Bhubaneswar: Employees of Special Schools under the Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (SSEPD) department, along with members of the Odisha Special Schools Teachers and Employees Association (OSSTEA), submitted a fresh appeal to Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi Monday, seeking immediate intervention to address their long-pending service, retirement and welfare-related issues.
They also staged a protest at Lower PMG here. OSSTEA president Suresh Chandra Debata said the memorandum urged the Chief Minister to convene a high-level meeting of all concerned departments to ensure social security and safeguard the dignity of retired and serving staff members, who are facing severe hardship.
The representation also referred to earlier communications from the Chief Minister’s Office, verbal assurances from the Chief Minister, and letters from senior ministers and officials on the issue. Among their key demands, the employees sought amendment of the existing Grant-in-Aid (GIA) guidelines issued in 2022 in line with the Odisha Education Act, 1969, particularly regarding education for children with disabilities.
They also demanded framing and implementation of service rules for employees of 100 per cent non-government aided Special Schools, including leave, recruitment, service conditions, retirement benefits and cadre rules.
They urged that these provisions be brought at par with employees of aided schools and Madrasas under the School and Mass Education department. The employees also sought immediate release of pension, gratuity and other retirement benefits for retired staff members, many of whom they said are facing financial distress.
They demanded clearance of pending MACP arrears, approved by the Finance department in 2017 but allegedly stuck at the departmental level for eight years, and urged abolition of the contractual system in Special Schools across the state. Debata said employees have been serving children with visual, hearing and intellectual disabilities for decades and appealed to the Chief Minister for urgent redressal of their legitimate demands.