The West Bengal government has decided to bar newly recruited schoolteachers from direct political activity, while considering a system that could link teachers’ salary increments and promotions to students’ academic performance.
The decisions were taken at a Cabinet meeting on October 28. Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said the political restriction would apply to future recruits through the West Bengal School Service Commission (SSC), and would prevent them from contesting parliamentary, Assembly, municipal and panchayat elections. Existing teachers already involved in politics will not be affected by the new rule, he said.
School Education Minister Dipak Barman subsequently said the government intended to extend restrictions on political activities to teaching and non-teaching staff in government-run and government-aided schools. He said the rules would be updated as necessary to implement the decision. The precise scope of the restrictions will need to be established through the formal rules and amendments.
Teachers’ increments and promotions may depend on learning outcomes
The state is considering a teacher-accountability system for primary schools from the next academic year. Under the proposed mechanism, teachers could be asked to explain why students in their classes have failed to make adequate academic progress.
Barman gave the example of a class in which 15 out of 20 students had not acquired basic reading skills. The teacher would be asked to explain the reasons for the poor learning outcomes.
“We will ask the teacher why their salary should be increased the following year. They will have to provide an explanation,” Barman said.
The proposal could connect annual increments and promotions to students’ learning progress. However, the government has not announced the assessment criteria, how learning outcomes will be measured or how the system will account for factors outside a teacher’s control. The proposal remains under consideration and is not yet an implemented salary policy.
Single-teacher system and pass-fail system under consideration
The government is also examining a proposal under which one teacher would teach all subjects to a primary-school class, instead of assigning separate teachers for subjects such as Bengali, English, mathematics and geography.
The proposal would change how primary schools organise teaching. The government has not announced whether it will be adopted or how teachers’ workloads and subject-specific requirements would be addressed.
Another proposal under review is the restoration of the pass-fail system in schools. The state has not specified which classes would be covered, when the system might return or how assessments would change.
Barman also said the state planned to recruit at least 13,000 primary teachers. The appointments, he said, would help bring the student-teacher ratio to around 1:20. The government has not provided a final recruitment schedule alongside the policy announcements.
Teachers’ groups question the political restriction
The political restriction has drawn criticism from teachers and civil rights groups, who argue that teachers should not lose their right to participate in politics.
The Association for Protection of Democratic Rights described the decision as undemocratic and called for its withdrawal. Teacher representatives have also questioned whether the state can impose the restriction without changing the legal framework governing employees of government-aided schools.
The government has said the move is a measure to keep teachers focused on their professional responsibilities. CM Adhikari said the new rule would apply to future appointments, rather than retrospectively restricting serving teachers who already hold political positions.
