Even as Finance Minister Sashi Bhusan Behera took an alibi that the Block Grant teachers had made a condition not to demand any grant from the Government during joining but are now demanding Grant-in-Aid (GIA), the United Forum of School and College Teachers and Employees on Tuesday described the statement of the Minister as “unfortunate”.
Forum leader Prakash Mohanty said that though thousands of teachers and employees of 4,000 schools and 1,500 colleges have been on a dharana since August 16 demanding job regularisation, the State Government has been totally cold so far.
Instead, the Ministers (including Behera) are making irresponsible public statements, he lamented. He also condemned an earlier statement by Higher Education Minister Anata Das that the teachers keep changing their demands, meaning that after one set of demands is fulfilled another set is put forth.
Mohanty told that the State Government is yet to make up its mind on the demand of GIA with service conditions and pension to the teachers though it is taking plea upon plea that it is sensitive to the issue and is eager to sort it out soon.
Taking a dig at Minister Behera, Mohanty said as per the Government guidelines, making such condition is mandatory for receiving grant from the Government. As a result, the governing bodies of the schools and colleges make the employees provide a written condition as a matter of formality.
He told that if the Government considers the demand of the teachers as illegal, why it is not going to the court on the count. Mohanty further clarified that earlier whenever the Government made GIA policies, it did not lay any stress on the condition. However, now it is told to pass the buck, he quipped.