Academicians worry pay cut may also delay salaries

Abhishek Choudhari | TNN | Apr 6, 2020, 04:00 IST

Nagpur: While academicians support state government’s decision of cut in March salary of employees, they are worried revised tabulation paperwork will lead to delay in salary disbursement. School and junior college principals and teachers say their March salary may come only by April end because the revised paperwork to incorporate the cut can be started only after lockdown is lifted.
They say the best option is to deduct 25% from their last drawn net salary and avoid paper work. Vidarbha Junior College Teachers Association (VJUCTA) general secretary Ashok Gavhankar said, “The way our salary process works is that we prepare a wage/salary bill at institution level. Once endorsed by the principal, it is submitted to the pay unit after which it is cleared by treasury and the amount is credited into our accounts.”
Ashnarayan Tiwari, executive body member of School Headmasters Charitable Association (SHCA), said the timeline for the process to be completed is long. “By March 5 or 6 itself all of us had submitted our salary bill to the pay unit. This is for March-paid-in-April salary. So for bill submitted on March 6, the salary should have been credited into our accounts by April 5. This did not happen because of the government resolution about deductions,” said Tiwari.
Gavhankar said all the bills submitted in March first week are likely to be rejected. “We may have to submit fresh bills, which is something all of us want to avoid. Our stand is simple, that you accept our bills but release only 75% of the last drawn salary. Or give 30% of our net salary as ‘advance’. Starting fresh paperwork now means a tough time for us,” he said.
Due to the lockdown, they say clerical staff won’t be available. Tiwari said, “Schools are closed and staff is at home. Till April 14 at least, everything is shut and hence not possible to call them now and restart paperwork. Even if we do it on April 15, there will be huge rush at the pay unit with all schools trying to submit their paperwork first. That will defeat the purpose of social distancing.”
The deputy director of education (DDE) office is expected to issue instructions to all education officers regarding this on Monday.