Punjab’s aided schools face staff shortage
Friday, 25/05/2012
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2012/20120525/punjab.htm#13
Studies of more than five lakh students is being hit as government aided schools in the state are running with less than half the sanctioned staff strength. There are around 484 such schools which have just about 4,500 teachers as against the sanctioned posts of 10,000 teachers. To protest against the non-filling of posts, the teachers have decided to go on mass casual leave on May 26.
"The existing strength of teachers is not sufficient to handle the increasing number of students in these schools. Over-burdened teachers cannot discharge their duties efficiently. No one is paying any attention towards the deteriorating quality of education in aided schools. We have decided to go on mass casual leave on May 26. We will hold a state-level rally at Sain Dass Senior Secondary School in Jalandhar to highlight our problems," said Arvind Bains, president of the Jalandhar unit of the Punjab State Aided School Teachers and Other Employees Union.
There are 484 private schools recognised by the Punjab School Education Board and which are getting 95 percent of the salary of their staff as grant-in-aid. These schools follow stipulated norms and rules prescribed by the government.
Though the government had extended pay commission benefits to employees of these schools, they are yet to get HRA and other allowances as per the revised pay scales.
"The government had agreed to extend benefits of the 5th Pay Commission to aided schools in November 2010, but we are still getting allowances as per the 4th Pay Commission. The government has also given revised grade pay to its employees from October 2011, but these have not been implemented in aided schools till date," said Deepak Sanan, an office-bearer of the union.
