Maintaining that government would have to regulate the pay structure of IITs, HRD Minister Kapil Sibal on Tuesday said it was not proper for professors of the elite institutions to resort to hunger strike and asked them to "rethink" on their planned agitation on Thursday.
"We always dream that the IITs should produce Nobel laureates. We do not expect our prospective Nobel laureates to go on hunger strike. They should be hungry for knowledge," he said.
The Minister said he did not think that it was right for the IIT professors to take such a step. "They should rethink," he said expressing hope that they would not resort to such an action.
Sibal said the government has "never interfered" with the autonomy of IITs "but the pay system has to be regulated because we are answerable to Parliament. So we have to have some eligibility condition for entry and promotion in faculty. They are opposed to eligibility. This is unfair."
Meanwhile, IIT directors termed the decision by faculty members to go on a day-long hunger strike on the issue of pay structure as a 'wrong step' and appealed to them to do a rethink and resolve problems through talks.
"No issue can be resolved by going on hunger strike. The faculty members should first convey their grievances to their respective directors, who would in turn forward their genuine demands to the HRD ministry," Prof Sanjay Dhande, IIT Kanpur director, said.
He said the decision of the All India IIT Faculty Federation to go on a hunger strike on Thursday was 'completely wrong'.
"We appeal to them not to go ahead with their agitation and initiate talks with their respective directors on the issue," he said.
IIT Guwahati director Prof Gautam Baruah has asked the faculties to put on hold their agitation programme since there is a meeting between the faculties and the directors on Friday at IIT Delhi.
"They wanted to meet the directors and we are meeting on Friday. I have sent an mail to the faculty members to keep the agitation programme on hold," he said.
The IIT faculty federation decided on Monday to observe a one-day hunger strike on Thursday to protest anomalies in the pay structure. The federation has been demanding flexible cadre system and regular appointment of Ph D holders at entry level.
