SKUAST faculties

An administrative glitch has overtaken both Agricultural Universities of the State meaning SKUAST in Srinagar and Jammu. It is about non implementation of certain norms in respect of their faculties when the recommendations of the 6th Pay Commission were implemented in the State and consequently in the two Agricultural Universities. In administrative arena, these universities have somewhat confusing status in the sense that in certain areas their functionality is multifaceted. When the 6th Pay Commission recommendations were implemented, these should have been implemented in toto and not in piecemeal manner. A situation of suspense has arisen over the date of implementation of revised Academic Performance Indicator (API) and UGC Minimum Qualification for Appointment of Teachers and other Academic Staff as envisaged in 6th Pay Commission. Normally these conditions should have been implemented on proper date and not left unattended. Now that the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission are there along with fresh conditionality, the question arises whether the university administration is going to implement the API and UGC Minimum Qualification provision now? If that is the case, then it will affect about 200 faculties of these universities because the implementation of the API and UGC norms were not adhered to when recruitments were made. In this way the fate of faculties has become uncertain.
The common belief is that the university authorities did not implement the norms they should have implemented in the light of the API and UGC recommendations because there were some vested interests working behind the curtain. Great deal of manipulation appears to have gone into the affair to facilitate entrance of faculties without fulfilling the conditions laid down in the desk book of rules of recruitment. It is one matter why this administrative impropriety was allowed and for that may be the authorities will call for conducting an inquiry into the whole affair. But the real import of this administrative glitch is the uncertainty that has gripped the faculties of these two universities who will be directly affected. Implementation of the same with retrospective effect is likely to hit those promoted and recruited under the old scheme even after publication of Government gazette in this regard. Notably, there is already shortage of teaching faculty in these universities and retrospective implementation of the norms is going to have adverse impact. The university authorities are aware of it. We learn that delay in approval of API score and Career Advancement Scheme has held up promotion of more than 200 faculty members as well as fresh recruitment in Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST), Jammu as well as SKUAST- Kashmir despite shortage of academic staff. The faculty members are apprehensive of being adversely affected for the wrong done by the university authorities then at the helm of affairs, who did not adhere to the new provisions and implementation of the API scores for allegedly benefitting their favourites. They ask why they should become the sufferers for no fault of theirs.
Again without formulating the modalities for appointments and promotions of teachers as well as Academic Performance Indicator (API) till 2015, both the Agriculture universities, kept on making fresh recruitments and promotions in gross deviation of new provisions for again allegedly benefitting some blue eyed persons.  Associate Professors were appointed in pay band of Rs 8000, which does not exist after 2009 and they were further up graded in the pay band of Rs 9000 without interview.  These promotions were given without approval of Board of Management, which was again illegal.
This is the administrative glitch that has gripped the two universities in the State. These are technical niceties but when in the administrative structure there are vested interests at work, the entire system is affected. We can suggest that in the first place, an inquiry should be ordered into the matter and responsibility has to be fixed as to why the norms were not observed while making recruitment of faculties. Secondly, after the findings of the committee are known, it has to be seen whether the faculties are adversely affected or not. Those who are affected need to be protected because whatever lacunae are there, it all has stemmed from the administration. In any case while taking proper action against the defaulters, the interests of the faculty have to be protected.

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