Salaries not paid for two months, Punjabi varsity employees protest outside V-C office

PUTA members added the teachers’ body has to sit on protest every month to get their salaries released. “This trend is not good for the academic atmosphere of the varsity,” the teachers’ body stated.

Furious over the non-payment of salaries for the last two months, members of the Punjabi University Teachers’ Association (PUTA) staged a protest outside the vice-chancellor’s office on Friday.

Punjabi University, which has a monthly salary budget of ₹33 crore, is currently facing a financial crisis. (HT FILE)

PUTA secretary Avneet Pal Singh said the university management has failed to find a way to pay its employees and pensioners amid the financial crisis. “Instead of making stopgap arrangements every month, the university should come up with a concrete solution to deal with the financial crisis,” said the PUTA secretary. “The varsity should put forward the case before the state government and seek a special bailout package at the earliest,” he said.

PUTA members added the teachers’ body has to sit on protest every month to get their salaries released. “This trend is not good for the academic atmosphere of the varsity,” the teachers’ body stated.

It may be mentioned that the financial crisis of the varsity has deepened over the years as it is facing difficulty in meeting even the committed expenses, including payment of monthly salaries and pensions. The total monthly salary budget of the university is ₹33 crore.