West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Sunday said that teachers should be treated with respect and paid their due.
The governor, in a statement issued on the eve of the birthday of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, independent India’s first education minister, said, “It is a sad spectacle to see that these days teachers have to take to agitations to get their due.” “Such a worrisome scenario has a detrimental impact on education that is vital for nation-building,” he said.
The Governor said in recognition of the contribution of Abul Kalam Azad in establishing the educational foundation of the country, his birthday on November 11 is celebrated as ‘National Education Day’.
The governor’s statement came a day after he met a delegation of the Jadavpur University Teachers’ Association (JUTA) and discussed the implementation of the revised UGC pay scale for the faculty among other issues.
The JUTA members have been agitating for the revised UGC pay scale.
JUTA General Secretary Partha Pratim Roy had on Saturday claimed that Dhankhar told the delegation that it was “totally unjustified” to implement the new pay scale from January 1, 2020, instead of the scheduled date of January 1, 2016.
