SUBHASH MISHRA
Ranchi, Nov 21: Governor Santosh Kumar Gangwar has taken cognizance of the concerns raised by the Kolhan University Teachers Association (KUTA) regarding the curtailment of university teachers’ leave.
The Governor assured to solve the issue after the formation of a new government in Jharkhand.
During a meeting at Raj Bhawan, the delegation, led by KUTA president Dr Sanjay Kumar Singh, informed the Governor about the leave reductions and the pending promotions of teachers from the 2008 batch. The delegation also highlighted the disruption of university functions due to the lack of a regular vice-chancellor.
“The Chancellor took the matter seriously and assured us that after the formation of the new government, these issues would be considered and efforts would be made to solve them,” said Dr Singh, the president of KUTA, and Dr Indal Paswan, the general secretary.
General Secretary Dr Indal Paswan, Dr Ranjit Karn and Dr Subhash Chandra Das were other members of the delegation.
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Teachers’ Protest Over Leave Calendar
The release of the unified annual leave calendar by the state government in January 2024 during the tenure of Dr CP Radhakrishnan sparked widespread protests among university teachers across Jharkhand.
Under the new calendar, several mandatory leaves were curtailed, a move that triggered unrest in all universities.
Before 2024, universities prepared their leave calendars, but this year, Raj Bhawan implemented a state-wide policy, leading to dissatisfaction among faculty members.
VBU teachers take legal action
The Vinoba Bhave University (VBU) Teachers Association (TA) in Hazaribagh, led by President Dr KK Gupta and General Secretary Dr Binod Ranjan, challenged the leave curtailment in court. The University Grants Commission (UGC) was also made a party in the case.
The court has already held two hearings, one in July and another in September, and the UGC has expressed that curtailing teachers’ mandatory leave is illegal.
“Some leave of teachers are mandatory and that can’t be curtailed,” said Dr Gupta.
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Ongoing protests by other university associations
The Sido Kanho Murmu University (SKMU) Dumka Teachers Association (TA) has also been vocal against the leave curtailment. In January, teachers locked the university for two days to protest the reduction of Sarhul leave.
SKMU TA General Secretary Dr Santosh Kumar Sil mentioned that the association has sent multiple memorandums to address the issue and demand the regular appointment of a vice-chancellor.
Similarly, the Binod Bihari Mahto Koylanchal University (BBMKU) Dhanbad Teachers Association has protested the leave cuts. General Secretary Dr Amulya Suman Beck emphasized that the reduction of leave violates UGC guidelines, and the association has already raised their objections.
