NIT teachers cry foul over CAS promotions for selected few only

Telegraph:
NIT teachers cry foul over promotion

Centre of trouble
Jamshedpur, May 20,2008: The teacher’s troubles at National Institute of Technology (NIT), Jamshedpur, seem set to continue for a long time.
Members of NIT Teachers’ Association (NITTA) today alleged that NIT acting director Akhileswar Mishra had committed serious irregularities by providing promotion to six teaching staff in violation of the standing rules.
M.K. Agrawal, the president of NITTA, said the authorities of the technical institute promoted all the six teachers who had appeared in the interview, which was held in the first week of May for promotion under Career Advancement Scheme, violating rules.
“Of the six teachers, four were promoted as professors. But of them, promotions of two — Ram Vinay Sharma and Shailendra Kumar — were anomalous,” said Agrawal, adding that in accordance with the rule of promotion, an assistant professor has to do a PhD and have eight years of teaching experience.
“Ram Vinay Sharma and Shailendra Kumar have completed their PhDs, but as far as their teaching experience is concerned, the eight years’ experience ends on July 1, 2008. So how did the acting director allow the teachers to join as professors from May 16?” asked Agrawal.
He said that when a majority of the college teachers had resorted to a strike for implementation of CAS, favouring a few teachers by overlooking the norms was a very serious error.
“We have intimated the secretary of ministry of human resources development, New Delhi and Union HRD minister about the irregularities,” he said, adding that they have sent a copy of the complaint to the chairman of NIT board of governors — B. Muthuraman.
NITTA functionaries also alleged that Mishra was signing backdated cheques in favour of the suppliers of laboratory equipment and software to the technical institute.
“The acting director is signing backdated cheques to facilitate the suppliers and contractors to get their dues,” Agrawal said, asking for a probe into the matter by the Central government.
Refusing to say much on either issue, Mishra told The Telegraph: “Let the teachers write to the chairman of board governors with whatever grievances they may have against me or the institute authorities. I do not want to make any comment on either matter at present.”