‘UGC delaying our payments’– FUTA

There were far more pressing problems – UGC Chairman

October 27, 2011, 10:26 pm

by Dasun Edirisinghe

University teachers are likely to go on the warpath again after two months of silence on their salaries issue. The government’s delay ito increase the allowances for internal examinations, visiting lecturers, administrative work and postgraduate supervision has irked the teachers.

President of the Federation of University Teachers Associations (FUTA) Dr. Nirmal Ranjith Devasiri blamed the University Grants Commission (UGC) for the delay.

"Our demand is to have these allowances increased five fold as they had not been increased for a last 20 years," he said.

Dr. Devasiri said that the committee, appointed by the Higher Education Ministry, comprising representatives from the UGC, FUTA and the ministry also recommended that the allowances be increased.

But, the UGC was still delaying it, he said.

"At a recent meeting, the Treasury too agreed to increase those allowances, but UGC wants to appoint another committee to increase it," the FUTA Chairman said.

Citing some examples, Dr. Devasiris said that the visiting lecturer allowance was still Rs. 500 per lecture. If some teacher went to Anuradhapura for a lecture how could he/she afford the other costs? He asked

University teachers launched their trade union action by withdrawing from the volunteer posts they held three months ago and they suspended it following a ministry assurance to solve it immediately.

Dr. Devasiri warned that if the government did not take immediate action they could revive it at any time.

Contacted for comment, Chairman of the UGC Prof Gamini Samaranayake said that the issue at hand was not worthy of comment.

He added that there are many other issues in universities to be reported in newspapers rather than the salary and allowances issues of the teachers.