Responding to the agitation, the School Education Department issued a clarification outlining the background of the appointments
KRC TIMES NE Desk
KOHIMA : In a fresh flashpoint for the state’s education sector, 2,293 members of the Nagaland Government Teachers’ Association (NGTA) launched an indefinite protest in Kohima, demanding that their salaries be routed through the state’s non-plan expenditure head instead of Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS).
Teachers from the 2010 and 2013 recruitment batches staged a demonstration outside the Directorate of School Education, asserting that despite being mainstreamed into the State Education Cadre more than three years ago, their pay continues to be drawn under CSS heads linked to the erstwhile Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA).
Addressing reporters at the protest site, NGTA representatives said they were formally mainstreamed into the State Education Cadre through a government order dated September 2, 2022, with retrospective effect from April 21, 2022, following approval by the state cabinet.
However, the association alleged that their salary component remains under CSS budget heads rather than the state’s non-development (non-plan) expenditure account, which they argue is inconsistent with their current status as regular state cadre employees.
“We have been integrated into the state cadre, and we are governed by the same service rules as other government teachers. Yet, our salaries are still being released under CSS, which often results in delays,” an NGTA representative said.
The association stated that multiple representations submitted to the government seeking a shift of their salary component to the state’s non-plan budget head have not elicited a concrete response. After issuing a seven-day ultimatum on February 16 and observing a two-day pen-down strike earlier this week, the teachers escalated their agitation with an indefinite protest beginning February 26.
Responding to the agitation, the School Education Department issued a clarification outlining the background of the appointments.
According to the department, the 2010 and 2013 batch teachers were initially appointed against posts created under Centrally Sponsored Schemes, with salary support from the Government of India. While the recruitment advertisements and appointment orders did not explicitly mention SSA or RMSA conditions, the posts were linked to CSS funding at the time.
The department stated that following demands from the teachers to be mainstreamed into the State School Education Cadre, the matter was examined in consultation with the Personnel and Administrative Reforms and Finance departments. With state cabinet approval, all 2,293 teachers who fulfilled eligibility criteria under the Nagaland School Education Service Rules, 2017 were mainstreamed into the cadre on September 2, 2022.
It further maintained that the mainstreamed teachers are currently drawing pay under the 7th Revision of Pay and enjoying scale pay and other entitlements at par with regular state government employees. They are also governed by the same service rules applicable to the state education cadre.
However, the department clarified that the question of the budget head from which salaries are disbursed does not fall within the prerogative of employees. It added that representations regarding the salary head have been forwarded to the concerned authorities for consideration.
Officials also pointed out that consultations were held on June 2 last year with teachers’ representatives by the Adviser for School Education, in the presence of officials from Samagra Shiksha and the Finance Department.
NGTA Dimapur Unit president Alemkala asserted that the protesting teachers were regular appointees from the outset and had undergone a transparent recruitment process.
“We are not backdoor appointees. We went through written examinations and viva voce and were selected on merit. For more than 13 years, we have been fighting to be treated at par with other state cadre teachers. Our salary component should be shifted from CSS to the state non-plan budget,” Alemkala said.
NGTA Central Unit president Peilhau Irangbe added that the state cabinet had, in principle, decided in October 2018 to induct the 2,293 teachers into the State Education Cadre. After fulfilling the necessary criteria, they were formally integrated with effect from April 1, 2022.
Irangbe alleged that remaining under CSS funding has practical consequences for teachers. “The department often cites delays in the release of central funds, due to which our salaries are sometimes delayed for months. The posts advertised were regular departmental posts, but ‘under CSS scheme’ was later inserted in our appointment letters. This is why we demand that our salaries be shifted to the state non-plan head without further delay,” he said.
With the protest now indefinite, the agitation threatens to impact academic functioning if the deadlock persists. While the department has maintained that the teachers are already mainstreamed in terms of pay scale and service rules, the budget head issue has emerged as a key point of contention.
As negotiations remain inconclusive, the coming days are likely to determine whether the state government intervenes to address the demand or whether the standoff deepens in Nagaland’s education sector.
