Newmai News Network
Imphal | February 3
Academic atmospheres in government schools and colleges in Manipur is severely hit as teachers are on indefinite cease work strike.
Schools teachers have begun their indefinite cease work strike on Saturday while the cease-work strike of the government colleges commenced on Monday.
Teachers of the government schools launched the indefinite strike under the aegis of Joint Teachers’ Forum (JTF), pressing the state government to rectify the anomalies in the revision of pay (ROP), 2019.
The striking JTF on Monday reaffirmed it stand to boycott the class X and XII examination, which is slated to be held this month if their demand is not addressed, in a release issued on Monday.
Any unwanted incident arising out of boycotting the exams will be the sole responsibility of the government, the press release warned.
Primary teachers, graduate teachers and teachers of higher secondary government schools came together to form the Joint Teachers’ Forum (JTF).
They had earlier served an ultimatum to launch the strike from February if the state government fails to rectify the anomalies in the ROP, 2019, while alleging that the latest ROP has downgraded the pay structure of the teachers.
Last year on July 11, the Manipur government passed Manipur Services (Revision Pay) Rules, 2019 according to which the teachers pay are downgraded to the level of 5th Pay Commission while the state government is on the verge of implementing 7th Pay for its employees.
The strike of the school teachers came at a time when most of the schools have commenced 2020-21 sessions, and also that, exams for Class-X and Class-XII are not far away.
Classes for Class-X is due to commence from February 20 while that of Class-XII from February 14.
Meanwhile, with the commencement of the class boycott stir of the Federation of Government College Teachers’ Association (FEGOCTA), Manipur, normal classes at almost all the government colleges across the state were suspended on Monday.
The college teachers under the aegis of the FEGOCTA are on strike since January 28 in protest against the non-implementation of their 10-point charter of demands, including the 7th UGC Pay and Regulations 2018 which government had agreed to implement in-principle.
FEGOCTA is also mobilising the teachers for a mass protest rally on February 6 on the streets in Imphal as a part of its continuing pressure to the government for addressing their demands.
