Telangana Teachers Association Seeks to Raise Retirement Age of Professors to 65
The Telangana Teachers Association has appealed to the state government to enhance the retirement age of professors in universities from 60 years to 65 years. Recently, TUTA President Dr. A. Punnaiah, accompanied by fellow members, made a formal representation to the Vice-Chancellor of Telangana University, T. Yadagri Rao. Their appeal is to request the university V-C to send the appeal to the state government.
The retirement age of professors is proposed to be raised as a response to the growing concern over the faculty shortage in Telangana's universities. As of now, only 757 professors are working across 12 universities under the Telangana Higher Education Department out of the sanctioned 2,817 positions. This results in a vacancy rate of 75%, which is significantly affecting the quality of education and the functioning of these institutions.
It further deteriorates the situation due to retirement of professors at the top level in major universities, like Osmania, JNTUH, Kakatiya, and Professor Jayashankar Agricultural University. If there are two to three professors retiring every month, it increases the risk that such universities would lose their eligibility grade with the NAAC. This might exclude them from receiving funds by the UGC in its most crucial manner for their survival in the near future and for long-term.
Dr. Punnaiah noted that the retirement policy was a contradictory one. While retirement ages have been raised to 65 and 61 for medical college professors and non-teaching staff in universities, respectively, the retirement age for a university professor remains at 60. The TUTA President emphasized that raising the retirement age would ensure that universities retain all experienced faculty members, specifically given the large number of vacant posts.
The Telangana Teachers Association is optimistic that the government will take this appeal seriously and think about the long-term benefits of raising the retirement age. As universities are facing the problems of staffing, this change will play a crucial role in maintaining the standards of academics and preventing further disruptions in higher education across the state.
