Talks with teachers bodies likely to end in stalemate on Teachers Transfer

Amaravati: Though, minister for human resources Ganta Srinivas Rao will have parleys with teachers associations on Thursday, the stalemate in the process of transfers is likely to continue as associations are reluctant to follow the prescribed guidelines of the state government.

Highlights:

• The associations reject guidelines for transfer like web counselling, performance points and compulsory transfer after six years of service
• PRTU state general secretary K Srinivasa Raju terms performance points as irrational
• HRD minister Ganta Srinivasa Rao to hold talks with teachers associations on Thursday

The teachers associations are rejecting the guidelines issued by the government for Teachers Transfers-2017 like web option counselling, performance points and compulsory transfer after completion of 6 years of service at particular station.
According to United Teachers Federation (UTF) state president I Venkateswara Rao, their foremost demands are removal of web counselling process, performance points and compulsory transfer after 6 years of service.

“We reject the web counselling system as where the teachers do not have any specific option of place of transfer. The teacher has to select several options and also opt for select all option, which will not give him a chance of selection of place where he wish his place of transfer. Concerning to the spouse (husband or wife) transfer cases, there is no chance of getting nearby place in this web counselling system. The manual transfer system is only the best process for transfers and we demand the government to restore the old practice,” he said.

While the other norms like performance points is also severely objected by the teachers associations. Speaking to The Hans India, K Srinivasa Raju state general secretary of Progressive Recognised Teachers Union (PRTU) said that the performance points was irrational.

“The government is giving 50 points to the teachers of a particular school based on their performance in SSC exams, availing leaves, conducting science exhibitions, providing mid day meals, maintaining toilets, collecting donations and other provisions, which are highly unscientific. In what way the school teacher is connected with mid day meal which is maintained by anganwadis? If a school collects Rs 2.5 lakh donation it will get 3 points.

Is it possible to collect such a huge sum as donations from the local villagers in the rural and backward areas? We demand the performance points to be confined to SSC results, school seniority and total service of the teacher but not all these irrational issues,” he asserted.

The compulsory transfer after completion of six years service in a particular station is also severely objected by the teachers associations. “We are against to the rule of compulsory transfer of teachers after completion of six years of service in a particular place. We demand to restore the earlier rule that after eight years service only the teacher should be transferred,” said I Venkateswara Rao of UTF.

There is every chance of getting of gross injustice to the teachers as the HRA varies between various places, Srinivasa Raju said. According to government norms the HRA is 30 per cent in metropolitan cities, 20 per cent in corporations, 14.5 percent in municipalities and 12 per cent in rural areas. “The teacher may forego his HRA while transferred from one place to another place through web counselling where he don`t have any option of his choice of place,” said Srinivasa Raju.

By T Sudhakar