THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Hundreds of guest lecturers in colleges across the state have complained that their remuneration has not been revised in tune with the increased workload following the introduction of the Four Year Undergraduate Programme (FYUGP).
A section of the guest teachers have petitioned Higher Education Minister R Bindu urging government intervention in addressing the issue. Owing to the increased workload due to the introduction of multi-disciplinary courses at the foundation level of FYUGP, the government issued an order allowing guest faculty to be appointed in colleges. The order, issued in June this year said the service of guest faculty could be utilised in colleges for up to 16 hours a week.
It said that a detailed order would be issued after approval from the Department of Finance. But more than three months into the current academic year, no such order has been issued.
“There are close to 3,000 guest teachers appointed in colleges across the state. Due to the introduction of FYUGP, the workload has increased, making the majority of us eligible for an extra day’s remuneration per week and up to four days’ pay per month,” said a guest faculty who has brought the matter to the government’s notice.
Notably, the UGC guidelines prescribe paying guest lecturers on an hourly basis, but the state has been paying them on per day basis.
A guest faculty is paid `1,750 per day and if the actual workload is taken into account, most of them are entitled to get an extra payment of Rs 7,000 per month.
However, the offices of the Deputy Directors (DD) of Collegiate Education turn a blind eye citing the lack of an order in this regard.
The guest teachers have also complained about the inordinate delay on the part of the DD offices in issuing approval orders to them. In many cases, the approval order is issued towards the fag end of the academic year. This means the guest faculty has to work without pay for many months in an academic year.
“Being victims of official apathy, most guest lecturers receive remuneration after months even though we perform the same role as permanent teachers,” said the guest faculty.