Rajahmundry: The conduct of classes in schools during public holidays and Sundays turned out to be an issue between teachers who have not participated in Samaikyandhra stir and the authorities in East Godavari.
While the teachers argue that they should be exempted from attending classes in view of their non-participation in the stir, the education department authorities asked them to compensate the loss of 33 working days lost due to the stir by working on Sundays and public holidays.
According to teacher’s union representatives, though the stir started on July 31, school teachers numbering about 5,000 out of 17,000 working in government, municipal, ZP, mandal parishad and allied managements either took part in the agitation in a phased manner or did not participate at all.
They quote that they took part in stir on August 8, 10, 12 and from August 23. Some more took part from September 3 to 18 in the district. East Godavari United Teachers Federation (UTF) general secretary K. Satti Raju said though orders were issued taking 33 working days as lost and should be compensated by working on holidays, several teachers who did not take part in the Samaikya stir or took part in it only on some specific days are not willing to work on holidays as specified. Satti Raju demanded that those who have not taken part or took part for fewer days should be exempted from conducting the classes on holidays.
When contacted, DEO, K.V. Srinivasulu Reddy said that to compensate the loss of 33 working days they sought the co-operation of teachers to complete the syllabus and made them to work on holidays. “We fixed December 10 as the date to complete the syllabus right from Class I to X. For Class VI to Class X the relative document has to be obtained from none other than DEO,” he said.
