Hyderabad: After protesting for nearly a month, contract assistant professors from 12 state universities in Telangana have ended their indefinite strike. These educators had been on strike for the past 11 days, demanding that the government make their jobs permanent.
The protest began 24 days ago, with teachers staging demonstrations on their university campuses. Their main demand was the regularisation of their services.
On Tuesday, a team representing the protesting professors met with K Keshav Rao, Advisor to the Telangana government, at his home. During the meeting, Rao assured them that the government is seriously reviewing their demands.
He urged the professors to end the strike and advised them to speak with the Chairman of the Telangana State Council of Higher Education and other senior officials to continue discussions.
According to the leaders of the Joint Action Committee (JAC), the state government has already asked the Council Chairman to instruct all Vice Chancellors to reach out to the faculty at their protest sites. These officials were told to explain that the government has started the process of implementing the 7th Pay Revision Commission (PRC).
The PRC benefits include basic pay, dearness allowance (DA), house rent allowance (HRA), and a 3% annual salary increment. This announcement gave the professors confidence that their concerns are being addressed.
Following these assurances, the striking teachers have now decided to return to work.
