Agartala: After losing the job of 10,323 teachers in various government schools, another 5437 teachers engaged under Sarva Siksha Mission (SSM) during the last 15 years in Tripura are now in the process of termination due to bureaucratic pulling and instability in the government.
When the Tripura government had refused to regularise the service of SSM teachers, they moved to the high court and in February this year, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Akil Kureshi and Justice Satya Gopal Chattopadhyay directed the education department to regularise their service and pay them regular scale on the day they completed ten years of their service within six months.
After the judgment, the department was in deep slumber for about four months and the officers moved the files in June last. The department is reluctant to regularise them as they did not clear the Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) though most obtained Diploma in Education. Although, when they got jobs B Ed and Dl Ed were not mandatory, but acquired the required degree with the advice of the department.
Allegedly, now the government is trying to push them out from the service taking the plea of not clearing TET despite high court directions. About five and half months have already elapsed but the state government has failed to take any decision. Instead, some officers have attempted to prevent them from raising the question of their eligibility of teaching as per existing norms, they alleged.
“Besides, teachers there are a few non-teaching staff engaged in SSM and before the last assembly election BJP in its Vision document had assured if they form a government they will regularise the service of all SSM and RMSA staff but now they are not only shifting form the stand, also dragging the case to court again,” the teachers added.
