The Council of Principals of Kerala has urged Education Minister M.A. Baby to introduce the performance-based appraisal system while implementing the ‘UGC regulations 2009’ for college teachers in the State.In a memorandum submitted to the Minister, the council pointed out that specified quality has to be ensured while implementing the UGC regulations.The performance-based appraisal system has to be implemented based on the academic performance indication of teachers. Based on their performance, retired teachers can be re-appointed in Central government institutions up to the age of 70.
In the State, directions to re-appoint teachers, as per merit, up to the age of 65 have to be implemented at the level of universities and colleges. The council urged the government to promote research activities among teachers by implementing incentive-oriented research promotion schemes and programmes. More than 1,000 teaching posts are still lying vacant in various colleges in the State.
If we have to fill these vacancies as per UGC stipulations, colleges will have to depend on candidates from other States.The government will forfeit the financial assistance from the UGC, if the teachers completing 55 years are allowed to retire incurring heavy financial liabilities as it will have to fill the vacant posts created following the retirements this year.The council said the age limit for retirement should be raised to 65 as per the UGC regulations 2009.It urged the authorities to rectify the shortcomings in the implementation of the choice-based credit and semester system in various universities.
Think. What it all means is that colleges in Kerala will soon have very old ( 60-70 years if age )teachers .. Is that cool ? What do u think ??
Finance Minister T M Thomas Isaac’s move to raise the pension age of college teachers is not necessitated by any University Grants Commission (UGC) circular as claimed by the minister but is a shrewd attempt to pass on the financial burden, which results from the mass retirement of State Government employees in March this year, to the next government.
At the LDF meeting held here recently, Isaac had reportedly said that there was a UGC circular which stipulated that they would provide the additional financial assistance for implementing the UGC pay scale only if the State Government raised the pension age.
The LDF had deferred a decision on raising the pension age and implementation following stiff opposition from the CPI.
The unification of pension age of State Government employees would result in a massive financial outflow during March this year.
The Finance Department, through the expedient of raising the pension age of teachers from 55 years to 60 years, could effectively postpone by five years the bulk transfer of funds by way of pension to college teachers. Eventually, the financial burden would be transferred to the next Government.
Isaac’s argument that the State would lose around Rs.500 crore in assistance from the UGC for implementing the pay scale was false. In the cases of States such as Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, they did not increase the pension age of 58 that prevailed in those States, but was still receiving the additional assistance.
Moreover, the UGC recommendation was to raise the pension age to 65 years and not 60 years as planned by the State Government.
The Central assistance will anyhow be limited to 80 percent of the additional expenditure, that too phased out during a period of four years and three months, starting from January 1, 2006.
The UGC pay revision is for a 10-year period and the next pay revision is to be announced only in 2016.
This means that the Central share in the total salary expenditure for university and college teachers as part of the pay revision will only be around eight percent, putting the remaining burden on the State Government.
Moreover, the State Government had received the additional financial assistance from the UGC even when it had failed to implement the UGC scheme in toto, in 1986 and 1996.
Kerala Government is now planning to increase the retirement age of college lectures from 55 to 60. It will destroy the job opportunities of thousands of highly educated youngsters who have qualified PhD and National Eligibility Test (NET). In this year itself Kerala Public Service Commission (PSC) has published the rank list of 10 subjects. Till now,not even a single appointment has done from any of these lists. PSC is going to publish rank list for the appointment of five more subjects soon. Most of the candidates who are in the PSC list have the age of around 30-35. Now the upper age limit for the appointment as college lectures is 35. So if the government increases the retirement age it will destroy the job opportunities of all the youngsters in the list and it will be a great cheating to the youngsters. Government is telling that they are going to create 1200 new posts. But most of these posts will be in private management colleges. In none of these colleges the appointment has not been done by PSC. Most of the Christian, NSS and SN managements are buying big donations for their appointments. Also government will create only 1200 posts. If the retirement age is not increased, around 5000 vacancies will come in Kerala within the coming 5 years.
Moreover, the State Government had received the additional financial assistance from the UGC even when it had failed to implement the UGC scheme in toto, in 1986 and 1996.
as for my retirement, i plan to retire on an asian country and live a quiet and simple life.’-”