Fitment committee may reconsider lecturer salaries

The Orissa government today said that the Fitment committee set up by it will consider the prospect of raising the pay scales of government college lecturers in case the University Grants Commission (UGC) prescribes higher pay scales for them in the context of 6th pay panel report.

It has already implemented the revised UGC pay scale from 1998 and has sent the required resolution in this regard to the Centre, higher education minister Samir Dey said.

Talking to media persons, Dey said, the Union human resources development (HRD) ministry has issued a general circular to ascertain whether the state has implemented the revised UGC pay scale for government college lecturers.

“The UGC insisted on the sending the resolution about the implementation of the revised UGC pay scale for the college lecturers and we sent it way back in 1999”, Dey added.

While the sanctioned strength of the UGC government college teachers in the state was 2800, about 800 posts are vacant. The remaining 2000 government college teachers are availing revised UGC pay scale. While the basic pay scale of the lecturers was Rs 8000 to Rs 13,500, for senior lecturers it was fixed at Rs 10,000 to Rs15,200. The basic pay scale of the readers was fixed at Rs 12,000 to Rs 18,300 and the professors were in the Rs 16,400 to Rs 20,000 slab.

However, when the Junior lecturers were promoted to the post of lecturer, they were given state pay scale. Accordingly, after working for 8 years in the basic pay scale of Rs 6,500 to Rs 10,500, concerned Junior lecturers were given the basic pay scale of Rs 8000 to Rs 13,500. After working as lecturer for 8 years, they will be promoted as Reader and placed in the Rs 9350 to Rs 14,500 slab.

In the state pay scale, the government college lecturers are getting 46 percent dearness allowance (DA) and 50 percent of the basic as DP.