Bhubaneswar: As the protest by teachers entered the 21st day, the Odisha government on Saturday assured the agitators that their long-pending demands would be resolved in a short time.
Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj, and Law Minister Prithviraj Harichandan met the protesting teachers at Gandhi Marg in Bhubaneswar and assured them that the state government would thoroughly examine and resolve their issues.
The ministers held discussions with the teachers, who have been staging an around-the-clock dharna on the main road of the state capital for the past 21 days after leaving their schools.
After the meeting, Minister Suraj said that the committee report concerning the teachers’ agitation has already been received by the government.
He said 79 reports running to about 800 pages had reached the government and that a decision would be taken soon. He asked the protesters to send a representative delegation for detailed talks with the administration.
The ongoing agitation, organised under the Odisha School College Teachers’ and Employees Coordination Committee (OSCTECC), entered its 21st day on Teachers’ Day. Teachers from unaided schools and colleges have been holding a round-the-clock sit-in at Mahatma Gandhi Marg / Lower PMG in the capital, demanding among other things, grant-in-aid, pension, filling of vacant posts, parity in service conditions and an increase in retirement age from 60 to 62.
A key demand is grant-in-aid or equivalent financial support for 194 high schools that have functioned for 25–30 years but were left out of earlier GIA orders. The unions also want pension and retirement benefits for teachers and employees of newly aided schools and aided colleges.
The Law Minister said the government would decide only after examining and interpreting the committee report, and could not take a decision without that process.
Stating that the dispute was nearly 20 years old, he said the government was sensitive to it, and urged the teachers to trust the process, end the protest and return home.
The protest continued even on Guru Divas. After the Higher Education Minister’s announcement, many agitating teachers said they were more hopeful — but insisted that assurances were not enough and that they wanted a concrete settlement.
