HYDERABAD: Members of the All India Teachers’ Organisations held a round-table meeting on Wednesday to discuss various issues concerning teachers.

The meeting condemned the silence of the Central government and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), which had persisted for four months after the Supreme Court judgment.

The participants alleged that the NCTE failed to inform the Supreme Court that teachers appointed before August 23, 2010, were exempted from the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) as per its notification.

They expressed concern that the judgment could result in lakhs of teachers losing their jobs if they fail to clear the TET within two years, leading to the closure of thousands of schools and depriving poor children of education.

The teachers’ bodies held the Central government and the NCTE responsible for the crisis in the education system following the verdict.

The organisations demanded that the Central Government immediately file a review or curative petition in the Supreme Court or amend the Right to Education Act to safeguard senior teachers.

They also called on teachers across the state to wear black badges and attend duty on January 9 as a mark of protest and to submit memorandums to the Central government.