The agitating Federation of Bachelor of Physical Education (B.P.Ed)/ Diploma in Physical Education (D.P.Ed.) unemployed youths have threatened to gherao the Chief Minister’s residence on September 2 if their demand for creating post of physical education teacher in all the schools of the State is not fulfilled.
The president of the federation Sundar Dhoni said that the unemployed members of the federation are staging the protest from last 347 days but the State Government is not heeding to their demands. He said that the federation would intensify its stir now and would march towards the residence of the Chief Minister.
There are about 17,500 B.P.Ed and D.P.Ed qualified unemployed graduates in the State and they are demanding that on lines of the neighbouring States like Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh the Uttarakhand Government should also create a post of Physical education teacher in every primary school of State.
The agitating federation contends that according to the World health Organization (WHO) guidelines for every thirty students a physical education teacher should be appointed. Compulsion of Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) qualification by Human Resources development ministry of central government for appointments in the primary and middle schools came as a blow for the job prospects of these youths as physical education degree holders were barred from sitting in the TET examination. Earlier the State Government used to appoint these degree holders in primary schools as assistant teachers like a Bachelor of Education (B. Ed) or a Basic Training Certificate (B.T.C) qualified candidate. To add to their problems the post of lecturer physical education do not exits in the Uttarakhand while other States including neighbouring Uttar Pradesh have this post. The education department is taking a path of outsourcing these youths in the schools of the State. Under outsourcing the physical education teachers are given a paltry salary of Rs5,000 per month.