‘Everything except teaching’: 373 teachers assigned ration-card verification duty in Ludhiana

Teachers and their unions had opposed the earlier deployment, saying many staff members were already engaged in SIR and BLO work

As many as 373 government schoolteachers have been assigned ration-card verification duties, drawing criticism from educators who say schools are already grappling with staff shortages, which are affecting students’ studies.

686 teachers have already been assigned similar work, educators say studies affected (HT Photo)

The latest deployment order was issued by the office of sub-divisional magistrate (SDM), west, on September 10, days after the district administration assigned 686 teachers to similar duties. Teachers and their unions had opposed the earlier deployment, saying many staff members were already engaged in SIR and BLO work, leaving schools struggling to manage classes. The timing, close to mid-term examinations, had also added to their concerns.

Teachers say repeated assignments are keeping them away from their primary responsibility of teaching students.

Dharamjeet Singh Dhillon, district president of the Lecturer Cadre Union, questioned the continued deployment of teaching staff for government duties. He said teachers had already been involved in several assignments, including drug surveys, census work and BLO duties, and were now being given ration-card verification work.

“We are being made to handle everything except teaching. We have repeatedly pointed out that our schools are already facing a severe staff shortage, but our concerns continue to go unheard,” he said.

The department has also been functioning without a district education officer (elementary) for nearly a year. The DEO (secondary) is additionally handling the officiating charge of elementary education.

Deputy education officer Manoj Kumar said he had requested the administration not to deploy such a large number of teachers as schools were already facing staff shortage. He said he had again sought maximum possible relaxation for teachers.

“We are ourselves short of staff this way and have no answer when teachers question us on how they will manage schools,” Kumar said.

The latest deployment has intensified concerns among teachers that the growing list of non-academic responsibilities could further disrupt regular teaching in government schools.