Move to amend Absorption Rules worries BCS teachers
Ashiqur Rahman
The government is going to amend the existing Absorption Rules 2000 to allow non-cadre teachers of government colleges to enjoy senior rank facilities although they don't have adequate job experience, leaders of BCS General Education Association alleged. If the existing rules are amended, most of the college teachers under the cadre service will lose their seniority, they added. "The secretary committee of the establishment ministry is now scrutinising the amendment after getting approval from the education and law ministries in this regard," association President Prof MA Rouf told The Daily Star recently. He said by bringing changes to Section 3 of Article 9 of the existing rules, the government is actually restoring the controversial Absorption Rules of 1998 which was repealed in the face of severe protest by the teachers under cadre service. The government formulated the Absorption Rules 2000 to bring the non-cadre teachers absorbed in the government colleges converted from private colleges under a common government rule for members of the education cadre. "According to the existing rules, the service period of a non-cadre teacher of the government college is counted from the date of his regularisation in his private college and thereby he has to gather the same job experience for the promotion what a BCS cadre teacher has," Rouf mentioned. But if the government restores the rules of 1998, a non-cadre teacher with the rank of an associate professor or even principal with only five or six years' experience will be able to hold the same post when the college will be nationalised in future, he explained. "On the other hand, BCS cadre teachers need at least 10 to 20 years' job experience to become an associate professor or principal in the government college," he added. As a result, as many as 12,500 cadre teachers of 271 government colleges across the country will lose their seniority and the chain of command will completely break down if such flawed amendment comes into effect, Rouf said. He also threatened that the cadre teachers of government colleges would go for a tougher agitation and legal action if the government amends the existing absorption rule. The education ministry sources also acknowledged the government's initiative to amend the rules. But when contacted, ministry officials avoided this correspondent saying that they have no comment on the matter.
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