SHILLONG: Toughening their stand, teachers in over 5000 SSA affiliated schools in Meghalaya will go on an indefinite strike from April 18 in protest against non-fulfillment of their demands by the State government.
The indefinite strike call came on the heels of a protest procession by the teachers under the banner of Meghalaya SSA School Association (MSSASA) from Nongthymmai ground to the Additional Secretariat on Wednesday.
Traffic came to a standstill as the teachers sent a stern message to the State government to fulfill their charter of demands. The teachers were joined by their families in burning effigies of Chief Minister Mukul Sangma at the end of the procession. Shouts of “Mukul Sangma, shame on you” and “Deborah Marak, shame on you” reverberated in the air as the effigies were being burnt.
Members of the BJP youth wing also extended support to the protest rally.
The teachers slammed the State government for using them during elections. “MUA-II is a useless government especially in terms of the functioning of the Education department,” said MSSASA president Aristotle Rymbai.
Members of the association also pilloried the School Education and Literacy Minister, Deborah Marak. Rymbai said whenever they met Marak she would tell them that the final decision would be taken by the chief minister.
“If she cannot take any decision, she better step down. We condemn MUA-II, we condemn Mukul Sangma; we condemn Deborah Marak. If she is not fit to be the education minister, then she should step down,” he added.
The teachers have been demanding immediate release of their pending arrears from April 2016, announcement of revised pay of the SSA teachers, enhancement of salaries of the fourth teachers and announcement of complete results of the D.El.Ed exam conducted by NIOS.
Rymbai pointed out that the salary of trained and eligible SSA teachers who meet the Right to Education (RTE) Act and the National Council for Teachers’ Education (NCTE) norms will be enhanced from Rs 9,200 to Rs 19,440 for LP section and from Rs 9, 900 to Rs 20,493 for UP section.
However, the salary of untrained SSA teachers, most of whom have rendered over 10 years of service, will be increased from Rs 9,200 to Rs 13,335 for LP section and Rs 9,900 to Rs 14,943 for UP level. The association has demanded that the salary of untrained teachers be revised to Rs 18,000 and Rs 19,000 from the current revised salary of Rs 13,335 and Rs 14,943, respectively.
With regards to the salary of the fourth teachers, in the UP level, the association has been demanding enhancement of the salary to Rs 9,900 per month from the current Rs 6000 per month.
Referring to the chief minister’s announcement in the Assembly that the salary of all teachers in the State would be hiked by 100 per cent, Rymbai said, “If they can enhance the salary of the MLAs why not address the issue of fourth teachers in the House.”
Education policy
Rymbai also pointed out the absence of a State Education Policy and questioned the role and inefficiency of the 60 elected representatives.
“We have elected them to legislate. Where is the education policy?” he demanded.
NIOS row
Lashing out at the State government and the NIOS for undue delay in announcing the D.El.Ed results of 7822 teachers, Rymbai questioned the failure of the State government in taking action against NIOS.
Wondering why the teachers were not sent to District Institutes of Education and Training (DIETs), Rymbai pointed out that it could be a case of “serious corruption.”