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Teachers Day bonanza: CM announces 7th pay scales for college, varsity teachers from Oct 1
Implementation of the UGC 7th pay commission has been a major demand of college and university teachers in Punjab; CM gives nod to hiring guest faculty to meet staff shortage
In a bonanza for Punjab teachers on Teachers’ Day, chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday announced that his government will implement University Grants Commission’s seventh pay scales in colleges and universities from October 1 while the cabinet approved a policy for regularising the services of adhoc, contractual, and temporary teachers across the state.
Making the announcement at Anandpur Sahib, the CM said, “The University Grants Commission (UGC) 7th pay commission will be implemented in all colleges and universities in Punjab from October 1, 2022.”
Striking an emotional chord with the teachers, Mann said he was the son of a teacher and was well aware of the problems faced by them.
Implementation of the UGC 7th pay commission has been a long-pending demand of college and university teachers in Punjab. Mann further said to meet the shortage of teachers, an approval has been given to hire guest faculty teachers in all government colleges in the state, adding a notification in this regard will be issued soon. He also announced an increase in the pay of the guest faculty teachers who have been teaching in colleges for the last 18-20 years.
Calling teachers the “architects of the nation”, the CM expressed hope that they will continue to serve the students with missionary zeal to make Punjab a front-runner state in the country.
Regularisation policy to benefit over 9,000 employees
Earlier in the day, the council of ministers approved a policy for regularising services of adhoc, contractual, and temporary teachers benefitting more than 9,000 employees of the state government.
Disclosing details, a spokesperson of the chief minister’s office said that previously, various appointments to ‘Group C’ and ‘Group D’ level posts in government had been made on contract or temporary basis. “Some such employees have now put in more than 10 years and given the prime years of their life to the service of the state. The cabinet opined that now at this stage, to relieve these employees will be unjustified,” he added.
“The state government has taken a policy decision to continue the services of teachers, who fulfill the eligibility conditions, till the age of 58 years by placing them in a special cadre. This policy, which will benefit more than 9,000 employees, has been framed only in relation to group C and group D posts of state department,” adds the spokesperson.
For regularisation of services, an employee should have worked on adhoc, contractual, or temporary basis for a continuous period of minimum ten years till the issuance of present policy and must have possessed the requisite qualifications and experience for the post in terms of rules, if any, at the time of placement in the special cadre.
The work and conduct of the applicant must have remained satisfactory as per the assessment of the department/employer during the period of 10 years service.
However, the policy will not be applicable to a person who has been engaged in an honorary capacity or on a part-time basis or had attained the age of superannuation or had resigned on his own or had not been retained by the department or had been engaged on outsourced basis or is on an incentive-based engagement or does not possess the requisite qualifications and experience for the post prescribed under the service rules, if any, at the time of placement in the special cadre or had been engaged or continues in service as an interim orders arrangement.
For the purpose of grant of continuation to these employees, they will be placed on a post, which shall not be a cadre post, by creating special cadre of posts. They will be treated as a fresh appointee.
