JOIN USGuest lecturers seek better pay, to boycott exam work
The Karnataka State Government First Grade College Guest Lecturers’ Association has announced that it will boycott examination and evaluation duty unless the state government holds a meeting with it to discuss their demands.
Members of the association say that the though Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had promised them in March that he would hold a meeting with them in the first week of April, there has been no move in this direction so far.
The 14,000-odd guest lecturers in degree colleges in the state want to be absorbed as permanent lecturers, want better pay and job security.
The association held a hunger strike in February and withdrew it only after the Higher Education minister Basavaraj Rayareddy promised to discuss the matter in the Legislative Council.
Rajashekar Murthy, honorary president of the association, said, “When we were on a strike, everyone requested us to call it off and asked for time. Now, no one is keeping their promise.”
He demanded that the chief minister and higher education minister hold a meeting with the association, their advisor Prof Baragur Ramachandrappa and members of the Legislative Council. Murthy also pointed out that the guest lecturers have not been paid since January.
The call for boycott will affect the university examinations which are to begin in May in the 400-plus first grade colleges in the state.
Tumakuru district president Naganna G K said, “Our term ends when the academic year ends. We have to apply again to be appointed in the next academic year which means we have no job security. We want this practice to be done away with. Guest lecturers with experience should be made permanent faculty.”
He said that at present, guest lecturers who have postgraduate degree qualification get paid Rs 9,500 and those with PhD get Rs 11,500 while permanent faculty are paid between Rs 60,000 and Rs 1.5 lakh.
“Our demand is that our pay should be at least half of that of the permanent lecturers. We do the same amount of work. For exam duty, we get only Rs 100 for a day’s work.
Even workers under the MGNREGA are getting paid more than us lecturers with double and triple degrees,” Naganna added.
DH News Service