The decision came in the wake of the meeting of seven executive committee members of the union with Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal, in Chandigarh today.

PCCTU had earlier decided to resume its deferred court arrest agitation, after the gap of four months, where members of the executive committee along with 21 teachers from Punjabi University area were to present themselves for court arrests.

“We have decided to defer the agitation till February 25. The decision was revised after we held a meeting with state Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal. He assured us that a revised estimate of the budget will be prepared to meet some of the major demands of the teachers,” informed Dr Kuldip Singh, general secretary PCCTU.

He added that they were asked to wait for a week so that a revised estimate of the budget could be worked out. Consequently, there would not be any protests in the colleges, which was previously decided by the union.

The teachers of non-government and aided colleges had earlier decided to observe protest day and declare education bandh in Punjab on February 5. The executive committee of PCCTU had /decided to resume the protest after four months, after the two rounds of discussions with the Education Minister on August 31 and October 1, when they had deferred the agitation.

The union has been fighting for full 95 per cent grant-in-aid, lifting of ban on recruitment and conversion of posts, pension and gratuity for college teachers, leave encashment, among others.