By Shabbir Mir in The Express Tribune, Oct 3, 2014
GILGIT: College professors and lecturers boycotted classes and went on strike across Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) on Thursday in protest against delays in promotions.
The strike was announced after the government failed to implement the demands of the G-B Professors and Lecturers Association (G-BPLA) to promote faculty members who have been working in colleges for decades. However, according to a student leader at Government Degree College Gilgit, the teaching staff left classrooms unattended.
“In G-B, there are over 350 professors and lecturers who have been working for decades but have not been promoted. Unfortunately, no steps have been taken to this end,” Muhammad Zaman, president of G-BPLA, told The Express Tribune. The G-BPLA announced the strike as a last resort after the government was reluctant to accept its genuine demands, he added.
According to Zaman, the teaching faculty has borne the brunt of the government’s indifference for a long time now and insisted the only way to compensate them is to implement a timescale. Teaching staff across Pakistan has been granted promotions and enhanced salary through this formula, he added. Last week, G-BPLA had given an ultimatum to the government to accept the demands or else they would go on strike. However, the warning fell on deaf ears.
In 2012, G-B Chief Minister Mehdi Shah had announced promotions for the teaching staff at colleges under the same timescale formula. The scheme did not materialise as planned.
“We are awaiting the implementation of the chief minister’s decision as schoolteachers have already benefitted from that announcement,” Zaman said, adding the strike will continue until their demands were met.
When contacted, the CM’s office said the matter is under consideration and will be resolved without delay. “The CM has asked the education secretary to take notice of the matter,” said Sajjadul Haq, a spokesman at the CM’s Secretariat.http://tribune.com.pk/story/770650/the-last-straw-teachers-in-g-b-protest-delay-in-promotions/
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