Panic on the faces of teachers is clear, intense and
visible. The protest and the March today from 'Ramleela Maidan' to the 'Parliament
street' indeed reflected the true mood of teachers and especially the adhoc
teachers. We all are feeling agitated. The manner this protest has picked up
spontaneously, it beats the anger and panic that was expressed by teachers when
a modification in the workload calculations in the third amendment was noticed.
In this background, being an honest organisation, NDTF has
already started to establish its links with the government to convey the mood
of the teachers.
Given the track record of the present government and the
manner they have responded on earlier occasions to much weaker aggressions of
the teachers as compared to the present one, I am sure this new provision of
appointment under 'Contract' in Delhi University under the Ordinance 12(e) will
get dropped, if DUTA pursues this issue as honestly as it is expected to. I am
convinced that my optimism is not based on assumptions as the way this
government, reversed the FYUP format; came up with a fourth amendment nullifying
its own third amendment; the manner that this government has been forced to
keep on modifying its New Education Policy; the way this government went back
on its plans to approve the requests of privatisation from the St. Stephens
College and Hindu College; the way this government kept on reviewing the UGC
regulations 2018 to finally address all the problems of promotions continuing
for the last more than ten years, it is only logical to conclude a similar kind
of response in this case too. There is a complete list of issues on which the
HRD ministry has shown its sensitivity. This government has proved to be so
sensitive that recently DUTA has preferred to launch its protest
against the HRD even on several important issues including the present one, where only VC is openly responsible.
In addition to the issues listed above, when the present government
reversed its own policies in response to the protest of teachers, there were other
issues on which DUTA politically and tactfully convinced the teachers that it
was DUTA that prevented this government from implementing 70:30 funding
pattern, Loan Funding, its policy of neither implementing seventh pay recommendations
nor notifying the UGC regulations 2018. As the teaching community later realised
that the above threats were never real.
When tempers are running high, it is difficult to talk
different. But I am ready to take a risk just because we should not repent on
the desired outcome of our own agitation. Contrary to our popular perception
about 'Teachers on Contract' that is traditionally associated with less salary
and no counting of service, this provision offers something that doesn't match
with such a traditional understanding of the term 'Contract'. Teachers on 'Contract'
under this provision will get the same salary that the adhoc teachers are
getting in this university and a single term will be of an entire year. In
addition to this the period will also be counted as Teaching Experience.
The provision of having teachers on Contract has features
that need to be discussed before rejecting it unconditionally. This provision
will force the teachers to face the trauma of demanding their appointment
letter only once a year which is now being done on an inhuman count of thrice
in a year. Teachers appointed through this provision may be able to claim some of the additional
benefits such as EL, CL, maternity, paternity and medical that is not available
for them under Adhoc appointment.
NDTF is working hard to convince those who can matter to
succumb to our pressure and find a legally sustainable way for allowing
Absorption as a one-time exception for at least long-serving Adhoc teachers. In
response to the current crisis, NDTF has postponed its ongoing efforts in this direction
temporarily to shift its focus on convincing them to see reasons in reversing this
misadventure of this VC. The government is being made aware of the fact that this
VC has unnecessarily introduced an irrelevant provision of 'Contract' in our
Ordinance against all advice when the provision of 'Adhoc' is already in
existence under Ordinance 12(d).
