THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a move that would affect the service and pay conditions of 137 faculty members in engineering colleges under the Institute of Human Resource Development (IHRD), the state government has directed that the faculty who do not meet the qualifications prescribed by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and University Grants Commission (UGC) be reverted to their previous service.
The excess salary and other emoluments they have received must be recovered from them.
According to a source in IHRD, the move would lead to the reversion of many faculty members to the parent institutions such as polytechnics. "It would also cause a cut in monthly salary in the range of Rs 50,000 to Rs 1.25 lakh. Most of these faculty members were initially appointed on a contract basis and regularised in the engineering colleges after a prolonged agitation and through political influence," said the source.
The IHRD is an autonomous institution under the state government that runs nine engineering colleges along with other technical institutions. In a recent direction, the additional chief secretary (Higher Education) laid down the course of action to be adopted on such faculty members. TNIE has accessed a copy of the communication sent by the government to the IHRD director in this regard.
In the case of engineering faculty appointed by transfer from non-engineering colleges, only their previous service as lecturer/assistant lecturer in polytechnic colleges after acquiring the engineering degree would be considered for placing them in senior/selection grade lecturer in AICTE scheme, the government has clarified.
In the case of engineering college faculty not having AICTE-prescribed qualifications, the government has ordered that they be reverted to "other streams" with effect from their date of entry in the engineering colleges. "The excess amount drawn by them on account of their posting in engineering college service should be recovered," the government direction said.
Meanwhile, the worst hit would be the category of faculty in non-engineering subjects. These faculty members were transferred and posted from non-engineering colleges during 2007-2010 under UGC scale with fixation benefits from 1996. The government has clarified that such faculty members are eligible for UGC scale only from the date of entry in the colleges or from the date of acquiring NET/PhD and not from 1996, as the UGC scheme was implemented in IHRD engineering colleges only after 2006.
Earlier, a CAG report had found that 961 faculty members in engineering colleges across the state were 'non-qualified' as per AICTE norms. Recently, the Directorate of Technical Education began the process of replacing 93 such faculty members in government engineering colleges with qualified persons. The APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University (KTU) had also started the process of replacing such 'non-qualified' faculty in engineering colleges in the aided, self-financing and government-controlled self-financing sectors.
Excess pay to be recovered in monthly installments
The government has directed that excess salary and other emoluments paid to the faculty members should be recovered in "monthly installments". IHRD director P Suresh Kumar was unavailable for comment.