Teachers and students of Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology formed a human chain on Saturday demanding immediate appointment of a vice-chancellor for the university to break the academic and administrative deadlock.
Over a hundred of them formed the human chain in front of the main entrance of the university at 12:00 noon to press home their demand.
Addressing the human chain, the speakers said that academic and administrative activities at the university had come to standstill as the university had been being run without a full-time vice-chancellor for the past one year.
Md Faruk Hossain, president of the RUET Teachers’ Association, said that the tenure of the last regular vice-chancellor of the university ended on July 30, 2022.
On the following day, the education ministry assigned applied science and humanities faculty dean professor Md Sazzad Hossain as the vice-chancellor for the time being in order to manage daily administrative and financial activities at the university.
Professor Md Sazzad Hossain, however, resigned on May 29 after a group of teachers staged a sit-in inside his office room demanding their due promotion and upgradation.
Professor Faruk said that the situation created a vacuum in the administration and hampers the academic activities.
‘Day-to-day activities, including publishing results, providing mark sheets and certificates, holding meetings of different committees, approving promotions and requirements and issuing no objection certificates have stalled in the absence of the vice-chancellor’, he said.
Professor Md Robiul Awall, general secretary of RUET Teachers’ Association, said that the RUET authorities usually promoted and upgraded teachers by issuing employment circulars every year.
‘At least eighty teachers have been being deprived of their due promotion and upgradation for the past 15 months despite fulfilling all conditions as there was no regular vice-chancellor at the university since July 31’, he added.
Professor Robiul said that they had submitted memorandums to the prime minister, the education ministry and the University Grant Commission demanding the appointment of a regular vice-chancellor but their demand was yet to be met.
The teachers urged the authorities concerned to appoint a regular vice-chancellor at the university soon.
Among others, RUET Officer Association acting president Roknuzzaman Rokon and general secretary Dilip Kumar Ghosh, Employee Association leader Koushik Kumar Ghosh, mechatronics engineering department lecturer Sarafat Hossain Ovi, and electronics and telecommunication engineering department third-year student Miftahul Jannat spoke at the human chain.
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