Newz Desk, Durgapur: Ahead of the festive season, around 1,400 computer instructors working in government schools in West Bengal are facing the prospect of losing their jobs after the completion of five years of the ICT-at-School project.
According to representatives of the instructors, the government and the agencies through which these teachers were engaged have not renewed their contracts. As a result, the instructors have reportedly received termination notices from their respective agencies. The crisis could affect another 2,319 instructors in the next phase, taking the total number of instructors facing uncertainty to around 3,719.
Under the first five phases of the project, 5,579 instructors were reportedly appointed as contractual teachers directly under the government. They are entitled to continue in service up to the age of 60 and receive an enhanced remuneration. However, instructors appointed under the sixth and seventh phases continue to remain under agencies and are now facing uncertainty over their employment.
Teacher organisation STEA leader Animesh Haldar said the removal of the instructors could create difficulties for schools as they perform several duties beyond taking computer classes. According to Haldar, the instructors are involved in data-entry work related to government schemes such as Kanyashree and Sabuj Sathi, as well as uploading students’ results on the Banglar Shiksha portal. If they leave, these responsibilities may have to be handled by regular teachers, many of whom may not be sufficiently familiar with computer-based work, he claimed.
Meanwhile, Mosabber Gazi, state president of the West Bengal ICT Personnel Computer Instructor Welfare Association, appealed to the Chief Minister to bring all 3,719 instructors under direct government employment. He urged the government to ensure that none of the instructors lose their jobs and to consider their long-standing service in schools.
The instructors are now seeking government intervention and a solution to the employment uncertainty before the Puja holidays.
