Summer Bonanza

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Summer Bonanza

2004: IIT KGP:

In 1987 there was a revision in our curriculum and rules & regulations.

A new concept for us called the "Summer Quarter" was introduced.

Students who failed in their semester exam could now stay back and register for the summer quarter in that subject.

Classes would run for two months (instead of four) and students acquire new grades that would replace their F grade.

On the other hand, if they don't attend the summer quarter but prefer to prepare on their own, the grades posted would be one less than they get in the Supplementary Exam held at the end of the summer quarter.

Very reasonable, and a great chance for those students who wanted to learn.

But who would stay back in the summer vacation and teach the summer quarter without any incentive?

The incentive was Rs 600 per credit; which worked to a whopping Rs 2400 for the usual 4-credit courses then!

Several teachers (in need of hard cash) were queuing up before their HoDs requesting them to allot them the summer quarter.

HoDs felt like kings...

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Nearly two decades later, HoDs had to go round requesting teachers to take the summer quarter. Teachers declined. In some departments the HoDs themselves had to unwillingly take the summer quarter.

Pity!

Reason:

The salaries of teachers went up 5-fold meanwhile but the summer quarter remuneration stayed the same Rs 600 per credit.

Then the Chairmanship of our Departmental UG Committee was thrust on me by our HoD, Prof HNA.

I used to attend the meetings presided by the Dean but stayed mostly silent...there were others eager to speak eminent sense.

In one of those later meetings the HoDs complained to the Dean bitterly about their summer quarter predicament.

Dean got angry with the teachers and threatened to make the summer quarter teaching compulsory.

No one liked this since no teacher would then fail any student even if the student got zero in the regular semester exam.

But everyone fell silent modestly.

I felt that since a teacher was being asked to cover the 4-month lectures in 2-months at double the contact hours, he should get at least 1-month of his pay as the summer quarter remuneration.

And I held up my hand.

Dean asked:

"Yes? Professor Shastri?"

"Raise the summer quarter compensation 5-fold"

Everyone was stunned by my temerity: fell silent for a whole minute; and then said that they supported "Professor Sastry's Formula".

The meeting ended there.

Later on I tried discreetly to find what transpired to "Professor Sastry's Formula".

No answer. Well-kept secret.

The next semester was my last of teaching the Jumbo Physics Freshman Course.

There were all of 700 students of whom 20 failed miserably.

So to save my HoD from running around I offered to take the summer quarter myself.

Moreover I wanted the money :)

A week after classes started the Administration let out that "Professor Sastry's Formula" was partly being implemented: the remuneration was hiked 3-fold.

Not bad.

And then Prof G caught me in the corridor and accosted:

"Sir! You didn't allot me summer quarter this time!"

"You declined it last year!"

"Shaar! Ami jaantaam naa kintu"

:)

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