Teachers of govt-aided colleges in the UT staged a dharna at DAV College in Sector 10 here Thursday demanding better service conditons.

The agitation was part of a series of protests organised by the UT chapter of the Punjab and Chandigarh College Teachers’ Union (PCCTU) against the UT administration.

Suraj Narayan, president of the Chandigarh chapter, said the imposition of a three-year probation period for college teachers with only minimum pay during probation in centrally administered territory violates University Grants Commission & university regulations.

Vice-president Pardip Kumar expressed concern over the delay in releasing the revised dearness allowance (DA) for aided college staff, pointing out that DA from Jan 1, 2025, was still unpaid. He demanded that aided college teachers be treated on a par with UT employees as far as DA revision was concerned.

Secretary Gaganpreet Kaur Kaushal said Panjab University has already implemented UGC Regulations, 2018, for promotions and that the academic criterion for promotion had no financial implications for the administration. She said there was no justification for the continued delay in teachers’ promotions.