West Bengal teachers’ association opposes inter-university transfer Bill, calls it an attack on education

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West Bengal College and University Teachers Association (WBCUTA) hold a press conference in Kolkata on September 12, 2026, to protest against the inter-university teacher transfer Bill. | Photo Credit: Special arrangement

The West Bengal College and University Teachers’ Association (WBCUTA) on Saturday (September 12, 2026) accused the State government of attacking education through its proposed teacher transfer Bill and said it would intensify its movement if the legislation was not withdrawn. The association said most of the higher education institutes already work with only 40-60% of their sanctioned teaching strength.

“This is a direct attack on the autonomy of universities. It will destroy the centres of excellence and ruin the academic atmosphere,” Jadavpur University (JU) professor Partha Pratim Roy said, a WBCUTA member, told The Hindu .

The W.B. Universities and Colleges (Administration and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026 was tabled by Higher Education Minister Jagannath Chattopadhyay on September 10. The Bill states that employees, both teaching and non-teaching staff, can be transferred to any university and college across the State due to “administrative reasons” in consultation with the Chancellor and State government. There is no provision to take consent from the concerned employees.

“This is a direct attack on the autonomy of universities. It will destroy the centres of excellence and ruin the academic atmosphere. Brilliant students who are from economically backward will fall even further behind,” Jadavpur University (JU) professor Partha Pratim Roy and member of WBCUTA told T he Hindu. He added that NAAC accreditation and NIRF rankings are also dependent on the teachers available at the institutes, without which the rankings will crash, rankings where JU has always remained at the top.

The teachers have vowed to first write to the Governor, who is also the Chancellor of universities. They will also hold a signature campaign, mass convention and a simultaneous protest march to make their voices heard. Despite these measures, if the government fails to roll back the bill even after these steps, the professors threatened that they would hit the streets. They will also take legal action against this bill after detailed consultation with legal experts.

Teachers have also pointed out transfer of a supervisor could lead to cancellation of the PhD registration of a student, as per University Grants Commission regulations. “Their years of work will go to waste,” said University of Calcutta professor Mahalaya Chattopadhyay.

When the Bill was tabled, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari had taken multiple swipes at Jadavpur University and had said that “so-called pundits” would be sent to newly established institutions which would benefit from their experience.

A day before the Bill was tabled, in a march outside JU, Mr.