RAJ KUMAR
Ranchi, Aug.5: The Jharkhand High Court today reprimanded the higher and technical education department officials for delaying the benefit of Academic Grade Pay (AGP) under the provisions of the UGC statutes to the university teachers and directed them to give an affidavit specifying the time for giving the benefit.
A single bench of Justice Deepak Roshan, while hearing a contempt petition, observed that the tendency of the authorities to delay things is disappointing.
Senior advocate Nagmani Tiwari, who appeared on behalf of the petitioners, informed this saying that the development has paved the path for getting AGP benefits to university teachers.
It is to be noted that while issuing a resolution to give the benefit of sixth pay scale to the teachers in 2010 itself, the Jharkhand government had underlined that the benefit of promotion in future would be available to UGC subject to the provisions contained in the Statutes, 2010. But even after the lapse of twelve years, no regulation has been notified yet.
Due to lack of necessary rules, the promotion of teachers has been hampered for the last 14 years (from 31st December, 2008).
In the absence of promotion, there has been a shortage of professors and associate professors in the universities, which is also affecting the ranking of universities and colleges.
For appointment to administrative posts, teachers working in the state are being deprived due to the impediment of promotion, even though they are fully qualified, due to this only reason.
In the absence of promotion rules, the prestige of the state is also being adversely affected. Jharkhand is the only state in the nation where there is no regulation notified for promotion as per UGC statutes, 2010.
