Lingering doubts about June salary haunt Madras University staff
Sources from the University of Madras said that at present, there are about 350 academic staff, including faculty members and administrative employees.
Madras University
CHENNAI: With lingering doubts of the University of Madras faculty members and administration about the timely disbursal of salary for June, employees attribute the severe financial crunch in the institution to the financial mismanagement year after year.
As the university could not pay salaries for May 2025 on time, the staff staged a protest recently. However, due to the intervention of the Higher Education Department, which promised to pay the salary, the strike was withdrawn.
Sources from the University of Madras said that at present, there are about 350 academic staff, including faculty members and administrative employees. Accordingly, the university has to spend about Rs 20 crore every month, with a major chunk going to salary and pension.
A senior staff member said that the Higher Education Department was not aware of the financial crunch experienced by the institution in the last few years. “They (the management) paid the salaries by transferring various funds, which were meant for other purposes,” he said, adding, “This was not informed to the Higher Education Department, which was under the impression that the university did not have financial constraints.”
Pointing out that the university reached a stage that it could no longer pull the funds for salaries, he said, “Even the interest from the corpus fund deposits was not enough to pay the salaries in May. However, with the timely intervention of the higher authorities, the payment was made to the staff.”
Stating that the university had already projected a deficit budget of Rs 150 crore for the year 2025-2026, the university official said, “It is still unclear when the June salary will be disbursed.” He added that the Higher Education Department authorities have assured that there would not be any delay in salary payment.
“However, if the salaries are not paid in time, the protest will be intensified further,” he said, adding, “The staff will also urge the management to submit a detailed report about the current financial situation of the university in a transparent manner.”
P Thirunavukkarasu, vice-chairman of the Association of University Teachers (AUT), pointed out that earnings of many state-run universities were hit as most of the students were not opting for distance education. “The bank deposits have also reduced,” he added.
Only the Higher Education Department can save the cash-strapped university by providing enough funds, he said, adding, the department should also monitor the fund management of the institution.
