Contractualization can be defined as a short term or temporary employment practice in any setting. Teacher community in Jammu and Kashmir is the significant community which had fallen prey to this ill process since years. Since teaching is considered as a noble profession. It is believed that future of a nation solely depends on a teacher. Therefore a teacher must be given that much respect and importance which he is supposed to receive from nation. Actually my concern is towards their recruitment process. Every year college and university administrations notify the need of lecturers and assistant professors on academic arrangement for that particular session. At the end of the session they are fired from the job and administration notifies the recruitment of same posts for which the poor lecturers and A.Ps have to compete with the new subjects to grab the same post. Is it not the legal discrimination with them? I often think that if they had once encountered this ill process then what is the need for them to encounter the same process year by year? In fact some lecturers serve a university or college for 10 years and even more. After that, they are notified by the authorities that their employment period has come to an end. This surely is not fair for them. Let me tell you that a teacher after serving a college during his most valuable time period of life is suddenly ordered by the admistration that his employment period is over. Since he has consumed his cream time serving the college and is left with a year or a few to enter in the over age category. It is now clear that the administrations are putting their career at stake. Although these lecturers make marathon to perform their job efficiently. They make themselves engaged in every single activity going in the college and make their students feel contented with them.
Government should take sympathetic consideration about the miserable plight of these college and university lecturers and should frame such orders which will brought their salaries and working system at par with other states and UTs of the country so that these hapless lecturers will no longer face such kind of problems in future.
Every year thousands of students go for higher education (Ph.D) in order to take on their career in teaching but being less fortunate their dreams hardly get fulfilled due to this faulty recruitment process. This type of recruitment is seen in J and K only. Since high court has also granted ‘status quo’ in their favour but the admistrations are openly violating the orders of honorable court. It is also enshrined in law that there must be the continuation of contractual service until it is replaced by the permanent faculty. In addition to this the said teachers are paid one-third of the salary of permanent members. Though their work is much harder and extra than the permanent faculty members thereby making ‘equal work equal pay’ principle worthless. Since this principle came with the aim to decrease the instances of discriminatory pay scale for the same type of work but India still lacks a comprehensive and transparent wage policy for all the sectors of economy. Although factors like ignorance and uniform interpretation of law act as barriers in demolishing pay gap. There are hundred of cases against the same discriminatory process pending in high court and the same cases increase every passing year. I wonder why the UT adminstrations are not following the UGC rules which however are prevalent in rest of the states and UTs of country. These poor lecturers have been facing the same problem since years and nothing is being done for them by the government. While scrolling down the social media i often encounter the same victims demanding justice for themselves. I also have read plenty of articles highlightening the same issue but the outcome was not more than a zero. Inspite of having made endless efforts still there is lack of a subsequent and meaningful legislation. In order to resolve this issue, it is important to not only create awareness for, but also effectively implement the legislative enactments. Moreover government should take sympathetic consideration about the miserable plight of these college and university lecturers and should frame such orders which will brought their salaries and working system at par with other states and UTs of the country so that these hapless lecturers will no longer face such kind of problems in future.
(Author is a student and member of JKIFTS. Views are his own)[email protected]
