Telangana contract faculty seek regular posts and UGC pay scales before new hiring

An association representing public-university contract faculty wants eligible staff regularised and University Grants Commission pay scales implemented before remaining vacancies are advertised.

The University Teachers’ Association (Contract) represents contract assistant professors at 12 public universities in the State. At a press conference on Friday, it appealed to Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy to honour earlier assurances on job security and pay parity before the remaining vacancies are advertised.

The association wants eligible staff moved into regular service in line with recommendations from the Telangana Education Commission and the Telangana Education Policy 2026. It said members hold qualifications such as NET/SET, Ph.D. degrees and postdoctoral research experience, and that some have served universities for nearly three decades while performing duties comparable to those of regular faculty.

The association recalled an 11-day strike in April last year. It said Reddy had then promised job security for about 1,200 faculty members, to keep an equivalent number of posts out of recruitment, and to implement UGC pay scales. The group says those measures have not been implemented and wants the government to issue an order.

Pay is another grievance. Contract faculty have been paid under the Sixth Pay Revision Commission since 2018, while regular assistant professors received Seventh Pay Revision Commission and UGC scales in 2019. Deccan Chronicle reported earlier this week on similar demands from contract faculty at other universities in the State.