The national-level teachers organisation, formed recently by the Aam Aadmi Party, has written to Bihar Governor Phagu Chauhan seeking the release of pending salaries and pensions of teachers across the state.
“It’s a matter of grave concern that teachers and employees of government schools, colleges and universities have not been getting their salaries and pensions regularly, which have been pending for two to four months. They have not been paid the arrears of the seventh pay commission even after almost four years,” said Dr Aditya Narayan Misra, national in-charge, Academic for Action and Development Delhi Teachers’ Association (AADTA).
AADTA general secretary Rajesh Jha called the irregularity a “serious infringement”.
“The Bihar government must see all its employees uniformly and government teachers, faculty and staff should not gave to go without their salaries and pensions even during the festive season. In the matters of national pension scheme (NPS) also, the faculty and staff are being subjected to discrimination and not getting their due,” the two said, urging the chancellor to intervene.
Bihar state university and college employees’ federation urged chief minister Nitish Kumar to intervene, while Pataliputra University Employees Association said it was disheartening to see the ‘growing insensitivity’ of the government to deny teachers and employees their salary even during the festive season, while ensuring early salary for other government staff.
“This is the heights of insensitivity. The grant of affiliated inter and degree colleges is due since 2015. Now even constituent colleges and university are meeting the same fate. What is worse, the pensioners are also being made to suffer. The government officers who are responsible for the mess get early salary, while teachers and employees have to suffer,” said All India federation of university and college teachers’ association (AIFUCTO) general secretary A Kumar.
RJD’s teachers’ cell leader Rajesh Shukla too raised the issue, saying there has been no salary payment to teachers and employees since August. “It is strange that even during important festivals nobody has felt the need to pay teachers,” he said.
Chandrashekhar, the education minister in the Nitish cabinet, is also from the Rashtriya Janata Dal, the ally in the Nitish Kumar government.