The State government has invited the agitating contractual school teachers for talks tomorrow to discuss on ways and means to address their issues.
The contractual teachers under the banner of All Meghalaya Government Lower Primary Contractual Association (AMGLPCA) are currently on hunger strike at Malki Ground here to protest their termination from service.
It may be noted that 1,200 contractual lower primary school teachers failed to clear the mandated Meghalaya Teachers Eligibility Test (MTET) for regularisation of their services in the government-aided schools in the entire State. This led to their termination from service.
Sources said that Additional Chief Secretary Donald P. Wahlang will hold talks with the contractual teachers at his office tomorrow. AMGLPCA president Borbal Riahtam will lead a delegation of the agitating teachers at the talks.
As per the notification issued by the Education Department on July 1, 2020, clearing the MTET is mandatory for lower primary and upper primary school teachers in the State. This condition will not be confined to only the government schools but to all Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and other government-aided schools throughout the State.
However, the contractual teachers who were terminated from service for not clearing MTET contended that they have worked for more than ten years and therefore they are eligible for regularisation of service. They also said that in Assam, the service of around 46,000 contractual teachers was regularised.