Teachers hold sit-in over delay in joining orders

Barnala, April 3

Government teachers who have not been allowed to join at new locations of their transfer on Sunday started an indefinite protest in front of the local residence of Education Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer here.

Though Hayer met the protesters and assured them of looking into their demand, the teachers sent ahead with their protest. “Hundreds of teachers were transferred in 2020 and 2021. At the time, the authorities had assured us of being allowed to join at the place of our new posting on April 1. The authorities have, however, now refused to allow any such joining. The minister assured us of looking into the matter, but has called us to Chandigarh,” said Amandeep Singh, a protester.

The protesters claimed through the online transfer policy, they were transferred after selecting multiple stations of their choice. During 2021, the authorities did not allow the implementation of their transfers on the pretext of National Achievement Survey (NAS) survey and during 2022, they delayed their joining at new places on the pretext of annual exams.

“In their letter, the authorities had assured us of implementing the transfers from April 1, 2022. We are forced to work 200 to 300 km from our homes, despite our new postings. We will intensify our agitation if the demand is not met,” said Balwinder Singh, another protester.

The minister could not be reached for comment.