SAHIWAL: In the 600 colleges of Punjab, over 1,900 posts of professors, associate professors and assistant professors in grades 20,19 and 18, respectively, have been lying vacant for six years.

Why is the higher education department not promoting regular teachers against vacant posts? Instead of filling vacant posts with regular teaching staff, why is the department inducting contract teaching instructors (CTI) to meet the shortage of college teachers.

These were among some of the questions raised by Tauseef Sadiq,president of the Punjab Professors and Lectureres Association (PPLA), Lahore division, while addressing a gathering of college teachers of Ittehad-i-Asatiza Sahiwal division at a hotel on Tuesday.

Mr Sadiq stressed that the new academic year was going to start in 600 colleges of Punjab and instead of inducting CTIs the education department must promote regular teachers to fill vacant posts.

Presently, 100, 600 and 1,200 posts of professors, associate professors and assistant professors were lying vacant. He argued that when these posts would be filled by promoting regular teaching staff the shortage of teachers would be met.He alleged that the bureaucracy was creating unnecessary hurdles in the timely promotion of college teachers who had spent more than 15 years to get their first promotion from Grade 17. He said that during a meeting with the higher education minister in Lahore, the PPLA was assured that a five-tier promotion formula on the pattern of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would be introduced in Punjab.

Hafiz Abdul Khaliq, the PPLA Punjab president, told Dawn on the phone that for 10 months the association had been in negotiation with the higher education department over a structure for timely promotions.