Protest has been mounting against the State government move to withdraw from footing pension bills in State universities.
Like those in most other universities in the State, employees of the University of Kerala, including those owing allegiance to the Left, have objected to the move.
Pro-Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] Kerala University Teachers’ Association (KUTA) feared that the “unscientific” order issued by the Finance department would weaken universities in the State. Demanding its withdrawal, the association accused those behind the order of catering to the interests of private and foreign universities at the expense of State-run universities. Holding bureaucrats responsible for the move, KUTA general secretary A.K. Ampotti and president P.M. Radhamany accused them of working against the interests of the university by diverting its corpus fund to the treasury in the past.
Privatisation bid
The Kerala University Teachers Organisation (KUTO) also alleged that the government move was part of efforts to privatise the higher education sector. KUTO president S. Prema and general secretary A.S. Thajudeen pointed out that those who had vehemently protested against the introduction of the contributory pension scheme in place of the statutory pension in government service were behind the contentious move. They cautioned such efforts would result in widespread repercussions, including fee hikes and fall in academic standards. Besides pushing universities into financial stress, the decision will also adversely impact numerous people who survived on the pension provided by the government after retiring from service.
