Not liable to pay salaries, pensions of grant-in-aid institutions, says govt

Thiruvananthapuram: State govt clarified that it won't be responsible for the salaries, pensions and other expenses of grant-in-aid institutions. The announcement comes amid ongoing legal disputes where employees of these institutions —nearly 200 of them— have filed cases against govt for unpaid salaries and dues.On Nov 13, the finance department issued directives outlining the procedures to be followed in such legal cases. Govt emphasized that expenses related to salaries and pensions must be covered by the institutions' own self-generated income. If employees pursue legal action against govt secretaries, it should be made clear in court that govt isn't liable to it.According to govt, grant-in-aid institutions are established for specific purposes and are expected to generate income to sustain themselves. While govt provides a fixed budget grant to assist these institutions, the funding is not intended to cover salaries or pensions. Many of these institutions historically relied on govt grants as their primary source of income, raising concerns about their long-term viability.Govt's directives aim to prevent situations where employees of grant-in-aid institutions file lawsuits demanding salary increases or pending dues, thus leading to govt orders to release funds. State govt reiterated that due to such legal situations if funds need to be disbursed, the responsibility for recovering those funds will be with the respective institution's authority. This places the onus on grant-in-aid institutions to manage their finances effectively and seek alternative revenue sources to meet their operational costs.Meanwhile, Federation of Kerala University Employees Organisations urged govt to reconsider its decision on the financial responsibilities of grant-in-aid institutions. They argue that public universities in Kerala rely solely on govt for salaries, pensions and other developmental activities. The federation criticized govt's stance, stating that the assertion that funds allocated under the "grant-in-aid-salary" budget heading are not govt's responsibility is unreasonable. They warned that applying this decision to universities could create a severe crisis in the higher education sector, halting academic research activities and making higher education inaccessible to poorer students.The announcement raised concerns among various stakeholders about the potential impact on the operations of grant-in-aid institutions and their ability to fulfil their educational missions. The federation highlighted that salaries were not paid regularly for the past year at Kalamandalam deemed university, emphasising the financial challenges these institutions faced.As the situation develops, it remains to be seen how these institutions will adapt to the directives and what steps they will take to ensure financial sustainability.
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