was ineligible for appointment to the post of Assistant Environmental Officer.
On Dec 4, 2017, the high court directed the authorities to consider his case by adding 4% weightage in terms of three Govt Orders issued in 2002, 2009 and 2014. In 2020, a division bench permitted him to submit a fresh representation and on June 7, 2023, the Board passed an order extending the benefit of service weightage. He also approached the high court a couple of times, seeking the same relief. However, after perusing the materials on record, the division bench noted that though the statutory requirements governing appointment and regularisation cannot ordinarily be overlooked, the extraordinary length of service rendered by Krishnamurthy and the peculiar circumstances of the present case persuade the court to mould the relief in the interests of justice.