Brahmagiri: Opposing the OTET (Odisha Teacher Eligibility Test) requirement, the Joint Teachers-Employees Coordination Committee held a protest in front of the Brahmagiri Block Education Officer’s office on Friday. Leading the protest were Kumar Sethi, editor Kishore Kumar Pradhan, Mamata Pattnaik, and Kavita Dei among others.
Despite being eligible for promotion after years of service, teachers are now being mandated to clear OTET for the same. This has triggered state-wide demonstrations and sit-ins.
Organizations such as OSSTA, SOLSTA, AUPTE, and PSSTART participated in the protest. Under the leadership of teacher leader Deba Sahu, the program saw the presence of several teacher association members, including:
Prakash Chandra Mahanti (former state secretary, OSSTA)
Sudhanshu Shekhar Nayak (district secretary, PSSTART)
Prafulla Kumar Pradhan (president, AUPTE Brahmagiri Block)
Keshab Chandra Swain (secretary)
Sarat Dei (president, PSMEA)
The protesting leaders stated that as per letter no. 12637 issued by the School and Mass Education Department on May 3, teachers appointed before 2011 are now required to qualify OTET for promotion. The teacher organizations strongly oppose this directive, arguing that the department is unnecessarily imposing pressure on teachers by issuing such notifications.
They alleged long-standing mental harassment of teachers and demanded the immediate withdrawal of this circular. If the department fails to comply, all teacher unions have warned of intensifying their agitation in the coming days.
The protest is planned to continue until May 19, according to teacher leader Mr. Nayak, who shared this with the media.
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