College teachers to intensify stir

Degree college teachers under the banner of Maharashtra Federation of University and College Teachers' Organisation (MFUCTO) have decided to intensify their stir against the state government.

The teachers union had demanded regularisation of over 10,000 teachers who had not cleared the National Eligibility Test (NET) or State Level Eligibility Test (SLET) and implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations. "If the government fails to fulfill our demands then we will have no option but to stage protest in the first week of October. We are also planning to hold a nation-wide protest in December," said C R Sadasivan, president of Bombay University and College Teachers' Union (BUCTU).

In April, teachers from across the state boycotted assessment of answersheets. Over 750 teachers from universities and colleges also staged a 'Jail Bharo Andolan' on April 16 from the Mumbai University's Fort campus.

"While the UGC implemented NET/SLET as an entry level qualification from 1991, the Maharashtra government implemented the criteria only on December 11, 1999. So all teachers appointed between September 1991 and December 1999 who didn't take NET/SLET were not given promotions, salary hikes and other benefits. This is grossly unfair," said Sadasivan.

"Our talks with Education Minister Rajesh Tope and officials of the higher and technical education department have proven ineffective so far," he added.

Teachers from other universities, including University of Pune, Shivaji University, Kolhapur University, Solapur University, Nagpur University, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, Sant Gadgebaba Amravati University, Swami Ramanand Teerth Marathwada University (Nanded) and Shreemati Nathibai Damodar Thackersey Women's University, are supporting the protest.

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