Ahmedabad: A recent Supreme Court ruling on teacher eligibility and standards in education has triggered discontent within Gujarat’s academic community. Under the order, clearing the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) is now mandatory for all teachers. The move has raised concern among educators, particularly those recruited before 2010, as their appointments were made under the rules applicable at that time.In response, education unions have urged the central govt to intervene and grant exemption from TET to teachers appointed before 2010. Though representations have been submitted, no firm decision has been announced so far. Consequently, the Gujarat State Educational Federation has called for statewide protests on June 18. Teachers across districts will stage demonstrations and submit memorandums to the Prime Minister and the Union education minister through district collectors.According to available details, the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) introduced TET on Aug 23, 2010, making it a compulsory qualification for teacher recruitment thereafter. Teachers appointed prior to this date, however, met eligibility norms set under earlier regulations. The Supreme Court’s recent ruling now extends the TET requirement to them as well, impacting nearly 25 lakh teachers nationwide, including about 75,000 primary teachers in Gujarat.Federation president Mitesh Bhatt said that while the organisation respects the Supreme Court’s decision, it is concerned about its implications on teachers’ service conditions, seniority, promotions, and job security. He emphasised that pre-2010 appointments were valid under the rules in force then and, therefore, those teachers should not be asked to clear TET.The federation has warned that if the issue remains unresolved after the June 18 protest, it will escalate the agitation to the national level. It added that a state executive meeting in Rajkot on June 28 will decide the next course of action and programmes related to the movement.
