Bhubaneswar: Demanding the abolition of block grant system, hundreds of block grant secondary school teachers and employees organised a protest rally at Lower PMG Thursday.
They questioned education department’s continuing apathy on issues related to block grant teachers and employees, and demanded justice from the government.
“Block grant system is completely illegal and has affected the education system. Before the introduction of block grant we were eligible to receive grant-in-aid (GIA) under GIA order 1994. However, after the implementation of the block grant many of us are not getting the required benefits,” said Block Grant Secondary School Teachers and Employees Association (BGSSTEM) president Prasanta Pati.
While government teachers are getting a much higher salary, the block grant teachers who have completed more than 20 years of service are protesting for equal pay.
“Unfortunately, the block grant system has created an unfair treatment and we demand equal pay for equal work. We are qualified and have service experience like the government teachers. However, education department continues to neglect block teachers and employees. So we are demanding justice against the stepmother attitude of the education department,” said an agitating block grant secondary school teacher, Prasant Chandra Panigrahi.
With panchayat elections approaching, many teachers have decided to boycott poll duty. “We have decided to boycott election duty and will organise mass protest across the state if the government continues to ignore our demands,” said BGSSTEM general secretary Prasanta Kumar Mohapatra.
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