Teachers can't be prevented from forming unions: Tamil Nadu government

Chennai: The state government informed the Madras high court that teachers cannot be prevented from forming unions to protect their rights. K. Nanthakumar, Joint Secretary, School Education department stated this in his counter affidavit filed through additional government pleader P. Sanjaigandhi before the High Court. Passing interim orders on a batch of petitions from Pasupathi Aided Middle School and others, Justice N. Kirubakaran had on June 27 in an effort to improve the standard of teaching in Government schools raised 20 queries to be answered by the authorities.

Replying to a query as to why the government prohibits the teachers from starting associations or unions, Nanthakumar submitted that extending the rationale behind the prohibition of Unions in police and military organisations may not be tenable vis-à-vis the teachers. The police and military forces were the extended arms of the government to enforce order, whereas organised teaching personnel were a part of a civil society under employment comparable to other professions and vocations. The safeguards and representations available to other organised workforces cannot be denied to teachers as that would amount to discrimination, he added.

With regard to another query why not the government makes it compulsory to admit the children of government school teachers in government schools only, he submitted that a teacher was also a parent in all aspects and has the right to exercise his or her free will in terms of choice of school for their wards. This opportunity to decide what was best for their child cannot be denied to teachers. This would amount to discrimination and compulsion against their free choice, he added.

Answering another query what was the reason for parents preferring private schools to the government schools, even in the rural areas, in spite of parents perceiving private schools being better organised the total enrollment in government and government aided schools was 64.16 percent as against 35.84 percent in private schools. This statistic amply sheds light on the fact that government schools only play a predominant role in providing education to the students of the state, he added.