College teachers to get salary hike
BONANZA Recommendation likely to be considered by the Cabinet this month, nearly 8 lakh teachers, staff to benefit
Nearly eight lakh teachers and staff of state-run colleges and universities can soon expect a pay hike in the range of 22-28% as the government is set to take up a UGC panel’s recommendation for revision of salaries.
According to sources, the recommendation is most likely to be considered by the Cabinet “this month itself”.
“A decision on allowances will be taken up later,” said a senior HRD ministry official.
An assistant professor’s entry pay would jump by ₹10,396 with a grade pay of ₹6,000 while that of an associate professor will rise by ₹23,662, according to the proposal.
The last pay hike for teachers was implemented in 2006, and several teachers’ associations of various universities have been threatening to go on strike over the delay in implementation after the UGC panel submitted its report earlier this year.
The pay revision will benefit faculty and staff in state government-funded colleges and universities, central universities and other centrally-funded technical institutions such as IITs, NITs, among others.
Centrally-funded technical institutions will have a separate pay structure and a different pay panel has suggested increasing their salary structure, but the proposals are being considered together.
The pay hike is likely to cost approximately ₹70,000 crore over a period of three years.
Sources said that as per the recommendation, the Centre will fund 50% of the cost and the states will have to fund the rest.
The government had last year constituted a pay review committee, headed by University Grants Commission (UGC) member VS Chauhan, which had submitted its recommendations earlier this year.
Following this, the HRD ministry formed a committee to review the recommendations.
As per the recommendation, the existing system of assessing annual performance of teachers has also been revised, keeping in view suggestions from various stakeholders. For instance, the current point system is likely to be replaced by a grading system.
The Committee has also suggested linking grants to universities to the vacancies filled by them, and the qualified individuals to be able to make direct entry at both associate and professor levels.