Chandigarh: The Democratic Teachers’ Front, Punjab, along with representatives of teachers’ organisations from different states, held a meeting in New Delhi to formulate a national strategy and chalk out the future course of action on issues faced by lakhs of in-service teachers following the implementation of the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET).The participants said the issues arose following an “unjust” decision by the Supreme Court.The meeting resolved to oppose the mandatory implementation of the TET for teachers recruited before the enactment of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, as well as for teachers of subjects exempted from the TET requirement.It was decided to launch a nationwide platform to press the central govt to amend the RTE Act so that such teachers are exempted from the mandatory TET requirement. The platform has been named the Joint Teachers’ Front of India.The Front also resolved that, apart from addressing the immediate issues relating to the implementation of the TET, it would function as a national platform to oppose “privatisation-oriented” education policies and to raise issues concerning teachers and public education that fall within the jurisdiction of the central govt.A six-member Central Coordination Committee comprising Jagdish Yadav, Vijender Mor, Vikram Dev Singh, Hitendra Sahasi, Bhaskar Ghosh and Manjeet Rana was constituted to coordinate the activities of the national front.The meeting unanimously decided to organise a nationwide protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Sept 5 (Teachers’ Day). Teachers affected by the Supreme Court decision from across the country were appealed to participate in large numbers.Representatives from Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal and Uttarakhand attended the meeting, while organisations from Jammu & Kashmir, Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and several other states extended their support through messages.The participants also resolved that if the central govt fails to amend the RTE Act during the current session of Parliament to address the issue of mandatory TET for the affected teachers, a nationwide agitation will be launched from New Delhi on Sept 5 and it will continue with sustained programmes thereafter.The meeting further decided to launch awareness and public outreach campaigns at the state, district and block levels to mobilise teachers and other sections of society in support of the nationwide movement.MSID:: 132535975 413 |
