The Kashmir University (KU) authorities have ordered that all teaching and non-teaching employees of the University shall switch over to the Biometric System of marking their attendance ‘with immediate effect’.
“All employees shall necessarily mark their attendance both at arrival and departure as per the notified office hours,” reads an Order issued by Registrar on August 1, 2022.
The Order has been issued pursuant to “directions passed on July 28, 2022 by Principal Secretary Higher Education Department during the meeting with Registrars and Deans of all the Universities of Jammu and Kashmir”, and pursuant to “Communications made by Treasury Officer concerned for certifying operationality of Biometric Attendance at the University of Kashmir. A condition for release of salary.”
The Order has also been issued pursuant to Order No 650-JK (GAD) of 2022 dated 02-06-2022 issued by General Administration Department, Government of Jammu and Kashmir.
Interestingly, the GAD order Order No 650-JK (GAD) of 2022 dated 02-06-2022 did not make a mention of ‘autonomous institutions’. Also, it did not have any endorsement to the VC or Registrar of any university.
However, a top official said they issued the order after directions from the government authorities.
Notably, the University of Kashmir toyed with the idea of Biometric Attendance in 2017 to bring about greater accountability in its functioning. However, the plan was shelved soon after it met with stiff resistance from teachers who refused to mark their attendance twice a day.
“That time the University had issued the order also on its own and the same was appreciated in the University Council. But after the Kashmir University Teachers Association opposed the move, the then VC was forced to roll back the transparency measure,” said a KU teacher.
The August 1, 2022 order has said that salaries of employees shall be released only on the basis of satisfactory biometric attendance duly attested by their respective controlling officers.