'High-level panel formed without taking teachers into trust'; Demand for 30 days Earned Leave may suffer a setback: SASSM

GUWAHATI: The Sadou Asom Sanmilito Shikshak Mancha (SASSM) is not happy with the state government constituting a high-level departmental committee to look into the teachers demand for raising the number of earned leave (EL) of teaching and non-teaching staff in schools up to 30 days from the existing ten days without taking the teachers' bodies into confidence.

The Sadou Asom Sanmilito Shikshak Mancha is an umbrella body of twelve teachers' organisations in the state. In a statement issued to the media today, Mancha's president, Ranjit Barthakur, said, "We have long been demanding the government to raise the number of days of earned leave (EL) for teaching and non-teaching staff in schools up to 30 days, as is the case with other state government employees. At present, teachers and other staff working in schools get ten days earned leave. From time to time, both the Education Minister and the Chief Minister agreed to our demand. Many a time, they did assure us of paving the way for raising the number of EL of school employees up to 30 days. The Education Department even called us (SASSM) on March 13 for discussion on the demand. The irony, however, is that the government announced the constitution of the high-level departmental committee to look into the demand for raising the number of EL for teachers and other school staff up to 30 days before the meeting of the teachers with the department on that day."

Barthakur said, "It is a setback for our demand. Had the government taken the decision to form the high-level departmental on March 13 after our meeting with the Education Department, we could have briefed the government on the latest stage of implementation of the demand. The Education Department already sent all documents to the government for raising the number of days of earned leave for teachers and other staff members' in schools for up to 30 days. The demand was at a stage when the government had already initiated the process for implementation. However, the constitution of the high-level departmental committee may make it look into the demand afresh. There is a likelihood of our demand suffering a setback."

Meanwhile, the high-level departmental committee, headed by the Mission Director of SSA as its chairman, comprises the Director of Secondary Education as the convener and member secretary, the Senior FA of the School Education Department as a technical member, two inspectors of schools to be nominated by the chairman as members, and two academicians to be nominated by the chairman as invited members.

The high-level departmental committee shall examine the demand raised by the teacher fraternity to raise the number of earned leaves. The committee will compare the claim with other cadres and inter-state cadres and the views of the associations, as well as the linked services and functions of the schools, including the gender leave admissible.

Barthakur said, "After the announcement of the high-level departmental committee, we raised the issue with the Education Minister. He told us to take the government into confidence on the issue. We are committed to giving justice to the demand. The other issues that we raised at the meeting with the Education Minister, who also gave us assurances on that, are: school merger, school uniform for students, class-wise appointment of teachers, appointment of head teachers in primary schools, the problem of contractual teachers, the problem of tutors, filling of teachers' vacancies, appointment of grade 4 employees, simplification of the appointment of Hindi teachers, raising pay bands and grade pays, uplift of science laboratories, inclusion of classes XI and X in senior secondary schools, doing away with the problems in the Shiksha Setu App, and regularization of the jobs of computer teachers."

The minister assured the teachers of holding another meeting on the issue with them after the Lok Sabha election.     

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