Salaries not paid for eight months, Shaheed Bhagat Singh State Technical University staff hold pen-down strike

Anirudh Gupta

Ferozepur, February 20

Irked over the inordinate delay in the release of their salaries, more than 250 teaching and non-teaching staff members of the Shaheed Bhagat Singh State Technical University have started a pen-down strike. Despite umpteen representations, these staff members have not received their salaries for the last eight months.

Govt slashed grant to Rs 15 cr

The AAP government had announced to give Rs 30 crore per year to the university, but later the grant was slashed to Rs 15 crore. Of these Rs 15 crore, we have received only Rs 11 crore in this financial year. Gurpreet Singh, president, staff welfare association

Kulbhushan Agnihotri, president, Teachers’ Association, said that they had been running from pillar to post to get their salaries released, but all their pleas have fallen on deaf ears of the government.

“Recently, Punjab Legislative Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan had come to the university and assured that he would apprise the authorities concerned about the matter. Earlier, we had met CM Bhagwant Mann also, but nothing has moved beyond false assurances and our salaries are pending for the last eight months,” said Agnihotri.

Gurpreet Singh, president, Staff Welfare Association, said that earlier the AAP government had announced to give Rs 30 crore per year to the university, but later the grant was slashed to Rs 15 crore. “Of these Rs 15 crore, we have received only Rs 11 crore in this financial year,” he said, adding that the university had to manage other expenses also. “We want to ask the government how one can run his house without getting salaries,” said Gurpreet.

The staff members under the banner of joint action committee held a protest march and sat on dharna in front of the university gate.

Interestingly, no permanent VC has been appointed here since the inception of the university in 2021.

Sukhwinder Singh, resident of Arif ke village who is studying in the first year of electronic engineering, said that, “I don’t know for how long this dharna will continue. These are important days and this strike will definitely affect our studies,” he said.