Ad hoc teachers back before July 16

The dean of colleges has written to all the colleges under Delhi University asking them to re-appoint the ad hoc teachers, who were working till April 30, before the beginning of the new session on July 16. This means that more than 300 ad hoc teachers would be eligible for vacation pay and there would not be any break in their services.

This decision applies to those ad hoc teachers who were appointed before the university passed new guidelines regarding the appointment of ad hoc teachers on December 27, 2007.

“The decision is very significant as the problem arises every year. If the ad hoc teachers are not appointed and do not join on the first day of the new session, they lose out on two months salary,” said Aditya Narayan Misra, president of Delhi University Teachers’ Association (DUTA). “For a teacher who has to support his/her family, this is a significant step,” Misra said.

The university had recently passed guidelines stating that an ad hoc teacher can only be appointed for four months and a selection committee meeting has to be held within that time to appoint a permanent candidate. “If a college does not appoint a committee within four months, then it is not the fault of the ad hoc teacher,” said Misra. He added that in such a case the same teacher should be reappointed.

Often colleges use this rule to exploit ad hoc teachers, said a principal of a North Campus college not wanting to be quoted. “Some principals will not give the appointment on time so that there is a break in service or they will appoint someone else,” he said. “We cannot do away with ad hoc appointments since teachers go on maternity leave, study tours, etc. for short periods of time. We can only appoint ad hoc teachers in their place,” he said.

Academic council members have also objected to certain guidelines set for the appointment of ad hoc teachers. According to the new guidelines, made in order to bring more transparency in the appointment of ad hoc teachers, if a vacancy exists then a selection committee meeting has to be called within four months.

“An advertisement has to be floated, the college has to collect applications, seek a panel and all these things take more than four months,” said an academic council member Rajiv Verma. “The vice-chancellor has promised that he would review the time frame,” Verma said.