After a month-long cease-work, the Block Grant teachers have returned to their schools and colleges and resumed teaching from Monday.
Many cursed their fate while others were shocked and surprised at a stubborn State administration that kept ignoring them despite such a prolonged agitation.
The leaders of the All Odisha School and College Teachers’ and Employees’ United Forum, which is spearheading the stir, explained that the earlier stand of not joining duty till fulfilment of the demands was changed considering the interest of their students.
However, the forum maintained that the stir would continue with representatives taking turn to join the venue at the MG Marg in Bhubaneswar. Besides, demonstrations would be held before all Collectorates across the State on October 2 and another huge rally would be taken out in Bhubaneswar.
“The Government’s autocratic nature is out in the open now. After remaining in power for 18 years, the BJD has turned blind to the plight of the masses that voted it to power,” lamented a teacher.
Another said, “We are surprised as to how a Chief Minister could remain silent over our issue despite a long agitation of over a month and thousands, including women, squatting on the street days and nights amid inclement weather.”
Meanwhile, a Press release of the School and Mass Education Department said the Government is spending Rs 719.78 crore per annum to cover about 33,948 employees in 3,701 schools and 16,330 employees in 1,715 colleges under the GIA Policy 2017 after revoking the Block Grant system from January 1, 2018 under which the employees are paid pay, grade pay and usual DA. It appealed to the agitating teachers to first receive the benefits and clarified that fresh demands would be examined by an inter-Ministerial committee.
However, the teacher leaders said the Government is trying to evade the moot question of abolishing the Block Grant system and implementing GIA, under which jobs of the long suffering teachers would be regularised. They said that under the GIA Policy 2017, the Block Grant salary was doubled, but it does not provide any service conditions and post-retirement benefits.
“Our fight is for job regularisation and not just a mere hike in pay. We would continue our agitation till the Government comes to terms with the wide-scale resentment among the masses against its policy on education and fulfils our genuine demands,” they told.