University contract teachers seek job security

Vijayawada: The Joint Action Committee of Andhra Pradesh State Universities Contract Teachers’ Association met here on Tuesday to demand the State government to regularise their services and provide them job security.

Contract teachers representing 13 universities in the State pointed out that Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu came to power with the promise of providing new jobs but in reality nearly 15,000 contract teachers working in different universities are on the verge of losing their jobs.

The contract system was introduced in 1996 by the State government and for the past 21 years these 15,000 teachers have been working under contract system.

“The new screening test is against the experienced contract teachers who were serving on par with permanent faculty for decades. Now they are forced to take up the test along with fresh candidates who were much junior in both age and experience.

This is unfair,” said K Arjunudu, president of the JAC. He said the JAC was not against recruiting new persons for the vacant posts but it insisted that the jobs of its members should be regularised and protected.

“Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister should take a cue from the neighbouring Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, who has decided to regularise all the contract workers including teachers,” he said. JAC General Secretary Mallikarjun demanded a common GO, making all the universities to function in a uniform manner.