KARACHI:
The University of Karachi’s (KU) faculty members have been forced to boycott classes and other academic and administrative activities in response to the non-professional attitude of the authorities. The staff is demanding release of the complete selection board schedule of the 2019 advertisement. The autocratic attitude of both the Government of Sindh and the higher-ups of KU is highly condemnable.
It is primarily the tyrannical behaviour of the authorities that has multiplied the already accumulated problems at KU. The many issues include the long-awaited remuneration of the regular and visiting faculty members for their teaching as well as other assignments, pay fixation issues, continuous delays in the pension of retired employees, non-payment of medical bills, removal of hospitals from KU-panel, etc.
Due to the years-long delay in the selection board, there has been no new induction, which has resulted in a shortage of teachers as many senior faculty have retired since 2019. Few serving professors are left and many departments now lack professors. Instead of resolving these issues, the authorities are trying to justify the delay in the selection board by giving irrational excuses. Resultantly, the faculty have been compelled to boycott classes to pressure the administration. The students are also suffering as they are missing out on important lectures and academic support. The provincial government and KU authorities should meet the demands of the faculty to restore normalcy at the university.
Dr Intikhab Ulfat
Karachi
Published in The Express Tribune, February 16th, 2023.
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