MP Teachers To Begin Indefinite Protest In Bhopal On September 27 Over TET Rule, Seniority

Teachers across Madhya Pradesh are preparing to embark on an indefinite protest in Bhopal starting September 27, demanding three key changes to government policies. The Adhyapak Shikshak Sanyukt Morcha has declared that the sit-in will persist until the administration offers a concrete resolution to their requests.

The Joint Front, representing these teachers, is seeking exemption from the mandatory Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) for long-serving educators. They also want their service records to be calculated from the date of their initial appointment rather than the year they passed the TET. Additionally, the group is pushing for the e-attendance system to be made voluntary, arguing that the current requirements create difficulties for teachers with departmental duties or other government responsibilities.

Jagdish Yadav, the Front’s convener and state president of the Rajya Shikshak Sangh, explained that teachers have previously raised these concerns through memorandums and meetings with officials, yet have not received a firm decision. Similar protests against the TET requirement have occurred in other parts of the state.

Yadav emphasized that teachers who have served for years should not be required to meet the new TET criteria. The Joint Front is urging the Madhya Pradesh government to convene a special Assembly session, pass a resolution requesting an exemption, and submit it to the Centre. This demand is particularly important as it directly impacts retirement benefits, as counting service from a later date would deny teachers the full value of their years in the classroom when calculating gratuity, leave encashment, and pension.

The Front also asserts that the compulsory e-attendance system poses challenges for teachers involved in departmental work and other government duties outside their schools, advocating for this aspect of the system to be made optional. Organizing the agitation are Joint Front conveners Rakesh Dubey, Manohar Dubey, Parmanand Dehariya, Rakesh Nayak, DK Singaur, and Rakesh Patel.