7 jobless teachers protesting outside CM’s house detained

Tribune News Service

Patiala, February 22

Demanding jobs, TET-pass unemployed teachers held a protest outside the residence of Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh here today.

Circumventing the tight security, more than 10 protesters reached outside the main gate of the CM’s residence and shouted slogans against the state government for ‘ignoring’ their long-pending demand for job. The police have rounded up seven protesters.

The protesters, who were rounded up by cops, have been identified as Sonu Bawa, Jatinder from Jalalabad, Narinderpal from Sangrur, Akwinder from Barbara, Sonia from Patiala and Rajvir from Muktsar.

At the same time — when some protesters sneaked past the police to reach the gate of the CM’s residence — hundreds of their colleagues gathered at the Nehru Park, near Patiala bus stand. The protesters then marched towards the Chief Minister residence. However, the police stopped the protesting teachers - on their way to CM residence – at YPS roundabout, which is only 100 meters away from the CM residence.

The protesting teachers demanded the state government to immediately advertise 12,000 posts for teachers and issue a notification of 595 backlog posts. The TET-pass unemployed teachers, who have been protesting in Sangrur since September, last year, said the government was ignoring their genuine demands.

Rajvir Kaur, a protesting teacher, said, “The government has been very insensitive towards one of the revered classes of the society – teachers. The CM has not met us even once. We will keep protesting to get our demands fulfilled.”

Meanwhile, teachers also demanded relaxation in the upper age limit. The upper age limit should be fixed at 42 years, which was currently 37 years, said the teachers.

Deepak Kamboj, state president of TET pass unemployed ETT teacher union, said, “We have been protesting to get jobs for long time. Government should look us at sympathetically.”

In the evening, the rounded-up teachers were let off, and the protesters called off their protest after they met MP Preneet Kaur. The MP assured to take up the issue with the Chief Minister.

‘Govt ignoring our demands’

The protesting teachers demanded the state government to immediately advertise 12,000 posts for teachers and issue a notification of 595 backlog posts. The TET-pass unemployed teachers, who have been protesting in Sangrur since September, last year, said the government was ignoring their genuine demands.