SHILLONG:
Adapting a strict stance over agitating Samagra Shiksha Abhiyann (SSA) teachers, the government, on July 20, warned them of coercive action if they don’t return to classrooms immediately even as the agitating teachers said that they will take leave of absence from work starting from July 21 to participate in the ongoing sit-in.
“If they (SSA teachers) don’t resume classes, we have no option but to either issue order of ‘no work, no pay’ or withdraw the grant to the school managing committees (SMCs) for those schools which are closed in spite of repeated request by the government of Meghalaya,” said Education minister, Lahkmen Rymbui.
Requesting the teachers to put an end to their indefinite stir, the cabinet minister also reiterated that the government had complied with all the requirements and now, is waiting for the Centre to release the first installment for clearing their five months’ pending salary.
Stating that the government is committed to streamline the system and take measures to ease the burden and pressure on the teachers, Rymbui admitted that there is no easy solution to this problem.
“I have also explained to them (teachers) time and again that the government will not waste time if funds are released from the Centre. We have been communicating with the Education Ministry in this regard, every now and then but till date, haven’t got the exact date when it will be released,” said the Education minister, assuring that the release, however, is under process.
Since the past two days, over 6,000 out of 12,541 SSA teachers have been sleeping on the streets as part of their ongoing indefinite sit-in- to protest against the government’s alleged indifference towards redressal of their grievances which includes release of their five-months’ pending salaries.
He also informed that the Center’s share is 90 per cent but there is a capping of Rs 15,000 for the salary. So, the government of India pays 90 per cent of the Rs 15,000 and beyond that, the 10 per cent plus the Rs 4,000 or Rs 5,000, are to be borne by the state government.
“This scheme is being extended till 2025 or 2026 and every year, the funding will be reduced by 5 per cent. So, the complication is huge but as I said, we will not shy away from responsibilities,” said Rymbui, adding that the government has been very clear that as of now, it does not have the capacity to absorb all the teachers into the education department.
“The education department wants to reduce the categories of teachers but this cannot be done in just one or two years as it involves a massive funding,” he said, informing that the Education department has exhausted its entitlement of the corpus fund as Rs 79 crore were withdrawn to meet the salary of the SSA teachers.
Meanwhile, the Meghalaya SSA School Teachers Association (MSSASA) informed that in absence of a response from the government on their demands, all SSA teachers working in schools will take leave of absence from school to participate in the peaceful protest in Shillong from Thursday.
“Teachers have every right to take leave of absence from school and from tomorrow, we will also cease to participate in all government activities such as election duty, or any other programmes,” said Aristotle Rymbai, president of MSSASA, after a meeting of the association’s general executive committee, on Tuesday.
He informed that all these years, have been attending to their duties without pay for the sake of the students but now, they won’t as they believe the government is not taking their issues seriously. The association has also requested the parents and guardians to support their cause.
“This time, it is do or die for us. We will not be scared of any government’s plan this time,” he said, informing that support has been pouring in from the SMCs and in the coming days, they will relay their message of support through the press.
Hinting at how the government’s stance on the issue may impact the 2023 polls, Rymbai also urged fellow teachers and citizens to be wise when electing representatives.