Brahmagiri: A dharna (sit-in protest) was organized in front of the Brahmagiri Block Office by the Combined Teachers’ Coordination Committee to press for their 10-point charter of demands. The protest was held under the leadership of teacher leader Maheswar Maharana.
The key demands raised during the protest included:
Restoration of the old pension scheme,
Abolition of online attendance system,
End of contractual appointments in primary education and appointment of regular teachers,
Central pay scale for all teachers based on qualifications,
Relieving teachers from mid-day meal responsibilities,
Exemption of teachers from all non-academic tasks,
Unified cadre and salary based on qualification for teachers from Classes I to XII,
Opening of model schools like Adarsha, Godavaris, and Navodaya without creating a sense of inferiority among existing students,
Transforming all schools to model standards with one teacher per class,
Legal inclusion of education from pre-primary (Balibati) to Class XII.
The protest saw participation from various teacher leaders and associations. Among them were:
Bijay Kumar Baral (District President of Ostara Teachers’ Organization),
Rajkishore Behera (Editor, Alosta),
Prafulla Pradhan (President, Brahmagiri Free Utkal Primary Teachers’ Association),
Keshab Chandra Swain (Secretary),
Sudhanshu Sekhar Nayak (General Secretary, Puri District Teachers’ Association),
Brahmananda Maharana, Mamta Pattnayak, and Prafulla Paikaray, leaders of the state-level teachers’ body.
They all strongly opposed the education policies of the Central and State Governments that they believe are detrimental to the interests of teachers. The representatives warned that if their 10-point demands are not fulfilled, a stronger agitation would be launched in the coming days by the united teachers’ organization.
A memorandum addressed to the Chief Minister, outlining these 10 demands, was received from the protesting teachers by Vijay Kumar Behera, the Mandal Development Officer.
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