Over 200 teachers of govt-aided colleges hold candle march

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, October 10

Over 200 teachers of the government-aided colleges today took out a candle march in the city under the banner of Punjab and Chandigarh College Teachers Union as a protest against the anti-higher education policies of the state government in past.

Speaking on the occasion, General Secretary of the organisation Prof Sukhdev Singh Randhawa said the state government was apathetic towards the demands of the state college teachers.

Jalandhar district president Dr Dhawan said the college and university teachers were holding a chain hunger strike under the banner of PFUCTO at Punjab University, Chandigarh, since September 5 against the callous attitude of state government towards higher education institutes.

Speaking to the press, District General Secretary of PCCTU Dr SS Bains said the demands of the teachers included early implementation of Seventh Pay Commission Recommendations for college teachers and Service Security Act for unaided faculty. He said Punjab was the only state in India that had not implemented new pay scales for college and university teachers and also the that lack of service security act had led to sense of insecurity for unaided college teachers though it didn’t put any financial burden on the government.

He also appealed to the government to revoke its decision of de-linking college teachers’ pay scales with UGC pay scales as this had led to a sense of insecurity and desperation among teachers.