Two Punjabi University contract teachers climb rooftop in Patiala, demand regularisation of jobs

Patiala, January 17

Two contract teachers of Punjabi University today climbed the rooftop of a building on the campus and threatened to jump off if their demands were not fulfilled. University’s contractual teachers have been demanding regularisation of their jobs and have been holding protests for over a month now.

156 workers affected

We were hired through proper channels, but our jobs have not been regularised yet. There are 156 of us who have been requesting regularisation of our services for years. Rupinderpal Singh, President, Contract Teacher Front

Taranjeet Kaur, president, Punjabi University Contract Teachers Association (PUCTA), and another faculty member climbed the rooftop of Guru Tegh Bahadur Hall and threatened to jump off.

The teachers demanded that their jobs should be regularised. They said the university should pay them salaries as per the new pay scales introduced by the state government.

Rupinderpal Singh, president of Contract Teacher Front, Punjabi University, said they have spent over 15 years as contractual employees of the university. He said, “We were hired through proper channels, but our jobs have not been regularised yet. There are 156 of us who have been requesting regularisation of our services since years. The university had earlier increased our salaries marginally but had failed to regularise our jobs.”

He further said, “Our representatives are now holding a meeting with the university administration.”