Maharaja Agrasen College Teachers Stage Protest Against Non-Payment of Salaries; Hold ‘Shoe Polish Dharna’

The college's Ad-hoc teachers have not yet received their arrears from the Seventh Pay Commission. Additionally, for the past three years, the teachers have not received leave travel concessions (LTC), children's education allowances, and medical reimbursement.

New Delhi: Maharaja Agrasen College, Delhi University teachers on Friday held a ‘Shoe Polish Dharna’ to protest against the alleged non-payment of salaries to employees for the last four months. The ‘Shoe Polish Dharna’ was organized outside the college gate to protest against the Delhi government. Several college students also joined the ‘dharna’ in support of their teachers.

Why Are Maharaja Agrasen College, University of Delhi, Teachers Protesting?

The college’s Ad-hoc teachers have not yet received their arrears from the Seventh Pay Commission. Additionally, for the past three years, the teachers have not received leave travel concessions (LTC), children’s education allowances, and medical reimbursement. Maharaja Agrasen College employees have not received salaries for the last four months, and as a result, they are in dire financial straits. Many employees have fallen behind on their loan EMI payments. They are unable to cover their children’s medical costs and school fees.

“We have not been paid for the last four months. This is a very shameful situation that respected professors have to protest for their salaries in front of the students,” Bhupender Chaudhary, a professor at Maharaja Agrasen College was quoted as saying to IndiaToday.

In support of the teachers, a twitter user wrote,” Today, i feel very guilty for our teachers who is protesting for their own pending salary ,they are polishing shoes , really?? What is happening in du ?? Shame on delhi government, i have no word to say but shame on DU #delhigovernment #delhi #Maharaja_agrasen_college #DUTA.”

Today , i feel very guilty for our teachers who is protesting for their own pending salary ,they are polishing shoes , really?? What is happening in du ?? Shame on delhi government, i have no word to say but shame on DU #delhigovernment#delhi#Maharaja_agrasen_college#DUTA pic.twitter.com/HWQ7sHDLy1

— Arun Jangir (@arunjangir_7) January 27, 2023

Senior professors at Maharaja Agrasen College, Delhi University protest against the government for not being paid even after showing up to work everyday no matter what. The professors are seen polishing shoes as a mean of protest. pic.twitter.com/1zi8K9ugTc

— Roome Mishra (@RoomeMishra) January 27, 2023

“For several months, the teachers have been raising the issue of their salary with the Principal and the Governing Body and appealing to DUTA, Vice Chancellor, Lt. Governor, and Delhi Government, but no solution is in sight. Delhi Government, which claims to be the champion of promoting education, is forcing its college employees to starve. They neither agree to have a dialogue with the college teachers nor give any reason for not releasing the full grant,” reads a release issued by the teachers of the college, reported Careers360.

The professors of Maharaja Agrasen College faced the issue of not receiving their salaries in the pandemic too. As per the news agency IANS report, the teachers then took up the issue of irregular salaries with the principal of the college, the governing body of the college, the Delhi University Teachers Association (DUTA), the vice-chancellor of Delhi University, the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi and the Delhi government but to no avail as no permanent solution has been found so far. In this situation, the teachers have now decided to agitate in new and innovative ways to ensure that the government takes concrete steps in the matter. The teachers have demanded regular salary every month. In the demonstration, the professors polished the footwear of the people and their students on the road outside the college and mobilised support.

There are 12 colleges under Delhi University that are hundred per cent funded by the Delhi government. These colleges include Deen Dayal Upadhyay College, Bhim Rao Ambedkar College, Acharya Narendra Dev College, Maharaja Agrasen College, Keshav Mahavidyalay College, Shaheed Rajguru College, Bhaskaracharya College of Applied Sciences, Maharshi Valmiki College of Education, Sukhdev College of Business Studies, Aditi Mahavidyalay, Bhagini Nivedita College, and Indira Gandhi Institute of Physical Education and Sports.