Sisodia seeks higher pay for teachers, BJP hits out at his presence at MCD event

In his speech at the “Shikshak Samman Samaroh” programme, Sisodia said a teacher’s salary should be more than that of an IAS officer if India sought to become a developed country by 2047

New Delhi

Manish Sisodia presents awards to best-performing teachers and principals. (Vipin Kumar/HT Photo)

A political row erupted over former education minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Manish Sisodia’s presence as the chief guest of Municipal Corporation of Delhi’s Teachers’ Day celebrations at the Civic Centre, as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) termed it “regretful” that Sisodia “misused the function” to repeat his “false political rhetoric on Delhi’s education system being the country’s best”.

In his speech at the “Shikshak Samman Samaroh” programme, Sisodia said a teacher’s salary should be more than that of an IAS officer if India sought to become a developed country by 2047. He honoured 70 teachers and 11 principals of MCD schools for their excellent performance.

“Today, there is a lot of talk about India of 2047. The teachers who are sitting here today, the children you have with you are very important for 2047. The India of 2047 depends on these children. But even policymakers have to do something for them. In most developed countries, the salary of teachers is more than the bureaucrats there. A teacher with five years of experience draws more salary than an IAS officer with five years of posting,” he said.

The event started with a rendition of the national song “Vande Mataram”, followed by cultural performances by students. Sisodia also spoke about his incarceration in Tihar jail, saying he spent 8-10 hours every day reading books and learning about the education systems of different countries.

“The last year and a half, I was in a difficult circumstance in my life. When we are in difficult circumstances, the lessons learnt by teachers are most useful. I studied a lot during this time. I used to read books for 8-10 hours. Most of all, I read about education, India’s education system, the world’s education system,” he said.

“We often tell teachers that it’s in their hands to shape the future of the country, but we policymakers also have to do our part. In Germany, a teacher’s average annual income is approximately ₹72 lakh and bureaucrats are paid ₹71 lakh, on average. It’s similar in Switzerland. Those countries are ahead because they invest in teachers. In India, teachers are paid ₹12-15 lakh and we need to do something about it,” he said.

Mayor Shelly Oberoi said: “MCD schools and their teachers were ignored. The salaries of the teachers of MCD schools were not paid on time. Now, all teachers are getting their salaries on time. Many batches of our principals have been sent for training to IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Kozhikode.”

Hitting out at Sisodia’s speech, Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva said: “Sisodia did not even realise that the teachers before whom they are making tall claims very well know the pathetic condition of Delhi government, municipal schools and the education system itself.”

Sachdeva said: “Before making false claims on high salaries and working facilities for teachers, both Sisodia and Atishi should have remembered that teachers know that over 50% schools don’t have principals, there is around 35% shortage of teachers and various categories of contract teachers are facing acute hardships as they don’t get salary for months.”