HYDERABAD: It isn’t school teachers alone who have been deprived of a summer break.
Even faculty of the National Institute of Tourism and Hospitality Management (NITHM) claim they have been asked to give up their vacation plans and instead double up as ‘marketing agents’ to attract more students, reports The Times of India.
In a representation to the institute director, teachers said NITHM was depriving them of the entitled leaves. “We would like to bring to your notice that during 2016, summer vacation was curtailed to one week instead of four weeks and in December, winter vacation was completely denied to the staff,” read the representation.
Though not explicitly mentioned in the representation, teachers alleged that their break was cut short so they could visit exam centres and attract prospective students. “Apart from distributing pamphlets, we often double up as tele-callers too. This is against our mandate,” said a faculty member on condition of anonymity. The added responsibility, many complained, has left them overworked and stressed.
When asked about the allegations, Chinnam Reddy, director of the Gachibowli-based institute, said: “Every institute assigns such jobs to its faculty members. Few teachers are even sent to other cities to attend admission fairs and attract students.”
He argued that vacations are given in slots. “The exams have not concluded so far. Once it does by mid-May, the board will decide on the duration of leaves for each faculty member.”
