Saturday, September 26, 2009
The pay revision along the lines of the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations will benefit an estimated 18,630 university and college teachers. The beneficiaries of the retirement age enhancement will, however, be much less.
Announcing the Cabinet decisions, Home Minister V S Acharya said the revised pay scales for teachers would be implemented with retrospective effect from January 1, 2006.
The hike for teachers will range between Rs 10,000 and Rs 35,000 per month depending on the seniority and the positions they hold. The Cabinet also met the long-pending demands of junior doctors, who had threatened to go on indefinite strike.
Nearly 4,000 doctors are employed with the health department. The Cabinet approved allowances between Rs 4,000 and Rs 12,500 a month for the government doctors.
The hike for doctors (ranging between Rs 3,000 and Rs 8,000 per month) would be with immediate effect. The decision to hike the pay scale of university/college teachers is in line with the UGC-constituted Chaddha Committee recommendation.
The Chaddha committee had recommendations implementation of the revised UGC scales for college teachers. According to education department sources, a total of 18,630 lecturers, including 6,740 faculty members in government colleges, 9,650 in private aided colleges and 2,360 in university colleges, will benefit from the decision.
The teachers’ wage bill for the government will shoot up from the present Rs 590 crore to Rs 815 crore per annum, sources added. The Centre will bear 80 per cent of the revised salary bill from January 1, 2006 to March 2010. Later on, the State Government will have to foot the entire bill.
Acharya said the arrears of Rs 954 crore would have to be paid as the difference for a period of 51 months from January 1, 2006, to March 31, 2010. The Union Government will bear 80 per cent (Rs 763 crore) of the salary bill, and the remaining 20 per cent (Rs 191 crore) will be borne by the State Government from January 1,
2006, to March 2010. The date of release of the first instalment of arrears as well as the revised salary will be announced later.
Source : Deccan Herald
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Hunger stir by govt college teachers
Bhopal, Sept 21:
The agitation of government college teachers, who were on strike from September 5, seems to have weakened. Now they have decided to start relay hunger strike from Tuesday. However the university teachers are not in favour of it.
The government college and university teachers seems to have decided to go on different paths in agitation against non-implementation 6th Pay Commission benefits as recommended by the University Grants Commission (UGC). The college teachers have been agitating under the banner of College Teachers Joint Action Committee. The committee had announced to start hunger strike in serial order in at district and divisional levels from September 22. It is learnt that the university teachers are not joining the hunger strike.
It is learnt that the Higher Education Minister Archana Chitnis and officials of the Higher Education department have reportedly agreed to pay UGC scale to university teachers by September 24. The government has made it clear that it has no problem to give UGC scale to university teachers. The government just has to agree to it and the financial burden is the responsibility of universities.
The state government would continue to give subsidy to the universities as usual but no extra amount would be given for UGC scale. It is learnt that almost all universities have agreed to this and are waiting for the government to issue directives pertaining to UGC scale. This may be the reason why the university professors are keeping away from the hunger strike. As promised by the government they would wait till September 24 and the promises were not fulfilled till then, they would continue the agitation.
On the other hand the state government has not made any assurance to the government college teachers. The higher education minister had assured to consider their demands sympathetically but the teachers are waiting for the government to issue proper orders to withdraw agitation. The state government will not have to bear any financial burden while implementing UGC scale to university professors. But the government had already said it is not in a position to implement it. Hence, even after teaching in government colleges has come to a standstill for over a fortnight the government has not taken any decision. The college teachers are not worried over the attitude of the university teachers. They said the university teachers were not with them and had participated in vehicle rally only so far.
Hunger strike from today
In the first stage hunger strike on serial basis would be organised in divisional and district headquarters. Dr ML Soni, Dr NR Das, Dr Ajay Agrawal, Dr Chandna Basu, Dr Rajesh Khare, Dr Abha Pandey, Dr Sunita Kourav, Dr Ushakiran Gupta, Dr NB Prabhakar and Dr Anil Mahagai would sit on hunger strike on Tuesday in the state capital
The agitation of government college teachers, who were on strike from September 5, seems to have weakened. Now they have decided to start relay hunger strike from Tuesday. However the university teachers are not in favour of it.
The government college and university teachers seems to have decided to go on different paths in agitation against non-implementation 6th Pay Commission benefits as recommended by the University Grants Commission (UGC). The college teachers have been agitating under the banner of College Teachers Joint Action Committee. The committee had announced to start hunger strike in serial order in at district and divisional levels from September 22. It is learnt that the university teachers are not joining the hunger strike.
It is learnt that the Higher Education Minister Archana Chitnis and officials of the Higher Education department have reportedly agreed to pay UGC scale to university teachers by September 24. The government has made it clear that it has no problem to give UGC scale to university teachers. The government just has to agree to it and the financial burden is the responsibility of universities.
The state government would continue to give subsidy to the universities as usual but no extra amount would be given for UGC scale. It is learnt that almost all universities have agreed to this and are waiting for the government to issue directives pertaining to UGC scale. This may be the reason why the university professors are keeping away from the hunger strike. As promised by the government they would wait till September 24 and the promises were not fulfilled till then, they would continue the agitation.
On the other hand the state government has not made any assurance to the government college teachers. The higher education minister had assured to consider their demands sympathetically but the teachers are waiting for the government to issue proper orders to withdraw agitation. The state government will not have to bear any financial burden while implementing UGC scale to university professors. But the government had already said it is not in a position to implement it. Hence, even after teaching in government colleges has come to a standstill for over a fortnight the government has not taken any decision. The college teachers are not worried over the attitude of the university teachers. They said the university teachers were not with them and had participated in vehicle rally only so far.
Hunger strike from today
In the first stage hunger strike on serial basis would be organised in divisional and district headquarters. Dr ML Soni, Dr NR Das, Dr Ajay Agrawal, Dr Chandna Basu, Dr Rajesh Khare, Dr Abha Pandey, Dr Sunita Kourav, Dr Ushakiran Gupta, Dr NB Prabhakar and Dr Anil Mahagai would sit on hunger strike on Tuesday in the state capital
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Stories of education dept bribes
MUMBAI: Fr Gregory Lobo, secretary of the Archdiocesan Board of Education which runs 150 Catholic schools in Mumbai, has unwittingly opened a can of
worms by going on record with his accusations of bribery and corruption against the education department. Since his courageous move, TOI has received a steady stream of phone calls from other educationists with similar stories to tell.
Fr Lobo had accused the auditors of the education department in Mumbai of demanding a bribe of Rs 300 per teacher in order to sanction sixth pay commission salaries. And now educationists in Thane are crying foul over similar incidents.
Fr Wilson Rebello, director of the Vasai diocese education board, which is in charge of 61 Catholic schools in Vasai and nine surrounding talukas, has said auditors in the Thane district education department demanded a hefty bribe to sanction sixth pay commission salaries. "I've received several complaints from teachers who say the Thane district auditor is demanding a bribe of Rs 600 per teacher to sanction the revised salaries of secondary school teachers, and Rs 500 for primary school teachers,'' said Fr Rebello.
He's not the only one with complaints of corruption in the Thane education department. The School Teachers' Association of Thane has written to some 400 schools in the district, including institutions in Bhayandar, Ulhasnagar and Dahanu, asking them not to cough up the money for such bribes. "The department is asking for Rs 600 per head in order to sanction the revised pay scales. We've appealed to schools not to pay the bribe,'' said Santosh Pawde, president of the association. Pawde is a teacher in Dahanu.
On Wednesday, when TOI first reported charges of corruption against the department, several educationists spoke out against the department. These include Mumbai Coaching Class Owners' Association president Jagdish Walawalkar and PTA United Forum president Arundhati Chavan.
While the spotlight is at present on corruption at the lower levels in the education department, Chavan says the problem starts at the Mantralaya level and trickles down. State education minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil has promised to carry out an enquiry into the matter.
worms by going on record with his accusations of bribery and corruption against the education department. Since his courageous move, TOI has received a steady stream of phone calls from other educationists with similar stories to tell.
Fr Lobo had accused the auditors of the education department in Mumbai of demanding a bribe of Rs 300 per teacher in order to sanction sixth pay commission salaries. And now educationists in Thane are crying foul over similar incidents.
Fr Wilson Rebello, director of the Vasai diocese education board, which is in charge of 61 Catholic schools in Vasai and nine surrounding talukas, has said auditors in the Thane district education department demanded a hefty bribe to sanction sixth pay commission salaries. "I've received several complaints from teachers who say the Thane district auditor is demanding a bribe of Rs 600 per teacher to sanction the revised salaries of secondary school teachers, and Rs 500 for primary school teachers,'' said Fr Rebello.
He's not the only one with complaints of corruption in the Thane education department. The School Teachers' Association of Thane has written to some 400 schools in the district, including institutions in Bhayandar, Ulhasnagar and Dahanu, asking them not to cough up the money for such bribes. "The department is asking for Rs 600 per head in order to sanction the revised pay scales. We've appealed to schools not to pay the bribe,'' said Santosh Pawde, president of the association. Pawde is a teacher in Dahanu.
On Wednesday, when TOI first reported charges of corruption against the department, several educationists spoke out against the department. These include Mumbai Coaching Class Owners' Association president Jagdish Walawalkar and PTA United Forum president Arundhati Chavan.
While the spotlight is at present on corruption at the lower levels in the education department, Chavan says the problem starts at the Mantralaya level and trickles down. State education minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil has promised to carry out an enquiry into the matter.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Education dept seeks bribes to clear salary hikes
MUMBAI: The secretary of the Archdiocesan Board of Education (ABE), Fr Gregory Lobo, has gone on record on the bribes that are being charged by
education department officials in Mumbai. The Catholic church runs 150 schools across the city.
“With the new Sixth Pay Commission salaries in place for teachers, the clerical staff at our schools have worked overtime to get all the necessary paper work in place so that teachers get the revised salaries. However, they needed to get the papers stamped and signed by the education department, for which the department auditor for South Mumbai asked for a bribe of Rs 300 per teacher, which works out to around Rs 30,000 a school,’’ Fr Lobo said, adding he had got many such complaints.
He said the schools had shouldered the entire administrative load. The education department only had to stamp the documents.
“The staff at our schools are afraid to go on record about this as they feel they will be harassed. But I have no problem doing so. I will bear the consequences,’’ Fr Lobo, a 70-year-old priest who has been at the helm of the ABE for the last 10 years, said. Previously, he has been the principal of ABE schools for 20 years.
TOI contacted V K Wankhede, Mumbai’s deputy director of education, over the matter and he acknowledged he had just received a couple of letters from schools complaining about the issue.
Wankhede then called the education department auditor for South Mumbai, Prabhakar Sawant, to his office to inquire into the matter. Sawant swore that no such incident had occurred. “Mein kasam khata hoon ki aisa kuchh nahin hua (I swear that nothing like that has happened),’’ he said, speaking to TOI over the phone
education department officials in Mumbai. The Catholic church runs 150 schools across the city.
“With the new Sixth Pay Commission salaries in place for teachers, the clerical staff at our schools have worked overtime to get all the necessary paper work in place so that teachers get the revised salaries. However, they needed to get the papers stamped and signed by the education department, for which the department auditor for South Mumbai asked for a bribe of Rs 300 per teacher, which works out to around Rs 30,000 a school,’’ Fr Lobo said, adding he had got many such complaints.
He said the schools had shouldered the entire administrative load. The education department only had to stamp the documents.
“The staff at our schools are afraid to go on record about this as they feel they will be harassed. But I have no problem doing so. I will bear the consequences,’’ Fr Lobo, a 70-year-old priest who has been at the helm of the ABE for the last 10 years, said. Previously, he has been the principal of ABE schools for 20 years.
TOI contacted V K Wankhede, Mumbai’s deputy director of education, over the matter and he acknowledged he had just received a couple of letters from schools complaining about the issue.
Wankhede then called the education department auditor for South Mumbai, Prabhakar Sawant, to his office to inquire into the matter. Sawant swore that no such incident had occurred. “Mein kasam khata hoon ki aisa kuchh nahin hua (I swear that nothing like that has happened),’’ he said, speaking to TOI over the phone
JU teachers go on strike for sixth pay panel benefits
Kolkata Jadavpur University (JU) teachers went on a day-long strike today, demanding immediate implementation of the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission. Classes were suspended at the university as the teachers were busy agitating.
“We will forward our demands to the University Grants Commission, Ministry of Human Resource and Development and the State Higher Education Department,” said Keshav Bhattacharya, secretary of the Jadavpur University Teacher’s Association (JUTA), a CPM-backed teachers’ organisation.
“The UGC has not come out with a proper circular in this case. It is only after the UGC comes out with it that the state government will be able to implement the pay committee recommendations,” said Bhattacharya.
Till late in the evening, more than 200 teachers had joined the protests with JUTA.
As per recommendations of a UGC pay review committee headed by Professor G K Chaddha, 80 per cent of the arrears will be provided by the UGC and rest by the state government.
Although the hike in the salary of the university teachers has been substantial, the delay in implementation of the pay structure is troubling them.
So far the teachers are getting an additional sum as interim grant matching the increased salary.
In a government order on August 28 this year, the state government came out with certain specifications on the pay hike. “There are certain anomalies in the government order and we have pointed it out,” said a representative of the JUTA.
The recommendations have been in force since January 1, 2006, but the teachers have not got the increased salary as yet. “The state government will have to come up with a proper government order after which the Centre will release funds,” said Tarun Naskar, secretary of the All Bengal University Teachers Association, who is also a teacher at JU.
“We will forward our demands to the University Grants Commission, Ministry of Human Resource and Development and the State Higher Education Department,” said Keshav Bhattacharya, secretary of the Jadavpur University Teacher’s Association (JUTA), a CPM-backed teachers’ organisation.
“The UGC has not come out with a proper circular in this case. It is only after the UGC comes out with it that the state government will be able to implement the pay committee recommendations,” said Bhattacharya.
Till late in the evening, more than 200 teachers had joined the protests with JUTA.
As per recommendations of a UGC pay review committee headed by Professor G K Chaddha, 80 per cent of the arrears will be provided by the UGC and rest by the state government.
Although the hike in the salary of the university teachers has been substantial, the delay in implementation of the pay structure is troubling them.
So far the teachers are getting an additional sum as interim grant matching the increased salary.
In a government order on August 28 this year, the state government came out with certain specifications on the pay hike. “There are certain anomalies in the government order and we have pointed it out,” said a representative of the JUTA.
The recommendations have been in force since January 1, 2006, but the teachers have not got the increased salary as yet. “The state government will have to come up with a proper government order after which the Centre will release funds,” said Tarun Naskar, secretary of the All Bengal University Teachers Association, who is also a teacher at JU.
Monday, September 14, 2009
उच्च शिक्षा में छठा वेतनमान जल्द
देहरादून। उत्तराखंड राजकीय महाविद्यालय शिक्षक महासंघ (फुगटा) ने शिक्षकों को आश्वस्त किया है कि उच्च शिक्षा महकमे में जल्द छठा वेतनमान लागू होगा। वित्त विभाग से मंजूरी मिलने के बाद इस बाबत जल्द शासनादेश जारी किया जाएगा।
फुगटा अध्यक्ष डा. यतीश वशिष्ठ ने बताया कि छठे वेतनमान के लिए शासन स्तर पर कवायद पूरी हो चुकी है। इसकी औपचारिक घोषणा शेष है। उन्होंने सरकार से उच्च शिक्षा निदेशक पद के साथ प्राचार्यो के रिक्त पदों पर डीपीसी कराने पर जोर दिया। उन्होंने कहा कि इससे महाविद्यालयों में शैक्षणिक माहौल सुधरेगा। उन्होंने कहा कि एडुसैट की मदद से सूबे में टेली एजुकेशन नैटवर्क की जल्द स्थापना की उम्मीद जताई। उन्होंने बताया कि संगठन की मुख्यमंत्री के साथ वार्ता में अंशकालिक व तदर्थ शिक्षकों के विनियमितीकरण और तबादला नीति तैयार करने पर सहमति बनी है। उच्च शिक्षा की दशा व दिशा पर मंथन के लिए फुगटा आगामी नवंबर के पहले हफ्ते में महाधिवेशन आयोजित करेगा।
फुगटा अध्यक्ष डा. यतीश वशिष्ठ ने बताया कि छठे वेतनमान के लिए शासन स्तर पर कवायद पूरी हो चुकी है। इसकी औपचारिक घोषणा शेष है। उन्होंने सरकार से उच्च शिक्षा निदेशक पद के साथ प्राचार्यो के रिक्त पदों पर डीपीसी कराने पर जोर दिया। उन्होंने कहा कि इससे महाविद्यालयों में शैक्षणिक माहौल सुधरेगा। उन्होंने कहा कि एडुसैट की मदद से सूबे में टेली एजुकेशन नैटवर्क की जल्द स्थापना की उम्मीद जताई। उन्होंने बताया कि संगठन की मुख्यमंत्री के साथ वार्ता में अंशकालिक व तदर्थ शिक्षकों के विनियमितीकरण और तबादला नीति तैयार करने पर सहमति बनी है। उच्च शिक्षा की दशा व दिशा पर मंथन के लिए फुगटा आगामी नवंबर के पहले हफ्ते में महाधिवेशन आयोजित करेगा।
Friday, September 11, 2009
Bihar College Teachers Rally in Patna
Patna: September 8, 2009
Hundreds of university teachers from Bihar on Tuesday took to the streets of the state capital to press for their demands for the implementation of the UGC wage recommendations and for raising the age of retirement to 65, among others.
The rally began at Gandhi Maidan and ended up at the R-Block crossing where members of the Federation of University Service Teachers' Associations of Bihar (FUSTAB) addressed the crowd to highlight their demands.
Besides demanding the implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations and raise in the age of retirement, the teachers also demanded full autonomy to various constituent colleges in Bihar, regularization of the salary, new hiring to fill vacant posts, and a promotion plan for senior teachers.
The meeting was addressed by Bihar Legislative Council chairperson Prof. Arun Kumar and Prof. Ramjatan Sinha.
"We are prepared for a long-drawn war with the government after it's repeated ignorance of our attempts to hold talks with it," Sinha said.
Meanwhile, in an unrelated development, the state Human Resources and Development department on Tuesday directed the university to sack Sinha and initiate departmental proceedings against him for his involvement in a 1987 murder in Gaya that landed the Chemistry professor in jail for 92 days.
HRD Secretary K. K. Pathak, in a letter written to the Pro Vice Chancellor of Patna University, said that it was appalling that all these years, Sinha managed to hang on to his job without any enquiry or proceedings against him despite his checkered past, reports said.
Hundreds of university teachers from Bihar on Tuesday took to the streets of the state capital to press for their demands for the implementation of the UGC wage recommendations and for raising the age of retirement to 65, among others.
The rally began at Gandhi Maidan and ended up at the R-Block crossing where members of the Federation of University Service Teachers' Associations of Bihar (FUSTAB) addressed the crowd to highlight their demands.
Besides demanding the implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations and raise in the age of retirement, the teachers also demanded full autonomy to various constituent colleges in Bihar, regularization of the salary, new hiring to fill vacant posts, and a promotion plan for senior teachers.
The meeting was addressed by Bihar Legislative Council chairperson Prof. Arun Kumar and Prof. Ramjatan Sinha.
"We are prepared for a long-drawn war with the government after it's repeated ignorance of our attempts to hold talks with it," Sinha said.
Meanwhile, in an unrelated development, the state Human Resources and Development department on Tuesday directed the university to sack Sinha and initiate departmental proceedings against him for his involvement in a 1987 murder in Gaya that landed the Chemistry professor in jail for 92 days.
HRD Secretary K. K. Pathak, in a letter written to the Pro Vice Chancellor of Patna University, said that it was appalling that all these years, Sinha managed to hang on to his job without any enquiry or proceedings against him despite his checkered past, reports said.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
IIT Bombay faculty joins nationwide stir over higher pay
Mumbai, Sep 5 Around 450 faculty members of IIT Bombay today joined the nationwide relay fast demanding better pay structure.
Nearly 4,000 IIT faculty members in the country are participating in the agitation, which has entered its second phase. Ten days ago, the faculty members of the elite technology institutes had taken mass casual leave.
Faculty members here continued to teach but wore black badges as a mark of protest. They said Union HRD Ministry should consider their demand seriously as they are overburdened with additional 27 per cent of students through OBC quota and also have to cater to new and satellite IITs.
The faculty members had submitted a memorandum to the Ministry last month in support of their demand.
The IIT faculty is currently getting salaries as per the Sixth Pay Commission report, which according to them, is equal to UGC grade. They, however, want a higher scale as IITs are specialsed higher educational institutes.
Pay asst profs at least as much as students earn: IIMA faculty
Ahmedabad: Discontent professors of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIMA) on Thursday, expressing their angst in a memorandum to the Union HRD minister, claimed that assistant professors should be paid "at least somewhere close" to the average salaries their students can expect.
The memorandum submitted by the faculty council of IIMA raises serious concerns over attracting world-class faculty "in much higher numbers than now" at the remuneration levels currently offered. "The following analysis assumes that a primary purpose of the pay revision in the IIMs is to attract and retain world-class academic talent in these premier institutions and to enable their expansion," the memorandum said.
After the revision under the sixth pay commission, the pay scale of IIM professors is no different from the UGC scales. This, they contest, is absolutely unfair as in addition to the higher calibre required of an IIMA professor, the sheer number of years that they are required to put in, in industry and research are more than those required by other universities. The IIMs are therefore looking at much more senior people from the industry, and the same pay scales as the UGC cannot be unanimously employed, the memorandum said.
Comparing their pay scales with that of Harvard Business School and the Indian School of Business, the professors have contested in their memorandum that even the new incoming foreign universities will pay in the same league, leaving the IIMs at a big disadvantage as far as attracting talented faculty is concerned.
"The MHRD wants world-class quality in the IIMs. But quality comes at a cost. Unless the government reconsiders the entry-level pay in premier academic institutions, it runs a very real risk of not only not attracting new talent, but also losing the faculty that it already has," the memorandum said.
Talking about assistant professors, the memorandum specified that the entry requirement for a regular appointment to the post in the IIMs is at least three years' of industrial, research or teaching experience, plus a PhD. In comparison, assistant professors in the university system can be hired with just a master's degree with no requirement of industrial experience.
"A student graduating from a top IIM can expect to get an average salary of Rs12 lakh per annum. An assistant professor should get a salary at least somewhere near this level," it said. In addition to similar contentions for associate professors and professors, the memorandum said, "Downgrading academics does not bode well for higher education and it is not consistent with the MHRD objective of nurturing quality in premier institutes in the country that can compete with the best in the world."
"For purposes of international comparison, professors at Harvard have salaries in excess of $300,000 per annum. Even "public" university-based business schools like McCombs School of University of Texas at Austin pay full professors in excess of $200,000. At PPP conversion of five (three is more realistic), these levels still come to Rs30 lakh and Rs20 lakh, respectively, per annum. Achieving world-class quality needs professors who are willing to lead and mentor younger colleagues in research and teaching. The right incentives will encourage more professors in the movement in this direction," it said.
Nearly 4,000 IIT faculty members in the country are participating in the agitation, which has entered its second phase. Ten days ago, the faculty members of the elite technology institutes had taken mass casual leave.
Faculty members here continued to teach but wore black badges as a mark of protest. They said Union HRD Ministry should consider their demand seriously as they are overburdened with additional 27 per cent of students through OBC quota and also have to cater to new and satellite IITs.
The faculty members had submitted a memorandum to the Ministry last month in support of their demand.
The IIT faculty is currently getting salaries as per the Sixth Pay Commission report, which according to them, is equal to UGC grade. They, however, want a higher scale as IITs are specialsed higher educational institutes.
Pay asst profs at least as much as students earn: IIMA faculty
Ahmedabad: Discontent professors of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIMA) on Thursday, expressing their angst in a memorandum to the Union HRD minister, claimed that assistant professors should be paid "at least somewhere close" to the average salaries their students can expect.
The memorandum submitted by the faculty council of IIMA raises serious concerns over attracting world-class faculty "in much higher numbers than now" at the remuneration levels currently offered. "The following analysis assumes that a primary purpose of the pay revision in the IIMs is to attract and retain world-class academic talent in these premier institutions and to enable their expansion," the memorandum said.
After the revision under the sixth pay commission, the pay scale of IIM professors is no different from the UGC scales. This, they contest, is absolutely unfair as in addition to the higher calibre required of an IIMA professor, the sheer number of years that they are required to put in, in industry and research are more than those required by other universities. The IIMs are therefore looking at much more senior people from the industry, and the same pay scales as the UGC cannot be unanimously employed, the memorandum said.
Comparing their pay scales with that of Harvard Business School and the Indian School of Business, the professors have contested in their memorandum that even the new incoming foreign universities will pay in the same league, leaving the IIMs at a big disadvantage as far as attracting talented faculty is concerned.
"The MHRD wants world-class quality in the IIMs. But quality comes at a cost. Unless the government reconsiders the entry-level pay in premier academic institutions, it runs a very real risk of not only not attracting new talent, but also losing the faculty that it already has," the memorandum said.
Talking about assistant professors, the memorandum specified that the entry requirement for a regular appointment to the post in the IIMs is at least three years' of industrial, research or teaching experience, plus a PhD. In comparison, assistant professors in the university system can be hired with just a master's degree with no requirement of industrial experience.
"A student graduating from a top IIM can expect to get an average salary of Rs12 lakh per annum. An assistant professor should get a salary at least somewhere near this level," it said. In addition to similar contentions for associate professors and professors, the memorandum said, "Downgrading academics does not bode well for higher education and it is not consistent with the MHRD objective of nurturing quality in premier institutes in the country that can compete with the best in the world."
"For purposes of international comparison, professors at Harvard have salaries in excess of $300,000 per annum. Even "public" university-based business schools like McCombs School of University of Texas at Austin pay full professors in excess of $200,000. At PPP conversion of five (three is more realistic), these levels still come to Rs30 lakh and Rs20 lakh, respectively, per annum. Achieving world-class quality needs professors who are willing to lead and mentor younger colleagues in research and teaching. The right incentives will encourage more professors in the movement in this direction," it said.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
IIM faculty to approach Centre over pay hike
(F.E.)Ahmedabad: After the IITs, its now the turn of the country’s premier management institutes, the IIMs, to raise the banner of revolt against the pay hikes for their faculty, recommended by the Sixth Pay Commission. Peeved by the short shrift given to them by the government, the faculty members of the elite Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad have decided to approach the Centre within a week with demands for the upgrade of their pay packages.
At a two-hour long faculty committee meeting spearheaded by IIM-A director Sameer Baruah, a decision has been taken to seek redressal from the Centre failing which the IIM-A faculty will be forced to explore other stronger forms of agitation, including resorting to mass casual leave and strikes in line with what the faculty of the IITs are currently adopting. The IIM-A faculty is planning to work in tandem with the other two older IIMs, namely IIM Bangalore and IIM Kolkata, to work out a strategy of making their displeasure felt. “We are not banking on the support of the newer IIMs as they are likely to be browbeaten by the centre into towing its line given their dependence on the centre for their funds,” revealed a senior faculty member on condition of anonymity.
He further disclosed that there was major disgruntlement within the IIM-A against the Sixth Pay Commission notification received last week from the Centre. “Though the exact implications are still being worked out and the salary hike will range anywhere between 15 to 40% depending on parameters like number of years of service etc, one thing is clear. We’ve not been given our due as a premier institute both by the government and the bureaucracy,” the professor said.
According to him, the IIMs have not been given their due as the best management institutes in the country. “While earlier as per the old scale, an assistant professor of an IIT or IIM was paid two to three levels above the UGC grade, the Sixth Pay Commission has downgraded this difference. What is the rationale for doing this given the fact that we are institutes of excellence,” he asked.
Furthermore, the faculty members also felt that if the country really needed world-class institutes, the salaries should be commensurate with the that. For instance, they demanded parity of salaries with the salaries being paid to the Secretaries to the Centre and the top executives of navratnas and public sector...
In view of the prevailing disparities, the IIM-A faculty has demanded a pay hike of at least Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 per month. “Given the fact that the IIMs are facing a faculty shortage anywhere between 20 to 50 per cent, urgent steps need to be taken to retain and attract the best faculty to these institutions,” the IIM-A source said.
Over the past five years, the IIMs have been losing faculty to private sector educational institutes like the ISB which pay salaries four times higher. An assistant professor of an IIM has a pay packet of Rs 5-7 lakh compared to Rs 20-25 lakh which his counterpart at ISB earns. The situation is expected to turn grimmer with the entry of foreign institutes which too will attract faculty with bigger and better pay packages....
At a two-hour long faculty committee meeting spearheaded by IIM-A director Sameer Baruah, a decision has been taken to seek redressal from the Centre failing which the IIM-A faculty will be forced to explore other stronger forms of agitation, including resorting to mass casual leave and strikes in line with what the faculty of the IITs are currently adopting. The IIM-A faculty is planning to work in tandem with the other two older IIMs, namely IIM Bangalore and IIM Kolkata, to work out a strategy of making their displeasure felt. “We are not banking on the support of the newer IIMs as they are likely to be browbeaten by the centre into towing its line given their dependence on the centre for their funds,” revealed a senior faculty member on condition of anonymity.
He further disclosed that there was major disgruntlement within the IIM-A against the Sixth Pay Commission notification received last week from the Centre. “Though the exact implications are still being worked out and the salary hike will range anywhere between 15 to 40% depending on parameters like number of years of service etc, one thing is clear. We’ve not been given our due as a premier institute both by the government and the bureaucracy,” the professor said.
According to him, the IIMs have not been given their due as the best management institutes in the country. “While earlier as per the old scale, an assistant professor of an IIT or IIM was paid two to three levels above the UGC grade, the Sixth Pay Commission has downgraded this difference. What is the rationale for doing this given the fact that we are institutes of excellence,” he asked.
Furthermore, the faculty members also felt that if the country really needed world-class institutes, the salaries should be commensurate with the that. For instance, they demanded parity of salaries with the salaries being paid to the Secretaries to the Centre and the top executives of navratnas and public sector...
In view of the prevailing disparities, the IIM-A faculty has demanded a pay hike of at least Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 per month. “Given the fact that the IIMs are facing a faculty shortage anywhere between 20 to 50 per cent, urgent steps need to be taken to retain and attract the best faculty to these institutions,” the IIM-A source said.
Over the past five years, the IIMs have been losing faculty to private sector educational institutes like the ISB which pay salaries four times higher. An assistant professor of an IIM has a pay packet of Rs 5-7 lakh compared to Rs 20-25 lakh which his counterpart at ISB earns. The situation is expected to turn grimmer with the entry of foreign institutes which too will attract faculty with bigger and better pay packages....
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