BHUBANESWAR: The higher education department on Monday asked the teaching and non-teaching staff of government-run, aided and unaided degree colleges and universities to resume duty on all working days with effect from Tuesday. Until now, about 50% of the staff were reporting to work on roster basis. The decision has been taken keeping the coming undergraduate and postgraduate examinations and the publication of results in mind.
Department secretary Saswat Mishra, in a letter to the vice-chancellors of the state public universities and the principals of the degree colleges, said the Covid-19 situation has improved compared to what it was in mid-April. In view of this, 50% roster attendance system for the teaching and the non-teaching employees had been introduced in higher educational institutions since April 19.
He further wrote in the letter, “A lot of important work has long been pending owing to the thin attendance of staff for almost two-and-a-half months now. These institutions must conduct the final semester/year examinations of the 2020-21 UG/PG final semester/year students in the online mode and publish the results at the earliest so that their careers are not jeopardised. The exam of students of other semesters also have to be conducted one after another to ensure that they do not suffer much owing to a delayed academic calendar.”
Taking all this into consideration, the department has withdrawn the 50% roster attendance system. All teaching and non-teaching employees of higher educational institutions have to attend duty on all working days with effect from July 6, the letter read.
The department clarified that the instruction of the general administration department regarding the closure of government offices on Saturdays is not applicable to the degree colleges and universities. However, these institutions will remain closed on Saturdays provided there is Covid-19-related weekend shutdown declared in that district/town/city.
The employees of the institutions will strictly follow the Covid-19 guidelines, including wearing face masks, washing hands properly, maintaining social distancing and self-isolation/quarantine.
