Regularisation of MP’s Contractual Teachers An Eye-wash, Say Protesting Teachers

Though the BJP-led Madhya Pradesh government recently decided to regularize 2.37 lakh contractual teachers in the state eyeing the upcoming assembly elections, the hardship and issues of the teaching community remain unresolved. 

Demanding the fulfilment of their demands, thousands of teachers under the banner of Adhyapak Sangharsh Samiti, a platform of various teachers’ organization, demonstrated in Bhopal’s Shahjahan’s park on Sunday. They also protested against the decision to not include the newly regularized teachers in the education department. 

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“The government regularized the contractual teachers without considering our grievances. Though the contractual teachers under Rajya Shiksha Seva have been regularized, they still come under panchayat and other local bodies. We demand that we should come under state education department like other teachers,” said Vasudev Sharma of Adhyapak Sangharsh Samiti while talking to NewsClick. 

The teachers fall into three categories -- Primary Teachers, Secondary Teachers and Higher Secondary Teachers. Under the scheme, the teachers had been recruited since 1997 and from 2013, no such recruitments had taken place, Vasudev said. Pointing out the issues that excluded the contractual teachers from other teaching community, the teacher’s community has been raising their voice since 2006-07. 

“Since we are under panchayat, our salaries are not at par with other government teachers. Now, we are getting salaries as per the fifth pay commission scale. Without including us in the education department, how could we get the salaries as per seventh pay commission scale?”, Vasudev added questioning the government ’s earlier assurance. 

Currently, the senior teachers who are having years of experience get the salary of Rs 40,000-55,000. The junior teachers come under the scale of Rs 25,000-28,000. 

Instead of adding the newly regularized teachers in the education department, a separate cadre -- Rajya Shiksha Seva -- has been formed for them. The teachers were compelled to be a part of the new cadre and since they were coming under a separate cadre, the teachers were not entitled to the service benefits including gratuity, insurance, and pension among others. 

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“As we come under cadre, our long years of teaching experience also get worthless.”

Apart from this, the protesting teachers also demand all the facilities like other teachers, the implementation of seventh pay scale with effect from January 2016, provision for promotion graduation, inclusion of the word “appointment” for the new recruits after July 2018, removal of discrepancies in wages, closure of e-attendance system and increase in retirement age from 62 to 65. 

They also demand that the restriction on empowerment in the Tribal department should be lifted.

In addition, the teachers have warned the government that if they are not ready to consider their demands, then they would start fasting indefinitely.  

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