20 March 2004	Saturday	28 Muharram 1425

HYDERABAD, March 19: The Sindh Professors and Lecturers Association has threatened to launch a movement against the Sindh education minister if he failed to issue a notification about the accepted demands of the teachers by March 24.

Speaking at a news conference on Friday, SPLA's regional leaders claimed that the minister had agreed with their delegation in Dec 2003 that 507 vacant posts would be filled through promotions by Jan 4, 2004.

Professor Sher Khan Selaro, Professor Gul Sher Nabi, Professor Shahjehan Panhwar, Professor Anwar Sagar Khandhro, Professor Mahar Sultana Zaidi and others were present on the occasion.

They said under a four-tier formula move-over cases would have to be decided and a seniority list of grade-17, 18, 19 and 20 was expected to be published. They said four months had passed but these decisions had not been implemented.

SPLA leaders said on March 10 talks were held with the minister and the education secretary in which the above promises were repeated. They claimed that SPLA leaders were assured that a notification would be issued within one week about the accepted demands but it had not been done as yet.

They warned if the notification about the accepted demands was not issued by March 24, they would take out a protest procession from the Muslim College to the Hyderabad Press Club on March 25. A procession will be taken out from the D. J. College to the chief minister's house on March 31, they said.

They vowed that the college teachers would not give up protest unless their problems were resolved. They demanded that time scale formula for promotions should be enforced, promotions be given according to four-tier formula, 33 per cent librarian and directors physical education should be upgraded, 60 per cent house rent allowance should be given with effect from 1994.

They demanded that the college teachers should be given 30 per cent medical allowance and 10 per cent conveyance allowance and exempted from the payment of income tax. They demanded no recruitment should be done on contract basis and the privatization of educational institutions be stopped.