Guest lecturers concerned over low remuneration for attending faculty development programmes
Guest lecturers in government arts and science colleges have expressed concern over being repeatedly assigned to attend the faculty development programme (FDP) under the Naan Mudhalvan scheme for low remuneration and have suggested that the authorities should regulate the upskilling initiative with a higher allowance.
'The FDP is held to re-train teachers and equip them with the skills and knowledge to deal with the new generation of students and subjects in Naan Mudhalvan. While we appreciate the initiative, we have noticed that many institutions are giving their guest lecturers the task of attending the six-day programme, with a daily allowance of ₹250. This amount is not sufficient to cover even the travel cost of commuting to the training centres,' V. Thangaraj, state president, Tamil Nadu All Government College UGC Qualified Guest Lecturers Association, told The Hindu.
'Guest lecturers are already working for lesser pay, and are sanctioned salaries only for 11 months of the year. Pressuring them to attend FDPs on such a low allowance is not fair,' said Mr. Thangaraj.
A Lalgudi-based teacher, who recently attended an FDP session on the Khajamalai campus of Bharathidasan University in Tiruchi, said: 'We have to spend out of our pocket, because the allowance is sanctioned only a few months after the FDP. The authorities could increase the amount to ₹500 to make it more affordable for participants,' said . 'It takes at least two hours for us to reach the training facility, especially if we are travelling by bus,' he added.
Some guest lecturers said they were being singled out by their institutions to attend the FDPs, while permanent staff were being excused.
Mr. Thangaraj also suggested that laptops could be commissioned for all teaching staff, as it would streamline their work, especially in conjunction with Naan Mudhalvan requirements.
'At present, teachers who do not own a laptop are made to share computer terminals during the FDPs. Most of our work is digitalised these days. Laptops will help us to do it better,' said a teacher.
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