Dear Friends In response to the letter published I just want to supplement something with it. The letter revealed the fact. In the last of the conversation (between Respected , Privileged Lecturer & Clerk Librarian) was absolutely correct. In colleges in West Bengal the condition is unbearble. In the said conversation, librarian said they enjoy 30 days E.L. But here in West Bengal,we the college librarians are suffering silently and living like a invertebrate. Here we have 14 days C.L. & 15 days E.L.We are Non-vacational staff. However we have been recruited through the College Sevice Commission with the same eligibility like lecturers. Gradually we have become the laughing stock of our lecturer colleagues.No Recess. No vacation.No service rules.No leave rule.You can treated like anything and which is more pathetic is that other non-teaching staff in the library they are having 30 days E.L. It is more surprising fact is that a post (Librarian) has been created and being recruited through college service commission without any service rule/leave rule. So the motive behind it is quite understandable. On the other side a lecturer in a college in west bengal get- 14 days C.L. 15 days E.L. (Upto 7 years of their service) 52 days off days/lib day for their study & research 45 days Summer Recess ( hardly 7-10 days Univ. exam duty and admission duty and not for all lecturers) 30 days (approx.) puja vacation 7 Days Winter Recess ---------------------------------------- Total---153 days (leaving 10 days in summer recess) Approximately - 5 months 1 week + 2 years FIP leave + Sabbatical Leave + 1 year Study leave (extendable) + Special study leave Thus from the above we can say that lecturers are getting salary of 12 months by working only 7 months where as Librarians are getting salary of 12 months by working 11 months. It is inexplicable step-motherly discrimination. It must be changed to sustain our profession. In the Recent time, UGC pay review committee recommended many things for the lecturer except the real parity of librarians with the lecturers.UGC and all the state govt. are ignoring our real issues intentionally and they expect us to perform only without any academic freedom.It is injustice. I can remember before some days one of our friends in the lis-forum was looking for the precedence where a librarian has been santioned a FIP leave. It is so unfortunate.My dear friend, no academic freedom for us. Its not our domain. We are Librarians-clerk. Our Senior Colleagues in our profession says that it is our ideal and duty to serve like servant. May I ask all of you, particulraly the library key persons in various policy making bodies in the state and centre -when will we get the justice? Do you feel our real problem or Do you represent us properly in the close door meeting? I doubt you don't because you fear you may loose your post/portfolio. Though many of our organizations including AIFUCTO and IALA , IASLIC has demanded the right thing i.e., Redesignation of Librarian. If it is not achieved we will be suffering forever and the future will not forgive us. Everone of us will have to face the future . It is inevitable. Change is coming every where . I dream change will be here also. Salary is very important matter. But I think liberty,freedom and above all respect is more important. New generation librarians (with respect to all of our seniors) want to change but the system is not allowing them to make any change.They want freedom . They want respect. They want parity in every respect. They neither want to be a dignified clerk nor a mere book keeper.They want open air where librarian and librarianship will be taken seriously. A possible remedy to improve the situation could be: Introduce the subject as Honours/Pass in the UG Colleges after 10+2 Redesignate The librarian Post as Assistant Professor in Library & Information Services and similarly for the others subsequently. Service rules/Leave rule must be exactly same of lecturers and it has to be explicitly mentioned otherwise it will be intentionally misinterpreted by the higher authority. Library will be kept open in the recess and in vacation time by the non-teaching staff of the library. Recess time/vacation time will help librarians for their advancement of their knowledge. Librarian must be vacational staff like other lecturers . Authority may question how a library will be kept open with its Head-librarian?.But think about the other departments also when the departments are kept open without the presence of the Head of the Department. Thus it is illogical , outdated and motivated decision to make librarian non-vacational. Include Librarian in the definition of Teacher in the concerned statute of the respective university I strongly believe change will come and it will come very soon. with best wishes to you all. Dr.Sabuj Kumar Chaudhuri Librarian (W.B.C.S.C.) ---------------------------------------------- Dr.Sabuj Kumar Chaudhuri Librarian (W.B.C.S.C.) Basanti Devi College (Govt. Sponsored)[http://www.basantidevicollege.org] (An affiliated college under the University of Calcutta) 147B, Rash Behari Avenue Kolkata-700 029,West Bengal India Phone:(033)24197449 ; Mob-9434457215 email:sabooj_c@yahoo.co.in ;sabuj_c@yahoo.co.uk website:www.geocities.com/sabuj_c/sabuj.html ---------------------------------------------- -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean.