Palampur agri varsity in financial crisis; dues towards staff, pensioners mount
Over 350 persons associated with institution have already approached courts
Chaudhary Sarwan Kumar Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya (CSKHPKV), Palampur — one of the leading agricultural universities in North India — is facing serious financial and administrative challenges, raising concerns over its ability to sustain academic and research activities.
Naresh Sharma, general secretary, Non-Teaching Employees Association, HPKVV, told The Tribune here today that pending liabilities towards employees and pensioners had escalated to a whopping Rs 112 crore, which the university had admitted in the court recently.
He said these liabilities included arrears, allowances, leave encashment, revised pension, pension commutation and other statutory dues of teaching and non-teaching employees. Over 350 serving employees and pensioners have already approached courts for the release of their long-pending dues, following which judicial directions have also been issued to the university by the court for clearing of pending liabilities. However, the university is yet to fully comply with the directions of the courts because of severe financial constraints.
Another senior officer of the university, on the condition of anonymity, said that outstanding liabilities were increasing every year by approximately Rs 25 crore, resulting in a persistent gap between actual expenditure and the grant-in-aid received from the state government. This recurring deficit has made it increasingly difficult for the institution to meet routine financial obligations. He said the figures were sent to the higher authorities of Shimla but grants were not released.
In the research and teaching sectors, the state government has discontinued the annual grant-in-aid of Rs 2.5 crore for research, which was provided in earlier years. Currently, the university receives minimal direct financial support from the state government for education-related activities.
The official also revealed that during the tenure of former Vice-Chancellor Prof Ashok Kumar Sarial, research funding at the university had reached an all-time high, rising from about Rs 40 crore per year to nearly Rs 100 crore annually. This period witnessed significant strengthening of research infrastructure, international exposure for scientists and students, increased employment through project staffing and an improved academic environment. In recent years, however, project funding has reportedly declined sharply, leading to a slowdown in research activities, reduction and termination of project staff and limited career advancement opportunities for young researchers.
The university has been functioning without a regular Vice-Chancellor for nearly two-and-a-half years which has made matters worse, while adversely affecting long-term planning and policy decisions. At the same time, the recruitment of teaching and non-teaching staff has not kept pace with retirement’s ratio of teaching and non-teaching staff. An estimated 90 employees retire every year, but the recruitment is not done accordingly.
These challenges have also reflected on the university’s national ranking, which was ranked 11th at the national level in 2019-20 and recently slipped to the 29th position in 2025.
