A section of college teachers in Kerala are worried over the objections raised against the demand to include post-doctoral fellowship period in their service records.
An assistant professor in an aided college in Malappuram district, who did not wish to be quoted, told The Hindu on Sunday that he had been trying for a post-doctoral research opportunity in the U.S. According to clause 8.2 of the University Grants Commission (UGC) Regulations, 2018, when a teacher is awarded a scholarship or stipend for pursing further studies leading to PhD/post-doctoral qualification or for undertaking research project in a higher education institution abroad, the amount of the scholarship/fellowship shall not be linked to the recipient’s pay/salary paid to him/her by his /her parent institution. It also says that the awardee shall be paid salary for the entire duration of fellowship/scholarship, provided of course he/she does not take up any other remunerative jobs like teaching, in the host country.
He said that, however, the government was not keen on extending this benefit to the college teachers in the State. “We have been told to go on leave without salary. The duration of the fellowship is not going to be counted in our service record too,” he pointed out.
