Teachers awaiting job letters climb water tank
Thursday, 14/08/2014
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2014/20140814/punjab.htm#10
Talwandi Sabo : Candidates, who have cleared the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET), today climbed a water tank in Jeevansinghwala village and threatened to commit suicide if they were not given appointment letters immediately.
Earlier, the protesters were reportedly lathicharged by the police when they tried to block the Bathinda-Talwandi Sabo road.
The police denied they had cane-charged the protesters. More than 100 persons were rounded up. The rest of the teachers climbed the water tank.
Kulwinder Singh of Patiala, who also climbed the tank, said, “The state government had advertised 4,901 posts of teacher in zila parishad schools in February. In June, a list of 2,600 qualified candidates was put on the website, but none has been given an appointment letter.”
Various political leaders, including Harminder Jassi of the Congress and Baljinder Kaur of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) visited the site and talked to the agitating candidates.
Sources said the appointments were being delayed since the government was thinking of merging the schools under zila parishads with other schools.
Kiran from Jalalabad alleged that there were no women police personnel at the site and that they were roughed up.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Malkit Singh denied all such allegations.
