The teaching and non-teaching staff of Cluny Women’s College Kalimpong observed a “cease work” today

Kalimpong, Sept. 8: The teaching and non-teaching staff of Cluny Women’s College here observed a “cease work” today to protest the delay in the payment of salary for August.

The college authorities couldn’t disburse the salaries as a governing body member, who is authorised to sign on the pay cheques along with the principal, has been on leave for a month.

The government-aided college, which is run by the Sisters of St Joseph’s of Cluny, has 18 teachers and six non-teaching staff members.

Of them, seven teachers and five non-teaching staff are permanent employees.

Dipesh Roy, assistant professor of history, said the government released the salaries of the permanent staff on a quarterly basis, but the college used to pay the salaries every month from its own funds.

“The part-time staff members, on the other hand, are paid by the college. However, we have not been paid our August salaries since one of the two persons authorised to sign on the pay cheques has been absent for about a month. This is causing us unnecessary harassment, especially when Durga Puja is less than a month away,” said Roy, who is also the secretary of the teachers’ council of the college.

The principal, Dr Ram Bahadur Bhujel, and Pushpa Michael, a nun of the Cluny Sisters, are the two persons authorised to sign on the pay cheques.

“Pushpa Michael is the Calcutta High Court-appointed member in the governing body. Today’s problem has arisen because of her absence from the college without informing the governing body,” said the principal.

The institution was started in 1998 and is affiliated to the North Bengal University. The college has a student-strength of about 370.

Bhujel said the nun was away in Bangalore and she had expressed her inability to come here.

Later in the evening, the governing body held an emergency meeting and requested the staff members to resume work from tomorrow on “moral and ethical grounds”. The governing body also promised the staff to solve the problem in three days.

The teachers will hold a meeting at 9am tomorrow and take a call on whether or not to resume work.
-TT