MAPUSA: The Goa Higher Secondary Teachers’ Association has threatened to go on a hunger strike if the government fails to fulfil its demands in providing basic facilities to its teachers during correction of papers.
Anant Pisurlekar alleged that the Education Department has failed to provide the basic needs to the teachers such as food, water, clean toilets, sitting facilities during correction of papers. The teachers have to go to different institutes to correct the papers. The earlier government had sanctioned Rs one crore for construction of ’Pariksha Bhavan’ for the teachers but that complex is yet to see the light of the day on account of which the teachers are forced to face hardship during the correction of papers.
He said compared to other states such as Karnataka and Maharashtra, the teachers get a remuneration of Rs 22 and Rs 12 respectively to correct a single sheet but in Goa teachers are paid only Rs 5 for the same.
He further alleged that the Goa Board had paid around Rs 70 lakh to a company for facilitating students to check papers online for which double the amount of fees was collected from them but the same failed to take off.
Besides the correction work, the teachers are forced to do clerical work as well, he charged.
The association has demanded that the remuneration amount for correction per answer sheet be increased from Rs 5 to Rs 15 and DA amount of Rs 80 be hiked to Rs 150.
It has also demanded that Pariksha Bhavan complex be constructed as soon as possible.
The Association further informed that it would write to the Chairman of Education Board and try to solve the issue through a discussion. If the authorities fail to do so then it would have no option but to go on a daylong hunger strike in July.
