Pics: Umesh Marpalli
Daijiworld Media Network-Udupi (HB)
Udupi, Jul 20: Irked by the redeployment of government teachers, aggrieved teachers on Tuesday, July 19 took DDPI Diwakar Shetty to task at Board High School, near service bus stand Udupi.
The Karnataka State Primary School Teachers’ Association had decided to redeploy extra teachers to other schools. Nearly 220 teachers received message for attending counselling for redeployment on July 19 a fortnight ago.
Udupi district has been divided into five blocks-Udupi, Brahmavar, Bynduru, Karkala and Kundapur. This exercise was applied to 606 primary schools in the district; out of them, 244 are lower primary and 362 higher primary schools.
The teachers say that teachers’ association should consider the current strength of schools and not the old one.
One of the teachers working at Malpe School has now been transferred to Kajaruguttu. The distance from Malpe to Kajaruguttu is nearly 20 km.
“Many teachers of the district have been deputed from their home town to faraway places. It would be a real problem for teachers who are settled with their family and life in a certain place. The entire process will affect their family life and education of their children,” complained teachers.
Sundar Master, a senior teacher says, “In the current academic year, Kannada medium schools have opened LKG blocks after agreement with the government. But the government does not grant funds to run English medium blocks in the Kannada media.”
Speaking about the transfer, DDPI Diwakar Shetty said, “The numbers of students in Kannada medium schools are gradually coming down. Only in 26 schools, the numbers have increased. The total process of redeployment had been done in March 2016.”
DDPI Diwakar Shetty further said: “It is quite common for teachers to express their ire on the association because they have been worried about the whereabouts of their deputed places. I have tried to convince them on the issue. The major reason for schools ending up with excess teachers is because of a drop in enrolment. The reality is that enrolment in government schools is coming down. So some schools will have more teachers than required.”
Sarva Shikshana Abhiyana officer Nagraj was present.