Teachers and employees in the Uttarakhand Education Department continue to struggle for timely salary and due increments, despite fulfilling the required conditions. Several teachers have not received their salary hike, while many newly appointed staff members have not been paid at all.
According to reports, 580 CRPs and BRPs appointed through an outsourcing agency in September have not received their salaries even after nearly three months of service. Although 955 posts were approved, recruitment was completed for 580 posts—yet none of the appointed staff have been paid. The Education Department claims the MoU clearly states that the outsourcing company must first pay salaries and later claim reimbursement from the department. Officials say the company has been instructed to release pending payments.
BJP leader Ravindra Jugran said withholding salaries is unjust and has raised the issue with Additional Education Secretary M.M. Semwal.
In another case, 69 contractual assistant teachers appointed between 2001 and 2003 still remain under contractual status, despite clearing the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) over a year ago. Their contract status was supposed to be removed after passing TET, which would make them eligible for salary increment. However, no action has been taken to lift the contractual condition for these teachers.
More than 800 Shiksha Mitras were appointed as contractual assistant teachers in 2015 for primary schools in remote regions. They were initially exempt from TET because, at the time of their appointment, the RTE Act was not in force. The MHRD and NCTE had also clarified this exemption. Still, despite clearing TET later, many teachers have not been granted the benefits given to others in similar positions.
Lalit Dwivedi, state president of the Samayojit Prathmik Shikshak Sangh, said TET should not be mandatory for teachers appointed before the enforcement of the RTE Act. He added that while some teachers received benefits after removing their contractual status, 69 others were left out without explanation.
Meanwhile, Director of Secondary Education Dr. Mukul Sati stated that the outsourcing agency has been instructed to release salaries to CRPs and BRPs. Director of Elementary Education Ajay Kumar Naudiyal said TET-qualified contractual teachers are being given marks-based preference in ongoing recruitment, and contractual status will be removed only if they qualify in the merit list.
