Special Correspondent
UkhruI, July 23:
Deeply frustrated by years of neglect and broken promises, the Lecturers Association Manipur (LAM), 2018 batch, has begun a statewide pen-down strike from July 21 to July 26, demanding the immediate release of their regular salaries and completion of their long-pending regularisation process. The decision comes after what the association describes as repeated betrayals by the government despite clear official commitments.
Addressing the media in a press briefing held on July 22 , the LAM stated that the state Cabinet had approved their regularisation on January 4, 2022, followed by a Regularisation Order issued by the Education Commissioner on January 8, 2022. This order clearly stated that the entitled pay and allowances of higher secondary lecturers were to be granted starting from April 1, 2023. However, even after over a year, the process remains incomplete and the lecturers continue to be denied their rightful salaries.
The lecturers, recruited on a contractual basis in 2018 and appointed officially on November 25, 2019, are now facing severe financial hardships, with some of them still being paid contract wages—and even that has been pending for the past 8 months.
“We have remained committed to our roles despite the constant neglect. We’ve been teaching, mentoring students, and contributing to society with utmost sincerity. But how long can we survive like this without salaries?” questioned Sorinchin Rungsung, an English lecturer posted at Ukhrul Higher Secondary School.
In Ukhrul district alone, there are 11 lecturers at Ukhrul Higher Secondary School, 3 at Taloi Higher Secondary Academy, 5 at Somdal NK Higher Secondary School, and 4 at Jessami Higher Secondary School—all enduring the same fate.
The association has warned that if no positive response is received by July 26, they will be forced to intensify their agitation.
The LAM demands are simple: complete the regularisation process as approved, disburse the entitled salaries, and treat educators with the dignity and justice they deserve. The silence of the authorities has now triggered a collective outcry.