Joint Teachers’ Front Raises Education Issues, Announces State-Level Teachers’ Seminar in October

The Jharkhand Pradesh Sanyukt Shikshak Morcha has stepped up its campaign on issues concerning education and teachers, alleging that the Education Department is acting arbitrarily and that teachers are facing harassment.

A crucial meeting of the Joint Teachers’ Front was held at the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh office in Dhurwa, Ranchi, with state and district office-bearers of all five organisations affiliated with the front in attendance. These include the Rashtriya Shaikshik Mahasangh, Jharkhand Rajya Urdu Shikshak Sangh, Jharkhand Pradesh Prathmik Shikshak Sangh, Jharkhand State Primary Teachers Association and Rashtriya Shaikshik Mahasangh (+2 cadre).

The meeting was chaired by state convenor Mangleshwar Oraon. Several resolutions concerning the interests of teachers and the education system were unanimously adopted, with the front demanding immediate action from the state government.

State convenor Amin Ahmed and state spokesperson Arun Kumar Das said thousands of schools across Jharkhand have been functioning with only one teacher for years, seriously affecting the teaching-learning process. They questioned the lack of action by the department despite the government’s emphasis on quality education.

The front demanded adequate subject-wise deployment of teachers in schools. It also called for the appointment of teachers on a need-based, hourly basis as an immediate arrangement wherever shortages exist.

The teachers’ organisations further demanded that teachers be relieved of non-academic duties so that they can focus exclusively on classroom teaching. According to the front, this is essential for improving the quality of education and protecting the future of students in government schools.

Among the key demands is extending the benefit of Modified Assured Career Progression (MACP) to teachers on the lines of other state employees and teachers under the Welfare Department. The front also sought upgraded pay scales in accordance with the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission.

It further demanded that a special Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) be conducted for teachers appointed before 2010 in accordance with the directions of the Supreme Court.

The front also called for the pending school development funds and cooking-cost allocations to be released at the earliest, with the amounts revised in line with prevailing market prices. It also demanded an end to what it described as the alleged financial harassment of teachers in the name of financial and social audits of schools.

The Joint Teachers’ Front expressed deep grief over the sudden demise of former Higher Education Minister Sudivya Kumar Sonu. It also urged the state government to appoint a suitable minister to the School Education and Literacy Department, where the ministerial position has reportedly remained vacant for a prolonged period.

The front said a full-time minister was necessary to provide direction to the department and address the problems affecting the state’s education system.

The meeting also decided to organise a large-scale state-level teachers’ seminar in Ranchi in October. Hundreds of teachers from across Jharkhand are expected to participate in the event, where issues related to education and teachers’ rights will be discussed.

State convenor Vijay Bahadur Singh, Amin Ahmed, Mangleshwar Oraon, Dr Sudhanshu Kumar Singh, state spokesperson Arun Kumar Das, Mumtaz Ahmed, Anjay Agarwal, Sanjay Kumar Rai, Ramkumar Sahu, Jeevan Nath Tiwari, Subhash Kumar, Lakshmi Narayan Tiwari, Ram Kumar Jha, Dharmdev Prasad, Ganesh Chandra Shukla, Pankaj Kumar, Rakesh Kumar Srivastava and a large number of teacher representatives from Ramgarh, Gumla, Lohardaga, Ranchi and other districts attended the meeting and shared their views on education and teacher-related issues.