The Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday announced that his government will implement University Grants Commission’s seventh pay scale in colleges and universities effective from October 1. The cabinet has already approved a policy for regularizing the services of adhoc, temporary and contractual teachers working across the state. He also said that approval has been given to hire guest faculty in government colleges.
Making the announcement at Anandpur Sahib, the CM said, “The University Grants Commission (UGC) 7th pay commission will be implemented in all colleges and universities in Punjab from October 1, 2022.”
Implementation of the UGC 7th pay commission has been a long-pending demand for college and university teachers in Punjab. Mann being nostalgic further said that he was the son of a teacher and is well aware of the problems faced by them.
To meet the shortage of teachers, approval has been given to hire guest faculty teachers in all government colleges in the state, and a notification in this regard will be released soon. He also announced an increase in the pay of the guest faculty teachers who have been teaching in colleges for the last 18-20 years.
Addressing teachers as the “architects of the nation”, the CM expressed hope that they will continue to serve the students with missionary zeal to make Punjab a front-runner state in the country. A spokesperson of the Chief Minister’s office said, “The state government has taken a policy decision to continue the services of teachers, who fulfil the eligibility conditions, till the age of 58 years by placing them in a special cadre. This policy, which will benefit more than 9,000 employees, has been framed only in relation to group C and group D posts of the state department.”