BENGALURU, April 6: The second-year PU examination answer scripts valuation have not begun on Sunday as 17,000 lecturers boycotted work demanding increase in salaries.
As announced by the Karnataka State PU Lecturers’ Association, lecturers didn’t take up evaluation at 41 centres in eight districts -Bengaluru, Mysuru, Mangaluru, Shivamogga, Dharwad, Ballari, Belagavi and Davanagere.
Association president Thimmayya Purle said PU lecturers have been demanding a hike in salary for years. “The government constituted a committee to resolve salary and other issues. In line with the recommendations of the Kumar Naik committee, PU lecturers’ monthly pay must go up from Rs 22,800 to Rs 28,100,” he said.
Besides, the lecturers found very few avenues for promotion. “If a person joins as a PU lecturer, heshe will remain a lecturer till retirement as only a few get promoted to the post of principal.This is unfair. The government should bring in a system of promotions for PU lecturers too,” they said.
As many as 6,10,939 students appeared for II PU examination in March. Rajashekar AE, a mathematics lecturer, said if the government doesn’t meet their demands, then the association will meet on Thursday to intensify its protest in the coming weeks.
“All the 17,000 evaluators boycotted evaluation on the first day. It was scheduled from 9am to 2pm. Not a single answer paper was evaluated,” he added.
PU Board director Sushama Godbole said: “We’ve forwarded the list of demands to the government. Evaluation will start on Monday as per schedule.”
