Teachers wear black bands to oppose mandatory TET, demand OPS, ETEducation
Bengaluru: Nearly 1 lakh teachers in state govt schools wore black bands Thursday as a mark of protest.
The teachers, represented by Karnataka State Primary School Teachers’ Association (KSPSTA), demanded a legislative amendment to protect their interests in the wake of a Supreme Court order making teacher eligibility test (TET) mandatory. Teachers who are already in service want an exemption from the test, which is possible only through a legislative amendment.
They also demanded cancellation of the new pension scheme and implementation of the old one. “The implementation of OPS was part of Congress’ manifesto; CM Siddaramaiah and DCM DK Shivakumar had promised to bring it back,” KSPSTA president Chandrashekhar Nuggali told TOI.
The cabinet recently decided to exempt teachers from clearing TET and is planning to file a review petition in Supreme Court, he said. “Across the country, close to 20 lakh teachers wore black bands to draw attention of the Centre and respective state govts,” he added.
Their other demands included recruitment of permanent teachers instead of contractual ones, and equal pay for equal work.
Source link
