Teachers to stay out of schools for 14 days

SHILLONG, AUG 5: Intensifying their stir, schoolteachers on Friday decided to stay out of schools by staging a 14-day general

strike from August 22 to September 4 to protest against the state government’s delay to provincialize their services.

The decision was taken at a rally called by the Joint Action Committee of All Teachers’ Associations of Meghalaya (JACATAM) and attended by thousands of teachers from Khasi-Jaintia and Garo Hills at Fire Brigade on Friday.

Announcing their third phase of agitation, JACATAM chairman ED Nongsiang said, “We have decided to call for a general strike from August 22 to September 4, in which no teachers will attend schools during these days.”

On the Teachers’ Day celebration (August 5), Nongsiang said, “We will again take more drastic action in announcing our fourth phase agitation if the state government fails to invite us for talks.” He said the government has pushed the teachers to the wall and it is time they have to kick back.

When the JACATAM chairman sought the confirmation from the teachers whether they are ready for the agitation – in response, they stood up, raised their hands and shouted yes.

Earlier, the teachers had also staged three-day statewide dharnas as the first and second phase of  agitations against the adamant attitude of the state government towards their demand.

JACATAM has been demanding for the past three years for provincialization of services of over 14000 teachers working in 4500 government aided schools under ad hoc, deficit system and deficit pattern.

The demand also assumes significance after the Directorate of Schools Education & Literacy (DSEL) had submitted the proposal for provincializationof teachers’ services to the state government on February 29 earlier this year.

Lambasting the state government for allegedly paying too much interest in festivals, Nongsiang said, “If the government says that it has no money for provincializing the teachers services then from where it got so much money to organize festivals every now and then… why is it for teachers it has no money.”

Referring to the two meetings held last year with the chief minister Mukul Sangma, he said that the CM had assured the delegation that he would meet them again on October 2015, but now it is already August 2016. “We wonder what might have changed his mind,” he said.

Earlier, the deputy chief minister in-charge Education RC Laloo had maintained that the state government will only take a call on the demand after consulting with the various school managing committees (SMCs).

On this, the JACATAM leader said, “This only reflects that he (Laloo) considers the teachers as third class and below his dignity to meet us, which he has done in the past. If he says he is ready to meet the SMCs and not the teachers, then why is he holding on to the portfolio of education?”

He added, “The deputy chief minister is responsible for the education sector and if he is ready to invite the SMCs, then he should also be ready to invite teachers.”-By Our Reporter