Amid the ongoing row over the Bihar education department's recent circulars, the state education department has deducted the salaries of more than 2,081 school teachers, who were found absent from duty during inspections, and suspended 22 others for various teaching violations in the last four months. Besides, the department has also recommended the dismissal of 17 teachers from service for allegedly violating provisions of teachers' recruitment regulations.
The Nitish Kumar government is already facing criticism for removing the names of 21,90,020 students (till October 24) from government schools for absenteeism. Those whose names have been struck off also include 2.66 lakh students who were supposed to appear for Class X and XII Board exams. Both, alliance partners of the Mahagathbandhan government in Bihar as well as the opposition BJP, have demanded immediate withdrawal of the order.
Inspections of schools
To recall, ever since the department launched the intensive inspection of schools on July 1 following the instructions of Additional Chief Secretary KK Pathak, block to district-level officers have been inspecting schools as per the roster prepared by the department.
Speaking on this, a senior official from the department said, "In the last four months, the department has deducted salaries of 2,081 teachers who were found absent from their duties without permission from competent authorities. Recommendations have also been sent for the salary deduction of 590 more teachers."
"While 22 teachers have already been suspended for various teaching violations, suspension has been recommended against 49 others. Besides, a dismissal of 17 teachers has also been recommended for allegedly violating the provisions of the Bihar School Teachers' Recruitment regulations in the last four months," a senior official added.
Teachers react
Reacting to departmental action against teachers, convener of TET (Teacher Eligibility Test) Primary Teachers' Association Raju Singh told PTI today, October 27, "We are demanding immediate withdrawal of all actions, including salary deduction, suspension and dismissal, initiated against teachers by the education department."
"We are also demanding government employee status for all contractual teachers who have been teaching in government schools for the last several years. If these two demands are not met by the government by Deepawali, we (teacher associations) will launch a 'do or die' agitation against the government," they stressed.
The frequent inspections and monitoring of government schools by district magistrates from July 1, as requested by Pathak in a letter dated June 23, 2023, are still going on in the state.
