Teachers, Students Protest ‘Privatisation’ of Higher Education at GJUST
Kumar Mukesh | 16 September 2026 | Times of India
Hisar: Teachers, non-teaching staff, contractual faculty and students from universities and colleges across Haryana held a state-level protest at Guru Jambheshwar University of Science and Technology (GJUST) on Tuesday against what they described as moves towards privatisation of higher education.
Organised by the Haryana Federation of University and College Teachers’ Organisations (HFUCTO) under its “Save Higher Education–Save Campuses from Privatisation” campaign, it was the federation’s second state-level protest. The campaign was launched at Kurukshetra University on September 1 and will be taken to other state universities, organisers said.
HFUCTO state president Dr Jitendra Khatkar demanded withdrawal of the August 17 government letter proposing abolition of sanctioned posts lying vacant for four years. The federation also sought full financial support for universities, filling of vacant posts, bringing self-financing scheme (SFS) posts under the budgeted system, implementation of the Old Pension Scheme and raising the retirement age to 65.
HFUCTO general secretary Dr Dayanand Malik said declining university budgets had created a financial crisis and could increase the fee burden on students. AIFUCTO vice-president Dr Narendra Chahar opposed the promotion of the public-private partnership model in higher education and sought adequate public funding.