Pay strike paints uncertain future for art students

The smiles on the faces of Anita Jiandani, Kalpesh Parab and Vishal Bagade, all final-year students at L.S. Raheja, belied the tension they are growing through. ‘‘Right now I can’t think of an alternative plan. I just pray and hope that the strike gets over before March. My whole career depends on it,’’ said a harrowed Jiandani. ‘‘We do support our professors but one has to take care of one’s own future,’’ added Parab.

While the foundation-year students may manage to get through the board exams, it is the final-year students who are the hardest hit. The teachers, however, have been nursing seven-year wounds. ‘‘We have been thinking about our students all the while but this has gone on far too long. Even the peons at J.J. School of Art are getting paid more than us,’’ said an infuriated Uday Wele, HOD of Sophia Polytechnic, waving a faded xeroxed copy of the 1996 document.

Others like Shiresh Mithbawkar, head of the teachers’ union, and Professor S.G. Thakur of L.S. Raheja place the responsibility on Ingle’s shoulders. ‘‘He heads the 19 art schools in Maharashtra. We were hoping that he would put our case before the government,’’ said Thakur.

Ingle heads the Directorate at J.J. School of Art, where the pay commission has been implemented. However, Ingle insisted yesterday that he shouldn’t be the subject of the teachers’ ire. ‘‘I am a government employee and it is not my job to deal with their salaries. They should speak to Ahmad.’’