The academic activities of Chittagong University (CU) students are being seriously hampered as on an average 23 per cent of the teachers remain on different long and short-term leave throughout the year.

Many of these teachers reportedly engage themselves as part time teachers in different private universities or other institutes during the leave.

Due to this non-availability of teachers side by side with hampering education also hinders the timely publishing of examination results of many departments that leads to an increasing session jam at the university.

According to sources, at present over 133 teachers out of 567 are on leave.

Many of them who went aboard for study did not return even after their leaves ended and are staying there without informing the university authority.

Of the teachers now on leave, the highest number of 35 are from the Science Faculty while 30 from Arts Faculty, 25 from Commerce Faculty, 20 from Social Science Faculty, 1 3 from the

Environmental Science and Forestry Institute and 5 teachers each from the Law Faculty and Marine Science Institute.

In the Arts Faculty, teachers enjoying leaves include two of Bengali Department, five of English Department, one of History Department, two of Islamic History and Culture Department, seven of Philosophy Department, four of Fine Arts Department, two of the Arabic and Islamic Studies, two of Orientation Language and three of Journalism Department.

In the Social Science Faculty over 20 teachers are now on leave. Of them, the highest number of 11 teachers is of the Economics Department.

The rest include three teachers from Sociology Department, one from Public Administration Department, two from Anthropology and three from Political Science Department. In the Commerce Faculty above 25 teachers out of 100 are enjoying various long and short time leave.

They include two teachers of Accounting Department, seven of Management Department, six of Finance Department and seven of Marketing Department.

In the Science Faculty more

than 35 out of 175 teachers are on leave. Of them, 10 are from Physics Department, eight from Chemistry Department, two from Mathematics Department, seven from Statistics, four from each of the Zoology and the Botany Department while two from each of the Microbiology and the Bio-Chemistry Department.

Above 18 teachers out of 40 of the Marine Science Institute and the Environmental Science and Forestry Institute are also on leave. They include 1 3 from Environmental Science and Forestry Institute and five from the Marine Science Institute.

Following this, different departments of the university, particularly the newly opened ones like Journalism, Biochemistry, Soil Science, Anthropology, Geography, Microbiology and Computer Science departments are now facing a serious teachers' crisis.

When contacted Vice Chancellor Prof AJM Nuruddin Chowdhury told the Daily Star, "Many of the teachers going abroad on study leave for higher education very often do not return while many go on short term vacation to engage themselves elsewhere as part-timers or in NGO

activities.”

Prof Nuruddin said, "We made circulation for some of posts lying vacant due to absence of teachers in the name of enjoying leaves. But response from qualified and experienced teachers was not much for lack of facility offers."

When asked about his plan to address the problem, he referred to his limit of capacity in this regard. Some students said many of the teachers are involved in NGO activities and do not take classes sincerely. "They are always busy with their farms and consultancies to make money. How could they find time to teach us something?" questioned a resented MBA student seeking anonymity.

“But they are drawing monthly salaries just in time," he added. Seventy per cent of the money allocated for the university goes for the teachers.

The VC is learnt to have asked the heads of all the departments to publish the results of examinations as quickly as possible.

But the departments seem to have no headache in this regard, students said adding, "for the lack of the sincerity of our teachers we are hanging over here for years."