Government, aided college teachers protest to press long-pending demands

The teachers are planning to protest outside the offices of the Regional Joint Directorates of Higher Education on October 18, and on October 30, they will start hunger strikes at the directorates

Teachers in government and aided colleges have launched protests demanding that the government implement the order issued on January 11, 2021 towards granting some of their demands. On Tuesday, they launched their agitation by raising slogans outside the college gates across the State. They plan to escalate it further next week.

The teachers, under the Joint Action Council of College Teachers (JAC), are seeking fulfilment of their demands, including transfer counselling, long-pending promotions from the post of associate professor to professor and resolving grade pay anomalies.

The JAC pointed out that the Career Advancement Scheme had not been implemented for teachers appointed since 2006 in government and aided arts and science colleges, whereas university teachers and engineering and polytechnic college teachers had received their dues.

“Based on the University Grants Commission’s (UGC) recommendations, the government had issued G.O. 5, and it should be implemented,” a JAC member said.

“Transfer counselling has not been conducted for four years, whereas the School Education Department has completed the process. As many as 60 government colleges are functioning without principals,” said T. Veeramani, general secretary of the Tamil Nadu Government Arts and Science College Teachers’ Association.

The teachers are planning to protest outside the offices of the Regional Joint Directorates (RJDs) of Higher Education on October 18, and on October 30, they will conduct hunger strikes at the RJDs. They plan to picket the Assembly when it is in session, Mr. Veeramani added.

DCE issues circular

Meanwhile, Director of College Education M. Eswaramoorthy has issued a circular to college principals urging them to ensure guest lecturers give up their protest.

Those who desist must be removed from their post and must not be re-employed. Nor should they be given experience certificates, the DCE said. The guest lecturers had launched a protest on Monday demanding priority in regularisation of their posts.

Clarification released

In a later development, Higher Education Secretary D. Karthikeyan clarified that the government had not ordered the removal of guest lecturers.

“We are going to recruit 4,000 regular assistant professors,” he said, urging the guest lecturers to write the test. They will be given a concession of 15 marks in the 30 marks allocated for personal interview.

A Government Order to that effect will be issued shortly, he said. “Preference will be given to the serving guest lecturers in recruitment. Further, 1,875 new guest lecturers will be appointed in addition to the serving ones. Therefore, a few guest lecturers who are on strike may quickly return to their jobs and get the benefits under the new recruitment,” Mr. Karthikeyan added.