Advisor’s appeal to varsities’ staff to call off strike rejected

Vijay Deo Jha | RANCHI | Sunday, June 27, 2010

Advisor VS Dubey's appeal to the non-teaching staff members of the universities of Jharkhand to call-off their strike was rejected as paper sentiment by the employees' unions.

Dubey communicated this on Saturday through Ranchi University Vice-Chancellor AA Khan following a meeting on Saturday with the RU Vice-Chancellor and Director Higher Education Anjani Kumar Srivastava and the Human Resource Department Secretary assuring to form a committee to correct anomalies in pay fixation under the Fifth Pay Commission within three months. He also assured the non-teaching staff that their salaries for the strike period won't be cut.

"He (Dubey) has assured the continuation of the service and regular payment of salary to those third and fourth grade employees whose names were deleted by the Human Resource Department as illegal. A committee will be formed comprising of the principals of the colleges, representative."

Khan said during another meeting with the representatives of the union of the non-teaching staff and students' unions. Requesting non-teaching staff to call-off their meeting in the interest of the students he said that the strike had affected the future of thousands of students who have not been able to fill-up their examination and admission forms.

Khan said that the HRD department would publish an appeal in the newspaper to call off the strike mentioning their concerns will be addressed.

Refusing this the union leaders demanded a written agreement with the Government in this regard. "Such appeals and promises have no meaning. Demands for which we have been fighting today were already accepted by the previous Government in 2007. How can one believe the Government when it is retracting from the agreement?" said Shiv Tiwari.

Yet there is good news for the harried students as the agitating employees agreed to spare some of their comrades-in-arms from the strike for a few days to help the students fill up their forms. A meeting of the representatives of the union of the non-teaching staff of all five universities will be held on Monday whether to call-off the strike in the wake of the appeal of Dubey or not.

As per instance while revising the pay scale of non-teaching employees the State HRD omitted the name of more than a dozen employees stating their appointment was not made against sanctioned posts. They alleged Srivastava was a troublemaker and produced papers to claim that whose service the HRD now disputes were attested by him in his capacity as the registrar of the Ranchi University in the past.

As the tripartite meeting begun at RU leaders of the students' unions Prasan Mishra of the ABVP and Kumar Raja of the NSUI objected the absence of Srivastava. They asked employee' unions present in the meeting and the V-C to end the stalemate and demanded the resumption of classes and official work in the colleges by Monday to help the students. The V-C assured to open the colleges by Monday. But how? On Friday students came out in the support of the demands of the employees forcing shut-down on the RU. Each used his lung power to score media point-more noise less communication. "Now the advisor to the Governor has intervened in the matter. We should honour him. He has accepted you demands. I have done the best possible thing for you…Go to the Governor if you want. Carry on agitation if you wish," Khan said.

At one point Khan put the burden of the current mess on the establishment and leadership of the State. "Unfortunately no proper system could evolve in Jharkhand after its formation…Salary fixation of the employees was not done."

Out of more dozen complaints of anomalies two can be recommended for the special case study of the administrative apathy of the HRD. The RU employee Radha Prasad who retired from the service as the head clerk was given the pay scale of peon in the salary fixation.

The name of SP Bundu, the physical training instructor who joined university service in 1989 was terminated by the HRD is in the list.

"They terminated my name saying there was no sanctioned post when I was appointed…they said I do not hold requisite qualification," Bundu said to The Pioneer.

If RU scored some points over the agitating employees it was division among students' leader. A couple of them who till a day back were hurling slogans in favour of striking staff were more enthusiastic today than any RU's spokesperson.