TN government teachers' associations urge education department to ensure salaries are given on time

Several government teachers' associations have urged the school education department to ensure that the salaries are provided to government-aided school teachers at the end of this month amid fears of a delay. According to the letter sent to the elementary education director by the Tamil Nadu Primary Schools Teachers Federation, more than 8,000 government-aided primary and middle schools are functioning in the state, as stated in a report by The New Indian Express. 

"Salaries are usually deposited to the bank of these teachers using Integrated Financial & Human Resource Management System (IFHRMS). While salary lists are usually prepared before the 20th of every month, it has not been done according to the employees in the treasury department in many districts," said the letter. Considering that this is a matter of livelihood for these teachers, the officials should take proper action and ensure that the government-aided teachers get salaries on time, it added.

Salaries for teachers in government-aided schools were delayed by more than 20 days after an administrative revamp in the school education department in November. "While the headmasters of the government schools give the teachers' list for salaries, the district educational officers do it for the government-aided schools. When educational districts were revamped, this caused problems in disbursing salaries earlier. This month, there is a lack of funds as we are approaching the end of the financial year. We are hopeful that the problem will be solved soon and salaries will be provided at the earliest," said Perumalsamy, President of the Tamil Nadu PG Teachers' Association. 

Tamilnadu Elementary School Teachers Federation also stressed the same in a statement. "It has become an unwritten rule that there is no immediate solution to the problems caused due to IFHRMS. This has made the teachers sceptical if there is any ulterior motive to delaying the salaries," it said. Meanwhile, officials from the school education department said that already a meeting was held with the finance department to discuss the issue and there is no reason for the teachers to worry, as stated in a report by The New Indian Express.