Government college guest lecturers in Kurumbalur protest over non-payment of salaries by Bharathidasan University

Around 20 guest lecturers and administrative staff of Government Arts and Science College on Wednesday sported black cloth bands and gathered on the institution’s campus in Kurambalur, Perambalur district, to protest non-payment of salary by Bharathidasan University (BDU) since October 2023.

“The university authorities claimed in August that they had opened a portal to process the unpaid salaries of guest lecturers. But they have been leading us on, because no payments have been made so far. We demand the immediate disbursal of our salaries overdue for the past 10 months,” an agitating faculty member told The Hindu.

Established in 2006 as a constituent college of Bharathidasan University (BDU), the Kurambalur institution was converted into a government college in 2019. However, the payment of staff salaries was assigned to BDU.

The staff working here were appointed by BDU under the category of guest lecturers and were paid on an hourly basis. Payments were stopped in October 2023, reportedly due to objections raised by BDU’s teaching and non-teaching employee associations.

“A greater injustice has been done to the administrative workers who have not been included in the reimbursement plan by the university. We do not want our students to be affected by these issues, which is why we continue to work despite these unfair policies. We are struggling to make ends meet without a regular salary,” said the faculty member.

When contacted, BDU vice-chancellor M. Selvam said the details of guest lecturers were being collected for the pending reimbursements.

Published - September 25, 2024 06:26 pm IST