Awami League General Secretary and Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader sat in a meeting with university teachers` representatives at the party president`s Dhanmondi political office on Saturday.
A 10-member delegation, including Federation of Bangladesh University Teachers` Association (FUTA) Secretary General Prof Nizamul Haque Bhuiyan and Dhaka University Teachers` Association (DUTA) General Secretary Prof Zeenat Huda, joined the meeting.
Prime Minister`s Education and Cultural Affairs Adviser Dr Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury, State Minister for Education Shamsunnahar Chapa, AL Joint General Secretaries Mahbubul Alam Hanif and AFM Bahauddin Nasim, AL Office Secretary and PM`s Special Assistant Biplab Barua were present at the meeting.
According to the previous announcement, the `Pratyay` scheme has been launched from the first day of the current financial year 2024-2025. Teachers of the country`s public universities have been protesting since July 1, fearing that post-retirement financial benefits will be reduced.
The Federation of Bangladesh University Teachers` Association, which is protesting, said the decision to include teachers in the pledge scheme is `discriminatory`. Because at present, the money will not be deducted from their salary for pension, but under the new rules, 10% will be deducted. The employee and his nominee now get a lifetime pension, which will also be reduced if added to the pledge. Under the current rules, pensioners get various allowances and increments, but there is no such system in the guarantee.
The National Pension Authority (NPA) has said that there is no obligation for teachers, officers and employees who joined the service before June 30 to join the new scheme.
