Over 1,500 Professors To Be Jobless in a Week, 500 March To Delhi

Assistant professors hired by Central government in 2018 stare at joblessness as contracts expire on 31 March.

On 31 March, over 1,500 assistant professors hired by the Central government under TEQIP-III (Technical Education Quality Improvement Programme) will be jobless as their contracts expire.

On Wednesday, 24 March, over 500 assistant professors from various technical colleges across the country protested in front of the Education Ministry, and later marched to Jantar Mantar in New Delhi.

In 2018, graduates from IITs, IISc, NITs, and other Central-funded universities were hired by the National Project Implementation Unit (NPIU), a unit of MHRD, for the improvement of technical education in low-income states, special category states.

We are very worried. We are teachers and protesting isn’t our job. We came here to Delhi from various part of the country so that our issue reaches the ears of the education minister. We are very scared about our future. 

Ashul Awasthi, Asst. Prof. Ujjain Engineering College

The world bank funded programme provided technical colleges in 18 states and a union territory, which includes Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand Madhya Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Andaman and Nicobar, Assam, and Meghalaya, among others.

“We will continue our protest until a permanent solution of our jobs is not provided by the government. Both states and Central governments are passing the buck and they are not giving us any assurance regarding the job.”

Tejas Bele, Assistant Professor, Ujjain Engineering College

Amarjit Jhajharia, assistant professor at MLV Textile and Engineering College Bhilwara, Rajasthan, said, “As per MoU between the states and the Central government, they should be retained by the state-run technical colleges after three years but the colleges have issued termination notices to them.”

The Central government subsequently asked participating states/UTs to prepare a “sustainability plan” to retain these assistant professors after three years in a permanent capacity. Eyeing joblessness, professors say states have no plan for them.

TEQUIP -III Project Implementation Plan (PIP) states, “Well-performing faculty hired using project funds will be retained post-project, or else unchanged.”

The governments, both Centre and states, have just a week left to work out the plan for the absorption of these TEQIP faculties before these assistant professors also add to the number of those who are unemployed in the country.