No non-teaching duties for government schoolteachers in Punjab: Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann

Shivani Bhakoo

Ludhiana, May 10

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann exhorted the teaching community to bring about ‘educational revolution’ in the state by making the education system job oriented, creating congenial environs of teaching-learning process and by changing the negative perceptions about government schools into positive. About 3,000 heads of government schools, DEOs of almost all the districts and other senior officials from the Education Department today attended the address of the Chief Minister, held at Kingsvilla here today.

Since it was first such interaction of the new Chief Minister with the teachers, enthusiasm was witnessed among the teaching fraternity. As a huge number of teachers were brought to the venue in AC buses, etc, there was shortage of space in the hall where the arrangement was made. The host district teachers were requested to accommodate and they sat outside the hall, watched the address live on screens. As one of the teacher said, “It hardly made any difference, we sat outside and accommodated our fellow beings who had come from other parts of the state.”

While delivering lecture to about 3,000 Education Department officials, including DEOs, Deputy DEOs, principals, headmasters, DIET principals and BPEOs, Chief Minister Mann said, “Education is of utmost importance to the state, so more attention would be given to it. Proper school environment would be provided to the teaching staff in government schools and there would be no non-teaching duties for government schoolteachers in the state on the pattern of the Delhi education system so that teachers could concentrate on quality education only. Sooner government schools would be the first preference of the parents to admit their wards there like in the Delhi education system,” said the CM.

Welcoming the step of the government of not putting teachers on other duties, the teachers looked elated as one of them said, “They ask us to prepare data for the Health Department and elections, do door-to-door surveys and what not. We hardly get quality time to focus on the studies of students. If our services are used for teaching only, the difference will be witnessed automatically as we can concentrate and focus.”

The teachers also welcomed the proposal of the government to provide them training at places like Switzerland, Finland, UK, Canada, USA, etc, for professional excellence. “The academic training in batches in near future and visiting Delhi schools will bring a change, if it happens,” said a woman principal of a government school.