Part-time subject teachers in government-run upper primary schools of Uttar Pradesh are forced to look for a second source of income to overcome the acute financial hardships they are facing. Paid a paltry ₹9,000 per month in lieu of their services, some have to ply e-rickshaws and sell Chaat by the roadside after school hours.
Others can be seen working at mobile shops, private hospitals, selling vegetables etc just to make ends meet.
For years they have been demanding payment to be hiked to ₹17,000 per month but in vain.
Sunita Lata, 41, an art instructor working at the government-run Upper Primary School at Balapur village in Chaka development block. The school is located around 15km from Sangam city in the trans-Yamuna locality of the district. Every day, after school hours, she drives an e-rickshaw to earn extra money to meet the expenses of her family. Her husband Dhirendra Kumar used to work at a cloth store for ₹7,000 a month till some time ago but got laid off.
When it became difficult to meet expenses of their two school-going children, the couple bought an e-rickshaw for ₹1.75 lakh after taking a loan after mortgaging their LIC policies and borrowing some money from relatives. Being allergic to sunlight, Dhirendra drives the e-rickshaw only after sunset while Sunita drives it daily for two to three hours after coming from school. Together they manage to earn ₹400 to 450 per day.
Pradeep Kumar Vishwakarma, 37, is also an art instructor working at Government-run Upper Primary School of Koraon, around 70km from Prayagraj city. Facing acute financial problems, after school, each day he sets up a Chaat cart in the village and sometimes in the nearby market, selling his ware by the roadside. His four children study in the Primary School at Kosfara Kala village in Koraon. Looking after aged parents, Pradeep also has the responsibility of solemnising the marriage of his younger sister. So, the ₹200-250 that he manages to earn each day by selling Chaat helps him meet the necessary expenses.
{{/usCountry}}Pradeep Kumar Vishwakarma, 37, is also an art instructor working at Government-run Upper Primary School of Koraon, around 70km from Prayagraj city. Facing acute financial problems, after school, each day he sets up a Chaat cart in the village and sometimes in the nearby market, selling his ware by the roadside. His four children study in the Primary School at Kosfara Kala village in Koraon. Looking after aged parents, Pradeep also has the responsibility of solemnising the marriage of his younger sister. So, the ₹200-250 that he manages to earn each day by selling Chaat helps him meet the necessary expenses.
{{/usCountry}}There are countless such cases all over the state of subject instructors struggling to exist.
Meanwhile, the state basic education department officials are tight-lipped on the issue citing it to be a “government-level decision”.
“Right from fixing their remuneration to allocating a budget for it is decided at the government-level,” said a senior official of the department requesting anonymity.
Hired since 2013 across Uttar Pradesh, to strengthen the teaching in government upper primary schools, these para-teachers (about 27,555) used to be paid just ₹7,000 per month. After years of demanding a raise, the government hiked their remuneration to ₹9,000 per month in May 2022. However, amidst rising cost of living and essential items, this minor hike has made little difference to their lives, says Bholanath Pandey, state president, Upper Primary Anudeshak Kalyan Samiti, UP.
They said that in 2017, the state government had decided to increase their honorarium to ₹17,000 per month. The central government had even released the budget but later the state government shelved the proposal. Subject Instructors had also filed a petition in the Allahabad High Court demanding a hike in their monthly honorarium to 17,000 which is still pending in court, Pandey said.