FEGOCTA demands 7th Pay, threatens stir
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, September 09 2019: Demanding implementation of the 7th UGC Pay and regulations by September 23 with respect to college and university teachers, the Federation of Government College Teachers Association (FEGOCTA) has threatened to launch different modes of democratic agitation from September 24 .

Speaking to media persons at Manipur Press Club here today, FEGOCTA general secretary Dr N Somorendro maintained that college teachers have no intention to vitiate academic atmosphere by resorting to strike or agitation.

However, he appealed to the State Government to implement the 7th UGC Pay and Regulations 2018 by September 23.In case the demand is not fulfilled by the given deadline, democratic modes of agitation like mass casual leave, sit-in-protest, cease work strike etc would be launched, Dr Somorendro said.

He said that FEGOCTA today submitted a memorandum urging for fulfilment of the same demand to the Chief Minister, Education Minister, Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary (Finance), Commissioner (Higher Education) and Director (Higher Education).

UGC pay and regulations are revised every 10 years but the latest revision was quite lesser as compared to other States.

Moreover, the latest revised pay paid to college teachers was 13 months lesser as compared to other employees of the State Government, said FEGOCTA.

The matter was taken to the High Court and the High Court passed an order asking as to why college teachers should not be paid the revised pay for equal number of months as compared to other employees of the State Government.

The State Government passed an order on July 11 last year which declared that its employees would be given 7th Pay.

But the same order mentioned that college teachers were not included in its scope.

The exclusion was rather unfortunate.

College teachers are also employees of the State Government, Dr Somorendro said.

Neighbouring Assam has already implemented the 7th UGC Pay and Regulations 2018.The State Government has been approached to implement the same in Manipur too but there has been no response till date, he decried.

Again, FEGOCTA submitted a memorandum today.

If the Government does not come out with a positive response to the repeated appeals of college teachers, it would be hard to expect dedicated teachers.

Moreover the whole campaign of quality education would be pushed into jeopardy, he added.

FEGOCTA president Dr N Pishak said that college teachers were entitled to 6th Pay after other Government employees were entitled to the same pay structure 13 months earlier.

Moreover, college teachers were paid neither special compensatory allowance nor travel allowance.

It is highly questionable as to why the State Government denied special compensatory allowance and travel allowance to college teachers while it was able to pay the two allowances to its over 60,000 employees, Dr Pishak said.

As repeated appeals to pay the two allowances had fallen on deaf ears, the matter would be taken to Court, he said.

Saying that it is students who are worst affected when teachers take recourse to strikes, Dr Pishak asked whether the Government is determined not to entitle 7th Pay to college teachers until they take recourse to strikes.

Comment