No salary for 8 months
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, August 24 2012: Altogether 1603 teachers (1379 Primary Teachers, 175 Hindi Primary Teachers and 49 Hindi Graduate teachers) who were appointed in December last year have not been getting their salaries for the past eight months.

These teachers were appointed after subjecting them to a lengthy and controversial recruitment process which started with a written examination conducted by the Board of Secondary Education, Manipur in 2006 .

Viva voce test for the written examination successful candidates was conducted three years later from February 16 to September 12, 2009 by a DPC Board of Directorate of Education (S), Government of Manipur.

Again, the viva voce result was not declared for a long time.

It was declared only after the Gauhati High Court issued a directive to the State Government and the DPC result was officially declared on September 4, 2011 .

The appointed teachers were given their postings as per a Government order issued on December 15, 2011 .

Talking to TSE, some of these teachers decried that none of them have been given their salaries even though they have been rendering their service since December 16, 2011 .

In addition to causing severe financial hardship to the teachers, their morale has been put under serious stress which in turn imperils the academic atmosphere on account of such prolonged delay in paying salaries.

The anguished teachers said that such prolonged denial of salaries violates Article Nos 23, 21, 41 as well as 42 (Right to live with human dignity) of the Indian Constitution .

The State Government's manner of utilising the service of 1603 teachers without giving them any salary or other admissible allowances for the past eight months is not acceptable at all, they asserted.

Asking if the much touted goal of quality education can be achieved under such adverse conditions and hostile attitude of the Government, the teachers alleged that Finance Minister, Education Minister, Finance Commission and all relevant bureaucrats have been committing a serious mistake.

Their disposition to the teachers in particular and education sector in general is only jeopardising lower education in the State.

By denying salaries for the past eight months, the Government is violating the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education as well as many other provisions of the Constitution of India, they asserted.

They also made a fervent appeal to all their authorities concerned to released their pending salaries without any further delay.

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