The government will have to provide for a whopping Rs 9,000 crore (Rs 90 billion) annually from the exchequer for paying revised salary and allowances to over five lakh university and college teachers.
The revised salary package, announced on Tuesday, offers hefty hikes effective from January 1, 2006.
"As per the calculation we have done, about Rs 9,000 crore will be spent annually for implementing the revised pay of university and college teachers in the country," Higher Education secretary R P Agrawal told PTI on Wednesday.
He said the finance ministry will make the budgetary provision soon for the purpose.
As per the announcement, financial assistance will be provided by the Centre to the states which may opt for these revised pay scales, to the extent of 80 per cent of the additional expenditure for implementing the revised pay scales for the duration from January 1, 2006 to March, 31, 2010.
The Rs 9,000 crore (Rs 90 billion) includes the assistance to be given by the Centre to the states till 2010 March, he said. After 2010 March, the Centre will stop providing assistance to the state governments for this purpose.
The UGC-appointed Prof G K Chadha committee had recommended the raising of the retirement age for university and college teachers to 65 years.
Agrawal said that the retirement age has been made 65 years in the central universities.
"As far as the state universities are concerned, we have asked the states to raise the retirement age to 65 years. But we cannot force them," he said.
At present the retirement age varies from states to states. There are states where it is 55 years while certain states have 58, 60, 62 and 65 as the age of retirement.
The Chadha committee had also recommended that the Centre and the states should implement the revised pay package from a single date -- January one, 2006.
Agrawal said the Centre would implement its part in the central universities from January one, 2006. It has also asked the states to implement the revised salary from that date.
"But they cannot be compelled to implement it from January one, 2006. They have the liberty to implement from a later date," he said.
The Central Assistance shall be limited to the UGC scales of pay and only for the period ending on March 31, 2010.
While the revision of pay scales will take effect from January 1, 2006, the allowances (except DA) and advance increments etc would take effect from September one, 2008.
As per the announcement of the government, there will be three positions -- assistant professors, associate professors and professors in universities and colleges.
As per the revised package, Assistant Professors have been placed in the Pay Band of Rs 15,600 to Rs 39,100 entering at the Academic Grade Pay of Rs 6,000.
Similarly, associate professors and professors have been placed in the Pay Band of Rs 37,400 to Rs 67,000 with different grade pay.
Vice chancellors would get Rs 75,000 fixed in addition to Rs 5,000 as special allowance as against the present fixed pay of Rs 25,000.
