NEW DELHI:With Central universities going ahead with the recruitment of even Assistant Professors on contract basis and Delhi-based National University of Educational Planning
Administration (NUEPA) advertising for hiring junior-level faculty on contract, teachers are up in arms against the move to eliminate permanent recruitment system.
The issues of faculty recruitment on contract basis and proposed implementation of Choice-based Credit System (CBCS) are resonating in the Delhi University in the run-up for elections to the Executive Council - the highest decision-making authority in the University and Academic Council on Thursday.
Many faculty members are opposing the move of the Human Resource Development Ministry for slowly bringing in modalities of Choice-based Credit System and contractualisation of recruitment system. Banaras Hindu University has conducted a walk-in interview few days back for recruitment of 15 posts of Assistant Professors, on purely job contract basis, and to be paid Rs 30,000 per month.
The Delhi-based NEUPA also advertised for the posts of Professors, Associate Professors and Assistant Professors for a period of three years on contract or deputation basis.
Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani recently informed Parliament that in order to meet the shortage of faculty in Central Universities, the University Grants Commission has taken measures for meeting the shortage of teachers at all levels.
These measures include permitting the universities to engage adjunct or guest faculty to meet the shortfall and even allowing contractual appointments for faculty. However, teacher unions are opposing the move saying that there is no rational in hiring junior faculty. Recently the UGC also asked the Central Universities to implement the Choice Based Credit System from the academic years 2015-16. In a letter to the Vice Chancellors, Secretary in the Ministry of HRD Satya N Mohanty said that the CBCS will ensure seamless mobility of students across higher education institutions as well as abroad and the credits earned by the students can be transferred and would be of a great value to the students in the event of seeking migration from one institution to another. Delhi University faculty members are opposing both the contract based appointments and CBCS system. “The Choice Based Credit System would destabilize the work load on faculty members. With the fluctuating work load, teachers would also suffer. We oppose this and these are issues in the current elections to Executive Council and Academic Council”, Delhi University Executive Council member, Dr Aditya Narayan Mishra told Express.