Fiscal woes: Punjabi varsity drags feet in finalising budgetary proposals

In its budgetary allocation for 2019-2020, the university had proposed a budget of ₹717 crore against an income of ₹344 crore

Punjabi University, which is facing an acute financial crisis, is yet to finalise budgetary proposals for the upcoming financial year.

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The finance committee was to hold a meeting on Monday, however, it was postponed. An officials, on condition of anonymity, said senior functionaries of the department had not been told the reason behind rescheduling the meet.

“We had worked hard to prepare the financial proposals. However, they will only be finalised once the committee has given the go-ahead,” an official said.

The varsity had demanded a financial bailout package of ₹300 crore from the state. However, the state government’s budgetary proposals came as a disappointment for the cash-strapped university as no special grant was announced.

In its budgetary allocation for 2019-2020, the university had proposed a budget of ₹717 crore against an income of ₹344 crore. The deficit was pegged at ₹373 crore. The university also has an overdraft of ₹140 crore, which is expected to touch ₹150 crore by the end of the year.

Punjabi varsity’s overall income had declined from ₹445.35 crore in 2016-17 to ₹409.08 crore in 2017-18. It further declined to ₹344 crore in the ongoing financial year.

Registrar professor Manjit Singh Nijjar said the meeting will be held soon: “The meeting was cancelled as other key meetings had been scheduled for Monday. The budgetary proposals have already been prepared by finance department. The finance committee will discuss the same in detail before finalising it.”

Once the finance committee gives its assent, the university will present its budget before the end of the financial year.

Faculty at loggerheads

Faculty members at Punjabi University are at loggerheads over the protest being organised by Punjabi University Teachers Association (PUTA) for the past four days.

PUTA is protesting against the management for its failure to improve the university’s financial condition. They have also demanded that the practice of ad hoc recruitment be ended, pending arrears of dearness allowances be cleared and discrepancies in implementation of the national-pension scheme be corrected.

On Monday, the Progressive Teacher’s Alliance (PTA) held a meeting under the chairpersonship of its conveners professor Balwinder Singh Tiwana and professor Devinder Singh, who alleged that the PUTA leadership, the president and secretary in particular, were hand in glove with the vice-chancellor (V-C).

Tiwana alleged that the union leaders in question were eyeing administrative posts for themselves and those close to them.

“PUTA is working autocratically. They have not called for a meeting of PUTA’s executive committee and general body. This indicates that they are not taking teacher’s demands seriously and want adjustments through hobnobbing with the V-C,” Tiwana accused.

Countering Tiwana’s allegation, PUTA president professor Jaswinder Singh Brar said the allegations were baseless and frivolous: “The phrase ‘pot calling the kettle black’ comes to mind,” Brar said, adding, “Tiwana, who is going to retire in June, has enjoyed all administrative positions in his career. He failed as an examination controller.”

Brar in turn accused Tiwana of trying to sabotage the democratically elected PUTA protest at the behest of university authorities.