To end its financial crisis, the Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) of the Himachal Pradesh University Non-Teaching Staff has demanded Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh to raise the grant-in-aid to the university from Rs 63 crore to Rs 90 crore.
The committee has through a memorandum brought to his notice the financial problem being faced by the HPU as a result of which the employees had not been paid arrears on account of pay revision and the instalments of dearness allowance had also not been released.
It demanded early release of these benefits for which Rs 22 crore were required in addition to the increase in annual grant. It suggested that the arrears be credited to the GPF as delay was causing resentment among the employees. The retiring employees were not being issued pension payment order and thus creating financial hardship to their families.
JCC also sought Chief Minister’s attention towards the fact that vacant positions arising due to superannuation were not being filled up and the existing staff was over-burdened with additional work, which was affecting the efficiency and causing inconvenience to students.
JCC stated that immediate steps were also required to be undertaken to strengthen the International Centre for Distance Education and Open Learning (ICDEOL) and the main library as with the superannuation, the staff strength had depleted considerably requiring immediate drive to fill-up all the vacant posts.
The committee representing various officials and employees association also urged for taking effective action to realise the road map chalked out in the Golden Jubilee Document (Vision-2020) of the university for which an additional land would be required for expansion.
Besides, more regional centres of the university should be established in different parts of the state. The monthly pension bill had touched Rs 1.25 crore and the only way out to meet this recurring liability was to set up a pension corpus fund of Rs 150 crore.
