SUHAIL RATHER
Bandipora, 13 June: Scores of teachers appointed under Rehber-e-Taleem Scheme and Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) held a sit-in protest demonstration on Wednesday in Bandipora district against their pending salaries and demanded to streamline their salaries.
The teachers assembled at main Chowk and raised slogans against PDP-BJP government for failing to streamline their salaries.
The teachers, under the banner of J&K ReT Teachers Forum assembled near Gulshan Chowk Bandipora and raised slogans against the government. They said the government has not released their salaries for the past five months, causing immense hardships to them.
Shouting slogans in support of their demands, they appealed the Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti to personally intervene into the matter and issue a necessary order for the immediate release of their pending salary besides streamlining the same by delinking the salary budget from the source of funding.
While addressing the protest demonstration, Khalid Rafiq, President of the RET Teachers forum Bandipora demanded the immediate release of pending salaries. He said on one hand, government speaks about improving standards of education while on the other hand they are doing injustice with the teachers by denying them their salaries.
He urged the Education Minister to fulfill their demand for delinking of SSA teachers salary from central source of funding and release of same from the State budget.
The protesting teachers urged the government to delink and release their pending salaries. “We want our salaries to be streamlined and benefits of 7th pay commission,” said Hamid, a SSA teacher. “Our salaries are released in parts. We don’t want to come on the streets but the government has left us with no other option.”
“We are being humiliated by the government. We won’t take this anymore. If our problems are not solved, we will launch a state-wide agitation after Eid,” said another protesting teacher.
District President ReT forum, khalid Rafiq said that despite assurances from the education and finance ministers in the recent past, nothing substantial has been done so far. Khalid said that the teachers are performing their duties in far flung areas and facing many problems since their salaries are withheld. “The government has been resorting to dillydallying tactics with regards to our salaries and other demands including delinking of salaries and benefits of 7th pay commission and today we are forced to come on the streets at a time when we should be teaching in the schools,” said Khalid.
Pertinently, the SSA teachers and the state government are at loggerheads over the government’s denial to grant the benefits of 7th pay commission to the SSA teachers.
The agitating teachers demanded immediate release and streamlining of their salaries. “We and our families are facing hardships due to cruel policies of government and we are being mentally tortured every now and then”, said Arsalan Habib a teacher from Middle School Aragam.
They threatened to stage state-wide protests if the government fails to release their salary till Eid.
District President J&K ReT Teachers Forum , Khalid Rafiq also addressed the protesting teachers. He also demanded streamlining of their salaries and appealed the chief Ministet to personally intervene in the matter to resolvenit once for all. He also presented a charter of demands before the gathering which was endorced by the teachers.
The protest demonstration was also addressed by many other teachers .