Students of government colleges in Manipur on Saturday threatened to launch intense forms of agitations if normal classes does not resume in their colleges.
Normal academic atmosphere in the government colleges in the state remained disturbed for the last three days after agitating teachers resorted to cease work strike since February 18 last.
Angered over the non-conduct of the classes for days, students of some colleges in Imphal today staged a sit-in-protest at DM College of Arts campus.
Schools and colleges in the state were reopened on January 27 last after around 10 months of closure by an order of the state government to contain the spread of COVID in the state.
However, the normal conduct of the classes was once again disturbed owing to cease work strike by teachers demanding implementation of 7th UGC Pay and Regulations 2018.
Protesting students demanded the state government to take up steps to end the agitations of the teachers so that normal classes can resume with immediate effect.
A student leader, taking part in the protest, threatened that if the state government failed to make arrangements to resume normal class within the next few days, they will be compelled to resort to intense forms of agitation.
Meanwhile, the cease work strike of the government college teachers entered its third day on Saturday.
While ceasing their work, the teachers continued to stage sit-in-protest in their respective college campuses.
Blaming the college teachers and COVID-19 pandemic was not the ultimate solution to the demand of the teachers, the striking teachers taking part in today’s protest said.
The government college teachers were waiting for over three years for implementation of the 7th UGC Pay and Regulations, 2018 which was notified the Union ministry of human resource development (MHRD) on November 2, 2017, FAGOCTA president Dr P Birachandra said.
The college teachers launched the agitations under FEGOCTA (Federation of Government College Teachers’ Association).
FEGOCTA has been demanding implementation of the 7th UGC Pay and Regulations, 2018 since December, 2018. The state cabinet had already agreed to the implementation of the same on August 6, 2020.
However, failure on the part of the state government to issue the necessary orders to implement the national UGC policy till date has compelled teachers to resume their suspended agitations, he said.
He said that the teachers disagreed with the government’s blame on COVID-19 pandemic that hit the economy of the state severely.
COVID-19 pandemic came only in March, 2020. The state government had enough time to implement the national policy before the pandemic, he said, adding that the teachers have been demanding implementation of the same since 2018.
