IMPHAL, July 31: The Federation of College Teachers’ Associations, Manipur (FECTAM) will launch cease work strike from August 1 in protest against the failure of the government to issue an executive order to implement the revised UGC pay scale for the college teachers of the state despite repeated assurances.
In a statement, the FECTAM said that the cease work strike will continue until a pay revision order under the guidelines of the UGC adding the teachers will not accept any order rather than the UGC guidelines.
It said that the decision to launch the cease work strike was unanimously taken in a general council meeting of FECTAM held today at the DM. College of Arts following government’s failure to keep its promise.
It recalled that on May 23 the FECTAM submitted an ultimatum to the government with regards to their demand implementation of revised UGC pay scale on the failure to meet the deadline. Another ultimatum as reminder of the previous one was again submitted on July 26 to meet the FECTAM’s demand by the month of July failing which it warned to take extreme form of agitation.
The course of action will be taken up was per the adopted resolution of the special general body meeting held on May 22, held at GP College, Imphal, it added.
FECTAM stated that the college teachers have been refraining from resorting to take up extreme form of agitation considering the impact it will inflict on the academic atmosphere of the students’ community. Moreover, the schedule agitation has been deferred in many instances acknowledging the assurance and appeals of the Education minister.
However the patience of the teachers has been tested enough by the government that it has cross the tolerance limit, it asserted.
It further maintained that the FECTAM stand firm when it comes to the issue of to elevating the Higher Education and the status of college. The revised UGC pay scales, higher education has been implement in other state of the country in order to strengthen the Higher Secondary Education it said, adding it questioned the outlook of the Manipur government on the issue.
The FECTAM urged the government concerned to change its narrow outlook towards the Higher Education and appeal to treat the college teachers as an employee of the government.
In the meantime, endorsing the FECTAM’s decision the teachers of state government Polytechnic has decided to launched their cease work strike from tomorrow to protest against the failure to the state government to implement AICTE’s revised pay (6th Pay) while teachers of other teachers technical colleges in other state already enjoyed the revised pay scale.
According to a statement issued by Government Polytechnic Gazetted Staff Association, mentioned that stategovernment has been turning a deaf ear to their demand for 6th pay while was already affected from January 1, 2006 for Central and other state employees and from April 1, last year for other employees of the state. Even at this final stage of tenure of the present government, the non-implementation of the 6th pay and at snail’s pace process with so much error and mistakes by the bureaucrats and higher authority is crystal clear example of insincerity, lack of integrity and lack of sense of responsibility which is an act to be shammed in the face of other states.
It is also further mentioned that when human resource and development is given top priority to every corner on the earth to today’s cut throat concept world and it’s agreed that, education is a supplier of human resource. In Manipur, education is an area placed in hell, paid least attention by the government. A much hype a few building, contract work and supply cannot be taken as last act of development and civilization. It is worth to note, education is the guardian genius of democracy and education is the transmission of civilization. The negative attitude of the government towards education and hence teachers is lack of future vision, an act against the ethnic of being a higher authority, the statement added.
Half hearted and step motherly treatment to teachers of government Polytechnic, the only polytechnic of the state which is among the best polytechnic of India, thinking that it’s small department, is much regretted and strongly condemned by the association and it totally demoralized the teachers. And the association further reminded that, if their request for the implementation of 6th pay as are done to other states, the association will be compelled to launch cease work strike from August 1 and even then if it bring forth no positive response further hard agitations may be followed, the statement added.