Amritsar, March 11: The Association of United College Teachers has raised serious objections to the SGPC’s discretionary approach toward salary increments and retirement benefits. Under the newly passed resolution, the SGPC Directorate of Education reportedly reserves the right to withhold annual increments in colleges facing a deficit of over Rs 50 lakh. The association maintained that annual increments are mandatory and should not be subject to the financial standing of individual colleges.
Tarun Ghai, President of AUCT, affirmed that retirement benefits for staff must follow the 7th Pay Commission norms rather than the older 6th Pay Commission standards currently being proposed for retired personnel. He declared that the association expects the implementation of these benefits to be backdated to September 28, 2022, the date when the state initially adopted the 7th Pay Scale. The association asserted that providing a diluted version of the pay scale to unaided teachers is a direct violation of the principle of equal pay for equal work.
While the association has called for immediate corrective measures, political leaders and SGPC officials have yet to provide a detailed response on the matter. Former Minister Daljit Singh Cheema stated that SGPC President Harjinder Singh Dhami would be the appropriate authority to address these specific concerns. The AUCT has declared that it will continue to pursue the matter with university and state authorities to ensure that the demoralization of the teaching community is prevented through fair and lawful pay implementation.
