About eight to nine lakh teachers in higher educational institutions are set to get a salary hike, with the Centre ready to take the proposal to the Cabinet.
The hike would range from 20-25%, said an official of the Ministry of Human Resource Development who did not wish to be named.
“It is already done and it is ready to go to the Cabinet for approval. Once Cabinet approval comes, teachers in colleges and universities will get their revised salaries,” he said. The lower level — that of assistant professors — is expected to get a hike of 20%, which will go up at the levels of associate professor and professor.
Payment of arrears
However, arrears — which the teachers are supposed to get from the time the UGC pay committee was set up — may come in a staggered manner, given the large number of beneficiaries.
Teachers in colleges and universities acquired a slight edge over the Central government servants in terms of salaries from the time of the Sixth Pay Commission, and this is expected to stay. Much of the difference has been because many entry-level teachers have a Ph.D. or M.Phil, for which they get additional increments.
The revision will benefit employees of the central universities, State universities and government-funded technical universities.
The UGC had set up the pay committee under VS Chauhan. It had recommended that these be at par with the salaries offered to the government employees by the Seventh Pay Commission.
Later, the HRD Ministry set up a committee to review its recommendations.
