Scores of substitute teachers engaged in various degree colleges under Faculty Improvement Programme (FIP) of University Grants Commission (UGC) have not been paid salary for the past one year.
The aggrieved teachers said the colleges have not released their salary as UGC has not released funds to these colleges. An initiative of UGC, FIP provides financial assistance along with travel allowance to a permanent associate or assistant professor of a university or college for doing M.Phil or completing Ph.D of universities and colleges. The assistance provided to the colleges are included in the list maintained by the UGC under section 2(f) and 12 (B) of the UGC Act, 1956.
“Under the scheme the concerned college hires a substitute teacher for a period of one or two years in place of the permanent faculty members who opt for research programme,” said an official of higher education department.
Meanwhile the candidates working in place of permanent faculty members said they have been denied salary from the past one year. “As per basic salary of the permanent faculty our salary was fixed as around Rs 50,000 as per 6th pay commission but we have not received our wages from last year,” said an aggrieved candidate. “I am working since July 2017 and from this month my 2nd year has started but I haven’t received salary from last year. Some candidates got selected as permanent faculty after qualifying PSC exams but they have not received their wages of previous years when they were working as substitute teachers in colleges,” said another candidate.
As per UGC norms, the concerned college engages a faculty member on substitute basis through proper advertisement in place of the permanent faculty members. They are then paid salary which is equivalent to the basic salary of the permanent faculty member.
Substitute teachers are working in Womens’ College MA Road, SP College Srinagar, Nawa Kadal, Islamia College and few other colleges of Kashmir. But they are not paid salary on monthly basis.
Principal SP College Srinagar admitted the delay in release of salary for substitute teachers. He said that the funds are not released on time by UGC, New Delhi. “It is true that substitute teachers don’t get their salary on time because of the various formalities involved in the process,” he said. After the appointment of substitute teachers, the file is sent to secretariat and then to UGC. “UGC takes time in scrutiny and other formalities. In some cases the substitute teachers get their salary after completion of their tenure in colleges,” he added.
The aggrieved teachers said they approached UGC with their grievances but they were told that the colleges they were working in were blacklisted from the scheme.
“In UGC we were told that colleges have not submitted their utilization certificates of previous funds provided to these institutions under the programme,” the candidates said.
Principal Womens’ College MA road Srinagar, Prof Shaheen said that they didn’t get funds from UGC for FIP, adding that they are trying to manage salary of substitute teachers from other sources. “It is an internal matter. We are trying to adjust the substitute teachers,” the principal said. “The colleges have submitted everything to UGC but no funds were sanctioned for salary of substitute teachers.”