KOLKATA: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee rolled out on Tuesday the roadmap for filling up the 24,203 school positions left empty after the Calcutta HC's and Supreme Court's SSC rulings and also announced the creation of 20,000 extra jobs in schools.
The process will start on May 30 (a day before SC's May 31 deadline) with a recruitment advertisement and will end with counselling (to start Nov 20). This is the Mamata Banerjee administration's biggest school recruitment drive till date.
"Besides the 24,203 vacant posts, additional vacancies have been created to recruit 11,517 teachers for Classes IX and X, 6,912 vacant posts have been created for teachers for Classes XI and XII, and 1,571 vacancies have been created for Group C and Group D posts. The total vacancies are 44,203," Banerjee said.
"There are many cases where age limit will be an issue," CM said, factoring in the nine-year lag for the 2016 School Service Commission panel. "Age relaxation will be offered so that everyone can appear for the test. We will also give an advantage to those with work experience," CM said, which may work to the advantage of teachers who lost their jobs following court rulings.
Banerjee's announcement also kept in mind those asked by SC to return their salaries and face immediate job loss: "A separate notification will made in the first week of June for those Group C and Group D staffers who have lost jobs or been asked to return money so that they can opt to join three-four other departments. There will be a separate notification for this."
The state did not want to fall foul of SC's May 31 deadline despite having filed a review petition against the order, Banerjee emphasised. "We did not act till now because we thought the review petition might lead to a favourable outcome. But we need to meet the May 31 deadline. Both processes (the new recruitment drive and the challenge to the SC order) will continue. Later, if the review petition yields results, we will accept that. Both options are open. We are doing this to ensure that there is no non-compliance with SC directives," Banerjee explained.
Banerjee, directly appealing to the protesting SSC teachers, said: "Take the exam. Continue going to your school. You will receive your salary till the year-end. Protect your right to return with dignity. Opportunities will come. Some 26,000 teachers will have problems if I do not comply with the court's order. You have to wait for the review. Saying you will not take the exam will not work; you will not have a job. This is not our directive, it is SC's order."
"We will register your review petition again after SC's summer break. We have kept time for this. Our lawyers will fight to the best of their ability. The verdict is not in my hands; it is in the court's hand," she added.
"I will try my best. Why are you afraid? Those who are over 40 will be given an age-limit exemption. We were here, we are here, and we will remain here," the CM said.
Banerjee also took a jab at the opposition. "We did not take your jobs. Those who took away your jobs are now trying to be your friends. Some 10,000 teachers' jobswere cancelled in Tripura and they did not get their jobs back despite promises. Some 69,000 teachers lost their jobs in UP. Panels have been cancelled in other states as well. So many have died in the Vyapam scam and there has been no justice," she reminded the protesting teachers.
The process will start on May 30 (a day before SC's May 31 deadline) with a recruitment advertisement and will end with counselling (to start Nov 20). This is the Mamata Banerjee administration's biggest school recruitment drive till date.
"Besides the 24,203 vacant posts, additional vacancies have been created to recruit 11,517 teachers for Classes IX and X, 6,912 vacant posts have been created for teachers for Classes XI and XII, and 1,571 vacancies have been created for Group C and Group D posts. The total vacancies are 44,203," Banerjee said.
"There are many cases where age limit will be an issue," CM said, factoring in the nine-year lag for the 2016 School Service Commission panel. "Age relaxation will be offered so that everyone can appear for the test. We will also give an advantage to those with work experience," CM said, which may work to the advantage of teachers who lost their jobs following court rulings.
Banerjee's announcement also kept in mind those asked by SC to return their salaries and face immediate job loss: "A separate notification will made in the first week of June for those Group C and Group D staffers who have lost jobs or been asked to return money so that they can opt to join three-four other departments. There will be a separate notification for this."
The state did not want to fall foul of SC's May 31 deadline despite having filed a review petition against the order, Banerjee emphasised. "We did not act till now because we thought the review petition might lead to a favourable outcome. But we need to meet the May 31 deadline. Both processes (the new recruitment drive and the challenge to the SC order) will continue. Later, if the review petition yields results, we will accept that. Both options are open. We are doing this to ensure that there is no non-compliance with SC directives," Banerjee explained.
Banerjee, directly appealing to the protesting SSC teachers, said: "Take the exam. Continue going to your school. You will receive your salary till the year-end. Protect your right to return with dignity. Opportunities will come. Some 26,000 teachers will have problems if I do not comply with the court's order. You have to wait for the review. Saying you will not take the exam will not work; you will not have a job. This is not our directive, it is SC's order."
"We will register your review petition again after SC's summer break. We have kept time for this. Our lawyers will fight to the best of their ability. The verdict is not in my hands; it is in the court's hand," she added.
"I will try my best. Why are you afraid? Those who are over 40 will be given an age-limit exemption. We were here, we are here, and we will remain here," the CM said.
Banerjee also took a jab at the opposition. "We did not take your jobs. Those who took away your jobs are now trying to be your friends. Some 10,000 teachers' jobswere cancelled in Tripura and they did not get their jobs back despite promises. Some 69,000 teachers lost their jobs in UP. Panels have been cancelled in other states as well. So many have died in the Vyapam scam and there has been no justice," she reminded the protesting teachers.
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