Imphal, Jun 01: With the SPF Cabinet earlier taking a decision to provide pension benefits to the employees of the six Autonomous District Council, the Tribal Development Department has taken up the process of working out the nitty gritty for the same.

A reliable source from the Tribal Development Department informed that the process to provide pension benefits to the employees of the six District Council was set in motion in line with the earlier Cabinet decision.

The six Autonomous District Councils were set up under the Manipur Hill Areas District Council Act, 1971 in 1972 and at present there are about 3600 employees working in six different departments.

The employees are engaged in the Medical Department, Works Department, Veterinary, Agriculture, Forest and Education, said the source.

The employees of the District Council were not entitled to pension benefits earlier and the SPF Cabinet took the decision to grant them pension benefits considering the service rendered by these employees, informed the source.

Minute discussion is underway with the State Finance Department to decide on the year from which the pension benefits will have retrospective effect, added the source.

Presently there are 2709 primary school teachers engaged by the District Councils, said the source and added that there are 278 vacancies for teachers.

To fill up the vacancies DPCs are being held, said the source and added that save for Chandel district, the process of holding the DPC has been finalised in the other five districts.

The result for Ukhrul district has however been put on hold following a case being filed in the High Court.

The 2709 teachers are spread out across Chandel (348), Sadar Hills (523), Churachandpur (440), Senapati (406), Ukhrul (492) and Tamenglong (500).The 278 new teachers to be recruited will be spread out to Chandel (44), Sadar Hills (52), Churachandpur (70), Senapati (34), Ukhrul (35) and Tamenglong (43).The process of holding the DPC for Chandel has been stalled as 144 teachers who were appointed in 1981 have objected to the holding of the DPC.

TD Minister Phungzathang Tonsing had earlier informed the Assembly that the Govt has set into motion the process to axe the services of the 144 teachers as their appointment violated the RR.

On the objection raised from some quarters that the DPC was held without conducting any written test, the source explained that there is no hard and fast rule laid down that written tests should be held to recruit primary teachers in District Council.

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