Protests erupt against regularization of SSA teachers
Students’ union in Srinagar, Jammu to formulate joint strategy to protest Govt decision
Tahir Hussain
Srinagar, January 30: Anger is brewing among the students of the J&K state against the Government’s decision to regularize the SSA teachers against available vacancies in the Department of Education.
Protests erupt in various parts of the state including in Jammu as students and research schools and college students protested against the recent State Administrative Council decision in which around 4522 posts of teachers of grade II are to be created by corresponding reduction of equal number of direct quota(non teaching posts) in different categories to adjust regularized RET’s(RReTs) and Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan SSA teachers.
The protest started from the Jammu university as the students organised a march towards Governor house to register their protest against the SAC decision, However were stopped by the police at various places which led to scuffles between the police and the students.
Protesting students said the Government has put the future of thousands of students in dark as the vacancies have been closed to accommodate less qualified people in the department to hide its wrong doings in implementation of SSA and Rehber-e-Taleem scheme. They said the government couldn’t implement the scheme in a transparent manner and employed kiths and kins through scheme and created schools without any feasibility report and now to hide its corruption the government is choking the employment avenues for the next generation for many years.
The order number 166/22/2018 dated 07-12-2018 of SAC directs various recruitment bodies like JKPSC, JKSSB to withdraw all the upcoming recruitment advertisements of teachers which are not yet notified or have not conducted any process for filing up those posts.
Rakesh Verma, a Law student of Jammu University told Kashmir Convener on phone that, "It is a sheer injustice to those highly qualified candidates, who are studying day and night to get higher degrees just to get into teaching profession or to get Government jobs .This SAC decision is direct attack on dreams of unemployed”. He said there are no other sources of employment in Jammu & Kashmir and hence Government sector where the educated youth can get employement is the only hope which is being choked by the legalizing corruption.
Students said the demand to adjust these teaches in state budget should be considered but not at the cost of lakhs of educated youth. “The implementation of SAC orders will only hike the unemployment rate at an alarming rate which will have devastating impact on people’s lives”.
“ It will affect not just the unemployed person, but also family members and the wider community. As unemployment becomes more long-term, its impact becomes more far reaching,” said another student of Jammu University.
Sheikh Aabid, a Kashmir University PG student who was part of the today's protest said, " If these posts are occupied by less qualified and people who mostly were recruited illegally State will not be in a position to create more posts for unemployed youth,” he added.
The students of various students’ unions in Kashmir and Jammu have decided to meet and make a joint strategy to launch state wide agitation against the government decision.
Students appealed Governor Satya Pal Malik to appoint a judicial commission to investigate the wrong doings in the implementation of the scheme since its inception till date that will open a Pandora box and also appealed to cancel the decision in order to save future of lakhs of unemployed youth’’.
