Blurb-Say they have been advised to remain in respective offices and departments and not to use staff room
In a move that has sparked tensions, the staff at Lajpat Rai DAV College, Jagraon are preparing to protest a new directive from the college principal. The circular, issued on August 23, advises both teaching and non-teaching staff to remain in their respective departments and offices, rather than gathering in the college staff room.
Punjab and Chandigarh College Teachers’ Union (PCCTU) district president Chamkaur Singh said that the staff rooms are meant for discussions and debates and no teacher could be restricted or advised not to use staff rooms. “This will not promote teamwork and moreover, in large campuses, this could be understood as the departments are at greater distances but in colleges, a teacher simply cannot be restricted to his or her own department. The staff members will hold a protest on Tuesday and one of our representatives will join the protest too,” he added.
Panjab University area secretary and PCCTU member Raman Sharma said that chapter seven of PU calendar volume three states that a college must have a staff room, and the principal has no moral right to ask the staff members not to visit the staff room.
The faculty members of the college added that the college this year will be hosting a youth festival, despite the lack of funds available. They mentioned that the staff members who are employed on self-financed posts have not been paid for the past 10 months, along with 25% pending arrears for the staff members on grant-in aid posts. “On August 12, at a meeting in Khalsa College, Sidhwan Khurd, related to youth festival, we were informed by the last year’s host college that PU gave a fund of ₹9 lakhs, from the total expenditure of ₹15 lakhs and the rest was borne by the college. Our college is already dealing with a fund crunch and all we are asking is to defer it for one more year, and we protest this decision too,” said one of the faculty members.
{{/usCountry}}The faculty members of the college added that the college this year will be hosting a youth festival, despite the lack of funds available. They mentioned that the staff members who are employed on self-financed posts have not been paid for the past 10 months, along with 25% pending arrears for the staff members on grant-in aid posts. “On August 12, at a meeting in Khalsa College, Sidhwan Khurd, related to youth festival, we were informed by the last year’s host college that PU gave a fund of ₹9 lakhs, from the total expenditure of ₹15 lakhs and the rest was borne by the college. Our college is already dealing with a fund crunch and all we are asking is to defer it for one more year, and we protest this decision too,” said one of the faculty members.
{{/usCountry}}However, principal Anuj Kumar Sharma remarked, “The circular was issued for the welfare of the students and quality measures. Staff members have been advised to sit in their departments so that it is convenient for the students to reach out in case of queries. This is only for the members who spend long hours sitting in the staff room, and the decision to host the youth festival is of the management for which 100% funds are provided by the University.”