The Education Department held a hurried meeting with representatives of the Federation of All School Teachers of Meghalaya (FASTOM) today but there was no good news for the ad hoc teachers, who want their schools to be upgraded to the deficit system.
FASTOM held a public rally to pressure the government to cave into its demand.
Government officials held an hour-long meeting with the federation at the Additional Secretariat while the FASTOM members massed at three locations – IGP, the Secretariat and Meghalaya Board of School Education (MBOSE).
FASTOM leader Mayborn Lyngdoh was not happy with the results of the meeting, describing it as hollow as the government was unwilling to give assurances to the teachers.
“There was nothing productive that came out of this meeting. What only came out was that we got a half-hearted assurance where they said that the file (concerning the upgrade proposal) has been moved from the Directorate to this office and then will be moved to the Planning and then Finance Department,” Lyngdoh told the media.
He added that it will take another six months for the file to reach the concerned department, which will be pointless. Lyngdoh said that the government is trying to buy time.
According to FASTOM, the government requires Rs 250 crore for the upgrade of the schools from ad hoc to deficit system. Lyngdoh claimed that the Education Department has given the government one figure and the Education Minister has informed another to the Assembly.
The teachers are now determined to resume their non-cooperation movement, wherein they will boycott non-teaching activities, such as election duty, plantation driver, etc.
Meanwhile, Commissioner and Secretary, BDR Tiwari, informed that the government is examining the proposal and is hopeful something fruitful will emerge.
“I can’t say about their enhancement of salaries or upgrading the ad hoc teachers but we will expedite the matter,” Tiwari said.
The Education Department has been following up on the ad hoc teachers’ demands “continuously” and it will soon be submitted to the Planning and then Finance Department.
