Gauhati High Court paves the way for recognition of B Ed degrees

Teachers' training colleges funded by State Government

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: While observing that the validity of B Ed degrees awarded by State Government-funded teachers' training colleges have been rendered dependent on the mere procedural requirement of a Gazette Notification whereby the Regional Committee of the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) recognizes the authority of the teachers' training colleges concerned to award such degrees, the Gauhati High Court has directed the Principal Secretary of the State's Secondary Education Department to make an application within 15 days under the NCTE Act of 1993, as amended by the Amendment Act of 2019, for issuing the necessary Gazette Notification for providing that the B Ed degrees obtained through such institutions of Assam are deemed to be valid degrees under law.

The court has further directed the Union Human Resources Development Ministry to expeditiously issue the required Gazette Notification upon receipt of the application made by the Principal Secretary of the State Secondary Education Department.

The court's intervention came in response to a batch of Writ Petitions filed by several school teachers who had participated in a selection process for promotion as Headmasters of their respective high schools, which was conducted by the Secondary Education Department of the State. All the petitioners were declared successful in the selection process, but their promotions were withheld on the ground that their B Ed degrees have not been accorded the requisite recognition by the Regional Committee of the NCTE.

The teachers' training colleges concerned include the Government BT College, Goalpara; the Government Post Graduate Training College, Jorhat; the Government Banikanta College of Teachers Education, Guwahati; the Government Siksha Mahavidyalaya, Nagaon; and the Government Mangaldoi Teacher Training College, Darrang.

Besides these colleges, the High Court has directed the Principal Secretary of the Secondary Education Department to submit an application in respect of all teachers' training colleges of Assam which are funded by the State Government.

In the context of recognition of B Ed degrees, the court mentioned: "We take note of the amendment to the National Council for Teacher Education Act, 1993 as per the National Council for Teacher Education Amendment Act, 2019 (in short Amendment Act of 2019). Section 2 of the Amendment Act of 2019 inter-alia provides as extracted … 'Provided further that such institutions, as may be specified by the Central Government by Notification in the Official Gazette, which - (i) are funded by the Central Government or the State Government or the Union Territory Administration; (ii) have offered a course or training in teacher education on or after the appointed day till the academic year 2017-2018; and (iii) fulfill the conditions specified under clause (a) of sub-section (3), shall be deemed to have been recognized by the Regional Committee'.

"A reading of the second proviso incorporated by the Amendment Act of 2019 makes it discernible that no further discretion is vested on the Central Government whether or not to issue a notification incorporating the names of such institutions offering the B Ed course which were funded by the State Government and all that is required is an admitted position of the respective State Governments that the concerned institution was funded by the State Government itself and are duly certified to that effect. Upon the existence of such admitted position by the State Government along with a due certification thereof, it remains only a mere formality on the part of the Central Government to issue the notification and on the issuance of such notification, the B Ed degrees that may be obtained through such institutions would be a valid degree under the law."

Therefore, observing that "the B Ed degrees obtained by the petitioners are otherwise valid degrees except for the procedural requirement of the Central Government to issue the Notification as indicated above," the court directed the Secondary Education Department to promote the eligible petitioners provisionally till the requisite Notification is issued by the Regional Committee of the NCTE.

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