Sibal meets IIT faculty today

In an attempt to end the stand-off between the government and the faculty of Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) on disparities in their pay structures, Union Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Kapil Sibal is meeting a federation of IIT teachers at his residence tomorrow, before leaving on an official visit to Paris on October 3.

“This meeting is in response to the IIT faculty’s telegram seeking an appointment with the minister. He is meeting them tomorrow. The same is being communicated to the IIT faculty,” said a ministry official close to the development.

The meeting coincides with the ultimatum given by the IIT faculty members to the MHRD for holding a joint meeting of ministry representatives and teachers before October 1 to resolve the dispute over pay structures.

The IIT faculty had gone on a hunger strike on September 24 to oppose certain provisions in the pay structure like 40 per cent cap on promotion of professors to senior grade and contractual appointment of PhD holders at the entry level.

However, Sibal had disapproved of such a public outcry and asked the IITs to come up with a futuristic vision plan for raising their income, academic and research performance. Moreover, the ministry will also to convene a meeting of the IIT Council, the highest decision making body for the IITs, this month to take a decision on the issue of more autonomy to the institutes.

“We are very happy that the minister is giving us time though we would have been happier had he called us before October 1. We are looking forward to a positive response from the government to our demand and flexibility in the stated norms as it will affect the IIT systems in the long term,” said All India IIT Faculty Federation President M Thenmozhi.