Part timers suspend strike following Minister’s assurance

IMPHAL, April 16: The proposed strike of the part time lecturers of the Government colleges which was supposed to be launched from April 16, 2013 has been temporarily suspended till April 25, 2013 following a commitment of the Education Minister M Okendro’s recent assurance  during a public function held at Churachandpur.

Informing this to reporters at the Manipur Press Club today, Sadivur Rahman Convenor of the All Manipur Government Colleges Part Time Lecturers’ Adhoc Committee said that the Minister had assured provision of revised pay for the part time lectures.

He continued that the part time lecturers have been engaged in their services from 1991 onwards as the government need their services due to shortage of teachers in government colleges.

From time to time, the government had regularized some of the teachers, he said.

However, since the year 2000, not a single part time teacher has been regularized by the Government, even though some of them are already approaching their retirement period, he complained.

Now, the part time lecturers are getting a pitiful remuneration amount of Rs 8000 per month which is the basic pay of V Pay Commission, he added.

He then said, some of the teachers are getting Rs 4500 per monthly only which is akin to the amount of boarding fee of a school student.

The remuneration enjoyed by the part time lecturers are much less than that of the laboratory attendants, peons etc. Other government employees of Manipur have been getting and enjoying salaries of the 6th Pay Commission since the last many years, he continued.

Even though the workload of the part time lecturers and that of the regular teachers are the same, there is a huge discrepancy in their salaries, he lamented further.

Some of the regular teachers are enjoying salary  of more than Rs one lakh per month whereas the part time lecturers are getting a remuneration of Rs 8000 and Rs 4500 per month, he continued.

In such situations, it is very shameful for the part time lecturers to attend college, he continued.

Rahman went on to say that the part time lecturers have been waiting for a long time thinking that the government will one day do something for their welfare.

One and a half year ago, the then Education Minister in the previous government DD Thaisi had announced on the floor of the State Assembly that part time teachers would be given the said revised basic pay.

The same words were also delivered again in the Assembly Session by the present Education Minister M Okendro Singh nine months back, he lamented.

The part time lecturers are not allowed to engage in any other services/works by an order of Govt of Manipur. "Our survival depends solely on this little remuneration and now we are not in a position to afford the schooling of our children and maintaining our families," he lamented.

He also said, “We are not getting government benefits like die-in harness and pension schemes, though we are engaged as presiding officers in each and every election and other confidential works of the government”.

"To honor the recent commitment of the Education Minister, the agitation is being temporarily suspended till April 25, 2003. However, the teachers will wear black badges from April 26, 2013 to April 30, 2013. If the commitment is not fulfilled during this period, indefinite cease work strike will be launched from May 1, 2013," Rahman added.