Dhaka: Education minister Nurul Islam Nahid on Saturday expressed the hope to reach a solution soon over the demand of public university teachers for a separate pay scale and eliminating salary discrepancies.

‘Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is very sympathetic to the teachers’ demands. I hope the problem will be resolved soon as a cabinet committee is working over the issue,’ he told reporters after a meeting with public university teachers at his Mintu Road residence.  

The minister said the discussion was also held with teachers over education, other issues of the universities as well as their demands.

The minister said the government has reconstituted the cabinet committee over eliminating salary discriminations headed by finance minister Abul Mal Abdul Muhith as it gives importance to their demand.  

Federation of Bangladesh University Teachers Association (FBUTA) president Farid Uddin Ahmed and its general secretary ASM Maksud Kamal, president of the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet) Teachers Association Prof Dr M Ehsan, and president of Jahangirnagar University Teachers Association (JUTA) Prof Khabir Uddin were, among others, present at the meeting.

On 7 September, the Cabinet approved the new pay scale for public servants raising the monthly basic salary of the Grade 1 public officials to Tk 78,000 (fixed) while the basic pay of Grade 20 employees at Tk 8,250.

The public university teachers have been on a movement for an independent pay scale for them terming the 8th national pay scale discriminatory ones.