Over thousands ‘un recognized’ PG degree Teachers/Masters being promoted as Lecturers, Deptt. violates SC guidelines – AJKLTF

JAMMU, July 30, 2021: In yet another example of discrimination with Teachers and Masters of Jammu region, the Education Department has failed to conduct any fair and transparency in promotion of Teachers and Masters as lectures. The department have failed to conduct the Departmental Promotional Committee meeting in the region since 2014 while the said meetings have been held in Kashmir every year without fail.

In a statement here today, Devraj Thakur, President All Jammu Kashmir and Ladakh Teachers Federation said that thousands of teachers, masters and other staff members have been this way deprived of promotion chances to have got higher grades.

This is because of the discriminative approaches of the higher Authority who were at helm of affairs in the department over the years.

“The growing discrimination towards the teaching community members of this Jammu region has led to lot of resentment among them and in case the same was not done away with immediately the teachers community will be forced to come to streets to register it’s protest against the Government,” Thakur added.

Expressing deep concern Devraj Thakur said, “Notwithstanding the condition of already crawling education system in Jammu and Kashmir, the promotion committee of education department has devised a new formula to give promotion to distance mode/off campus post graduation science degrees holder teachers as lecturers, violating the Supreme Court’s ruling”.

“These fake degree holders were advised to get certificates from their respective outstation universities, which rechristen the Study Centres as Regional Centers. Others were told to wait and this time their names have been included in the final promotion lists on the basis of ‘unrecognised degrees’ which has antagonized meritorious teachers who hold PG degrees from recognized universities”he alleged.

Thakur said as per SC ruling and central government orders, all PG degrees in science subjects through distance mode are not recognized. Moreover, the candidates, who have not completed their degrees in three years course, are not eligible for the PG courses if they have not completed the one year bridge course.

“The committee of education department constituted to fix the seniority of over hundres of PG teachers ignored many parameters for obvious reasons”Thakur said.

The J&K PSC has not regularized any of the lecturers for the past over many years as the department has been recommending regularising promotion of all the teachers on vacancy basis while the PSC wants only meritorious and competent teachers to be regularized. PSC’s criteria include a PG degree from UGC recognized university and no distance mode in case of science subjects and no study centres”he alleged.

AJKLTF brought into the notice of promotion committee many times the genuineness of PG degree in science subjects as well as the institutions from where such qualification has been acquired under observations made by Supreme Court in a noted case of Prof Yashpal vs State.

Moreover, as the State Government earlier has already taken a decision to de-recognize the PG qualification in Science if acquired through distance mode, the promotion committee even needs to ensure that PG teachers claiming promotion have acquired the PG degrees after availing the leave during the study period and with prior permission of the administrative department.

The promotion committee also needs to ensure that the PG Teachers/Masters have completed bridge course in case their graduation degree was of two years and the guidelines, laid down in the department specific mechanism vide order number 940 Edu of 2017 dated November 17, 2017, while promoting PG teachers.

Thakur said that the distance mode candidates have managed the bonafide certificates in terms of government order no: 940 from concerned universities claiming their PG from campus by bribing the outstation universities whereas fact is that their M.Sc Part 1 and Part 2 are from Study Centers. Marks sheets are to be seen before embarking upon the process of promotions, said Thakur.

Thakur said “This is the reason that the standard of the education system in J&K is crumbling as the promotees are given the posts of lecturers to teach the students of class XI and XII. The selection of lecturers is made by PSC under J&K Education Gazzeted Services Recruitment Rules. However, the department promotes teachers as lecturers in own pay and grade. In such cases, the PSC has to regularise the promotions, only those cases which fulfill the criteria.”

“The government issues promotion orders to give benefit to blue-eyed and when the PSC declines to accord regularisation the government sidelines PSC rules and approves all promotions citing the plea of ‘one time exemption,” said Naresh Kumar, adding the cabinet approves the regularisation and this is done in Education Department only.

AJKLTF sought the intervention of the Hon’able Lt.Governor Manoj Sinah so that the regularisation is done every year by PSC on the basis of merit and norms.