Chandigarh: In the Punjab University Teachers’ Association (PUTA) elections, under the tagline “Give Change a Chance,” Team Batting for Change released its manifesto today at the Student Center.
Sharing details of the promises made in the manifesto during a press interaction, along with his team members, presidential candidate Dr. Praveen Goyal said that if elected, they would strive to raise the retirement age of university teachers from 60 to 65 years and extend re-employment up to 70 years as per UGC norms. He further promised to restore the Old Pension Scheme in line with recent Punjab Government notifications, revise the pay scale of Dental faculty, ensure timely implementation of promotions to Senior Professor as per UGC guidelines, enhance child-care leave, restore Ph.D. increments, provide seed grants for research to newly recruited faculty, establish transparent systems for the upkeep of residential quarters, empanel hospitals with cashless facilities, and bring infrastructural improvements across the campus.
The manifesto also pledged to hold regular GBMs and executive meetings to ensure accountability and communication, revive the PUTA newsletter, strongly advocate for UGC-FRP faculty, library staff, computer programmers, and CAS promotions, and introduce smart campus management initiatives, including smart cards, e-rickshaws, and traffic regulation within the university.
Notably, Team Batting for Change has fielded Dr. Praveen Goyal from UIET for President, Dr. Sarvnarinder Kaur from Biophysics as Vice-President, Dr. Suman Sumi from AC Joshi Library for Secretary, Prof. Vishal Sharma from Forensic Sciences for Joint Secretary, and Dr. Sonia B. Bhardwaj from the Dental Institute for Treasurer. This year, the PUTA elections are triangular, with three contestants for each post.
The team includes several teacher activists who have previously achieved significant milestones for the benefit of the teaching community. The group has pledged to restore transparency, accountability, and inclusiveness within PUTA, which, they argue, has lost its vibrancy and weakened as the collective voice of teachers. Highlighting the decline in democratic spirit, ineffective engagement, selective inaction, and lack of strategic advocacy, the team has called for a renewed focus on the rights and welfare of faculty members.
Team Batting for Change emphasized that their campaign is not about slogans but about practical solutions. They reiterated their commitment to fairness, equity, and dignity for every member of the teaching community while vowing to resist the culture of complacency and individualism.
The team members unanimously stated that PUTA belongs to all teachers, and its strength lies in their unity and participation, aiming to build an association that is transparent, vibrant, and truly representative of the community.
Dr. Praveen Goyal said he was contesting because many teachers approached him, expressing dissatisfaction that the previous PUTA team had grown complacent, failed to raise issues effectively, made decisions without engaging colleagues, adopted a selective approach, and misused the platform for personal benefit.
It is noteworthy that the PUTA elections will shape the direction of teachers’ advocacy and the academic environment in the coming year.
