Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI: The Assam government has clarified that provincialised tutors lacking the required qualifications cannot be promoted to regular teacher positions, citing mandates under the Right to Education (RTE) Act and National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) guidelines.
Education Minister Dr. Ranoj Pegu stated that tutors without a B.Ed or D.El.Ed degree, or those who have not passed the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET), are ineligible for appointment or upgradation as regular teachers. “Tutors with no B.Ed, D.El.Ed degree, or those who have not passed the TET examination, then we cannot upgrade them to regular teachers. This has to be understood,” Pegu explained on Friday during an MoU-signing ceremony between Samagra Shiksha, Assam and six organizations to promote AI, technology, and innovation in school education.
Pegu noted that while the provincialisation process was started earlier, it revealed that some tutors did not meet the qualification standards outlined by the RTE Act and NCTE for full teacher appointments. “That’s why they have been recognised and recruited as tutors by the state government. They will keep getting their regularised fixed payment of 6%,” the minister said.
He also cited a Supreme Court directive that teacher appointments cannot be made without clearing the TET.
The regularization of provincialised tutors has been a longstanding demand, with many seeking parity with regular teachers. Addressing the issue of pending promotions, Pegu said that such decisions are made according to government rules through Departmental Promotion Committees (DPCs). He added that Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has instructed all departments to complete pending promotions promptly ahead of the state’s plan to recruit two lakh new posts.
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