E-Paper
Chandigarh government school computer teachers await five-month salary
Government school computer teachers in Chandigarh had previously waited for six months for their salaries in 2021 as well
After previously having waited for six months for their salaries in 2021, computer teachers at UT government schools again claimed that they have not received their salaries since December last year.
Seeking clarity on the status of the pending salaries, a computer teacher who did not wish to be named, said, “Our salaries since December are pending. The old contract expired at March-end and the new contract starts in May. What will happen to our April salary now?”
Further, with a new contractor being hired for the teachers, several complained of being asked for money by the contractor for the release of their salaries. The computer teachers had laid similar accusations on the previous contractor, hired through the government e-marketplace (GeM) portal, as well.
The teachers accused the current contractor, who was also hired from GeM, of allegedly asking for as much as ₹30,000 from teachers in some cases. Demanding action against such harassment, they demanded that such contractors be blacklisted.
Addressing the issue, director school education Palika Arora said, “The teachers must give a written complaint to the department regarding this and we will look into the matter.”
Arora added that the relevant file for pending salaries was being processed and that the issue will be resolved in the coming days.
Other UT education department officials, meanwhile, also confirmed having knowledge of the teachers’ complaints, saying the salary for April will not be deducted and that the teachers will be paid the full amount. The district education officer (DEO) had earlier also written to all heads of government schools to send the attendance of computer teachers for the month of April.
There are a total 115 junior and 48 senior computer teachers employed with the UT education department. The teachers work on contract basis and due to issues with the contractor, their salaries had been delayed for three months in 2020 and six months in 2021. Salaries for the months of April to November were paid in December, but the teachers have not received remuneration thereafter.
