Karnataka School Education and Literacy Minister Madhu Bangarappa has said the state government plans to introduce legislation to prevent government and aided-school teachers from being routinely assigned non-teaching duties, including election-related work.
Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru on September 25, Bangarappa said the immediate demand was to relieve teachers from the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. He said the state government had written to the Election Commission seeking their exemption but had not received a response.
“Deployment of teachers from govt and aided schools for SIR is severely disrupting children's education. As this task drags on, classroom teaching is suffering,” Bangarappa said. He also expressed concern that the disruption could affect students' performance in examinations, with mid-term examinations currently underway and preparatory examinations due shortly.
What will the proposed bill do?
The proposed legislation, referred to as the Karnataka Protection of Teachers from Non-Educational Deployment Bill, is intended to regulate when teachers can be assigned duties outside teaching.
A draft reported by The Times of India proposes creating a district-wise non-teacher public duty roll comprising personnel from government departments, statutory boards, corporations, PSUs, retired public servants and trained volunteers. These personnel would have to be utilised before a teacher could be considered for non-educational deployment.
The draft also proposes that no government school should be left without classroom instruction because of such deployment. At least one permanent teacher would have to remain physically present during school hours, while lost teaching hours would have to be restored within 30 days.
Bangarappa said the proposal would be placed before the state Cabinet before being introduced in a future legislative session. He acknowledged that government employees may sometimes have to be used for election duties, but said the prolonged deployment of teachers during the academic year was creating difficulties.
Why is SIR deployment being opposed?
The issue has been raised repeatedly in Karnataka as teachers have remained away from schools for SIR-related work.
A report in August found that some government schools were facing staff shortages, with teachers taking classes outside their assigned subjects and headmasters stepping in to teach. In one Bengaluru school, five of seven core teachers had been deployed for SIR work.
The Commissioner for School Education, Vikas Kishor Suralkar, had earlier said that 15-20 per cent of teachers in Bengaluru had been deputed for SIR work and acknowledged that the exercise had “definitely an impact” on academic activities.
Bangarappa said complaints had also been received from students and parents about schools being left without enough teachers, including instances where children were sent home after the midday meal.