VIJAYAWADA : Even as the state government’s plan to set up a dance academy at Kuchipudi in Krishna district is being widely hailed, many people are of the opinion that the government should first consider recruiting dance teachers as well as other faculty members at the Siddendra Yogi Kala Peetham and also increase their salaries to further strengthen the institute and attract more students.
The Siddendra Kalakshetram at Kuchipudi was merged with the Potti Sriramulu Telugu University (PSTU) in 1989 and renamed as Kala Peetham. Since then, it has been offering various courses in Kuchipudi dance and carnatic music. While there is a requirement of six dance lecturers, two classical carnatic music (vocal) lecturers and two mridangam lecturers, only half the strength is working now.
Except for principal of the institute, all the teaching faculty are working on contract basis and they are paid only `10,000 to `12,000 per month for eight months in a year.
“As we do not get salaries for four months in a year, we go to conduct performances during summer season at other places and make some money to run our families. We want the government to take steps for regularising the services of contract lecturers immediately,” said a member of faculty on condition of anonymity.
Though the Kala Peetham is offering a Ph.D course in Kuchipudi dance, the principal post is not a UGC cadre post. Present principal, Vedantam Ramalinga Sastry, who is a Ph.D from Osmania University, has over 35 years of experience in the field.
About 150 students, including those from other states, are pursuing various courses. When contacted, principal Vedantam Ramalinga Sastry said that the government has to take a decision on filling the posts.
No comments:
Post a Comment