Speaker Directs Odisha Govt To Look Into Agitating Teachers’ Demands

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Assembly Speaker Bikram Keshari Arukha om Monday gave a ruling directing the state government to look into the demands of the agitating primary schoolteachers.

The House witnessed ruckus by opposition BJP and Congress legislators  during the question hour over the issue relating to the teachers, who are staging a demonstration at Lower PMG in Bhubaneswar since Sunday.

Raising slogans, the opposition members rushed to the well of the house disrupting proceedings. Amid uproarious scenes, the Speaker adjourned the House till 11.30 am and subsequently gave the ruling regarding the teachers’ issue.

It may be noted that the agitation by the primary reachers of Class I to VIII over their three-point charter of demands entered second day on  Monday. The demonstration was staged under the banner of the NPS Secondary Teachers’ Association.

The protesting teachers want the government to treat the six-year duration of employment as a teaching assistant as a regular appointment and regularise them along with six increments by abolishing contractual appointments.

They are also demanding salary equal to the central scale and implementation of old pension policy.

The teachers, who have been employed at Rs 1,500 a month since recruitment of teaching assistants started in 2001, alleged that they are being paid less than high school teachers despite having similar qualifications. While appointments of high school teachers are being regularised from the date of their original appointment, the six-year period as a teaching assistant is not being counted in their case.