Regularisation without fixed pay scale new kind of privatisation: Teachers’ union

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, July 28

The appointment letters being given today by the Punjab government to contractual teachers in the entire state is a mere propaganda and an unpleasant joke on the contractual teachers. This was stated by the activists of Government Teachers Union (GTU) Punjab here today.

State president of the union Sukhwinder Singh Chahal, general secretary Gurbinder Singh Saskaur, finance secretary Amandeep Sharman and press secretary Surjit Mohali, among others, expressed their apprehensions over the the state government’s decision to regularise the services of these teachers. They said that without civil service rules, without pensionary benefits and with only an increase in salary, terming this as regularisation of service was nothing but a pack of lies.

The leaders said that with this policy, the status of contractual teachers is being reduced, compared to the other teachers of the department. They said these teachers have been teaching in the department for 18-20 years and when the status of the teachers is decreasing, the government can’t claim that the level of education in Punjab is being raised.

The union leaders said that the state government’s move of breaking the tradition of regularising the services of teachers and employees with full pay-scales, was akin to discrimination.

The union leaders said this will affect the services provided to the people and will not create a peaceful educational environment in schools. These teachers were so fed up with the previous governments that they accepted the salary hike under duress, the union claimed, adding that the Chief Minister should stand by his announcement made at Sri Anandpur Sahib last year, in which he promised to regularise the services of these teachers.

The leaders further said that regularisation without a fixed pay scale is a new kind of privatisation under Kejriwal’s trademark method and Punjab was going to be the first state to do so. The union leaders appealed to volunteer teachers to hold on to the path of struggle till they are regularised with full benefits along with salary increase.

Assistant press secretary Karnail Singh Phillaur along with Tirath Singh Bassi, Manohar Lal Sharma, Gurdeep Bajwa, Balwinder Singh Bhutto, Kuldeep Singh Purowal, Gurpreet Ammiwal, Judge Pal Bajeke, Harinder Barnala, Gurdas Mansa, Subhash Pathankot, Sukhchain Kapurthala, Bodh Raj and Prabhajit Singh Rasulpur, among others, were present on the occasion.

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