TAXILA: Scores of college teaching interns (CTIs) of Attock, who have served in different colleges for around eight months have claimed that they were denied their stipends for five long months.

The Punjab government has initiated a CTI programme to compensate for the lack of staff in colleges across the province. These interns will be positioned as per the demand of teaching staff in respective colleges especially in far flung and remote areas of the district.

The CTIs were hired under the Punjab Higher Education Department (HED) rules for an academic session or until a full-time teacher is appointed while the monthly stipend for these temporary CTIs is Rs45,000 per month.

The interns hired for different male and female colleges of Attock especially far flung and remote areas and who served from March 2022 to October 2022 are denied their stipend despite the fact that their contract expired five months ago.

The teachers have alleged that the authorities concerned have abruptly reduced funds of educational institutions under the head of non-development expenditure in the fiscal year 2022-23 without any cogent reason.

They said that their association has been struggling for the release of funds for the stipend for a long time but the authorities are not paying heed to the issue.

We have worked tirelessly with zeal and zest for the cause of education for eight months but unfortunately, the education department is not taking any steps to release our stipend, regretted CTI Tahira Perveen of Jand.

She urged the authorities to pay the outstanding stipend of CTIs in arrears promptly to give them relief from financial worries.

Khalid Khattak a former CTI at Pindigheb told reporters that CTIs in the district served for eight months but now they are suffering with no money and have no way of running their daily affairs.

He added that inadequate fund allocation by the Finance Division has led to a delay in rental payments and the authorities concerned must understand that financial problems faced by teachers on account of non-payment of their eight-month stipend is an absolute infringement upon their fundamental rights.

A former CTI at Attock college Shahbaz Hussain said: `The CTIs of district Attock have been patiently and silently bearing the brunt of overdue payment for the last five months.

`They are running from pillar to post to get their outstanding dues paid, for their travelling expenses out of their own pockets, leaving them with insufficient money to meet other household expenses.

A former CTI at a local college in Hassanabdal on the condition of anonymity said: `Public money is misused on the fake repair of furniture, vehicles and different false purchases every year but there is always no budget to pay the basic right of salaries or stipend to teachers.

`I have not been paid for my eight-month service.

My husband does not have any job and I am unable to pay my children`s school fees, rent, and medical bills of my family.

`It has become difficult for me to support my family without money,` said a former CTI of Attock college Kanwal Shahzadi.

When contacted, Attock deputy director said that the department does not have sufficient funds for disbursement of stipends to the CTIs.

CTIs of district Attock have appealed to the Punjab education minister to make sure that the issue oftheir salariesis resolved.