Minister urged to resolve varsity teachers’ issues

LAHORE : A delegation of Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Associations (Punjab Chapter) has called on Punjab Minister for Higher Education Rana Sikindar Hayat and requested his immediate intervention for the redressal of urgent issues facing university teachers in Punjab.

The delegation included Prof. Dr. Amjad Abbas Khan Magsi, former President FAPUASA, President Punjab University Academic Staff Association, and Dr. M Islam President FAPUASA (Punjab Chapter). The delegation urged the minister to address several urgent concerns in the upcoming provincial budget.

The main concern was related to the increase in the funding for universities, where delegation demanded a significant enhancement in the recurring grant (at least 50 billion) for public universities as it is impossible to sustain operations and academic quality without sufficient economic resources.

It was highlighted that Sindh province, despite having a lesser volume of budget and number of universities as compared to Punjab, has enhanced a substantial budget for its universities.

The minister promised to enhance the recurring grants substantially for the universities in the coming budget, which will be elevated further in the coming years. It was demanded that there should also be a substantial increase in the salaries of government employees and Disparity Reduction Allowance on the pattern of Federal government.

The minister assured of a healthy pay increase in the upcoming budget. The delegation raised the matter of the reversal of recent changes in Pension and Leave Encashment rules, which have adversely affected the financial security of employees. The minister promised to consider the issue for its possible solutions.