SRINAGAR Teachers working under Sarva Shikhsha Abhiyaan (SSA) scheme on Saturday staged protests at various places across the Kashmir Valley , demanding delinking of their salaries and benefits under seven pay commission to them.
The teachers at various places including Anantnag, Baramulla, Kupwara, AGnderbal and Srinagar took to streets and staged protests.
In Srinagar, the SSA teachers assembled at Pratap Park and chanted slogans in favour of their demands.
The protesters were demanding de-linking of their salaries and release of their monthly honorarium withheld from past several months. They also demanded benefit of 7th pay commission to them.
We want our salaries to be streamlined. We dont want to take streets against the government and make the education suffer but we have been forced to take such step, they said.
The government, they said, has failed to release their salaries from past three months, forcing them to stage protest. We are facing immense hardships as the government is ignoring our plights. We appeal the government to fulfill our demands at an earliest, they added.
We are being humiliated by the government as if we are inferior class of teachers. We wont take this anymore. If our problems are not solved, we will launch a state-wide agitation, he said.
The protesting teachers said that despite performing their duties in far flung areas they were facing huge problems due to non-release of their salaries. The government talks high about quality education but how can we provide so when we remain mentally disturbed for want of money, they said.
Meanwhile, Government today said urged the Sarva Shikhsha Abhiyaan (SSA) to avoid the path of protests as the government is well aware about their issues.
In a tweet, the Minister for Education, Choudhary Zulfikar Ali said that the dispensation is seriously working to find an appropriate full time solution to your issues.
SSA Issue: I request all concerned to avoid the path of protests as Govt is well aware about your issues, and is seriously working to find an appropriate full time solution to your issues. In this regard, I only a few days before had a detailed meeting with Union Ministry of HRD, Minister tweeted.
Govt Forms Panel To Look Into Teachers Demands
Minister for School Education, Hajj and Auqaf and Tribal Affairs, Choudhary Zulfkar Ali, today said that the Government has constituted a high-level committee to obtain inputs from all stakeholders in order to ensure speedy resolution of SSA teachers issues.
The committee headed by Secretary School Education Farooq Shah would have Director Sarva Sakshi Abiyan (SSA), Director School Education Kashmir, Director School Education Jammu, Special Secretary Education, Director Planning Education Department and FA&CO of Education Department as its members.
The Minister said that the present dispensation is well aware of issues faced by SSA teachers and everything possible would be done to mitigate their hardships.
Zulfkar said that administration is tirelessly working to find an appropriate full-time solution to the issues of SSA teachers and are optimistic that soon they would be able to address them once and for all.
The Minister said that he had a detailed meeting with Union Ministry of Human Resources and Development. He said during the meeting, the issues of SSA teachers were discussed threadbare.
Zulfkar said that he was assured by the Union Minister that the issues would be looked into and whatever possible help in this regard would be extended.
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