E-Paper
Out of work, SDMC contractual teacher sells pakoras, jalebis to make ends meet
New Delhi: Abdul Qadir, who worked as an assistant primary teacher on contract basis in a South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC)-run school in Khizrabad till May
New Delhi: Abdul Qadir, who worked as an assistant primary teacher on contract basis in a South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC)-run school in Khizrabad till May 8, has been selling pakoras (fritters) and jalebi (sweets) for the past two weeks, to make ends meet.
The 41-year-old, who has 80% locomotor disability in his legs, was among the 2,500-odd teachers employed on a contract basis in around 1,678 primary schools run by three civic agencies -- east, north and south -- in Delhi till May 8. Their contracts were supposed to get renewed in the first week of July.
Qadir had been working in SDMC primary school in Khizrabad since 2003. He has a diploma in elementary teacher education—an essential qualification for being a primary teacher-- and has also cleared the Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET). He used to earn around Rs 40,000 a month through teaching.
However, due to the delay in the renewal of contracts, as schools remain closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, many like Qadir have been forced to look for alternative modes of livelihood after being rendered out of work.
“I had to return to my village in Bihar’s Siwan district after I was relieved from work. It was difficult to survive without work in Delhi with my wife and two children. I had to find some work to feed my family of five. I can’t do physical labour either because of my leg, so I decided to sell pakoras and jalebis in my village,” he said.
He now earns ₹200 to 300 a day. “We are not getting any positive response from the SDMC. I have written to many officials in the last few days but nothing has happened. I do not know till when we can survive like this,” he said.
A spokesperson for the SDMC said: “Regular teachers have been appointed by the Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board in all our schools and they have joined as well. There are no vacancies available right now. Contractual teachers will be called whenever it is required.”
Neelu Devi, president of the Contractual Teachers’ Welfare Association of the three municipal agencies of Delhi, said, “Contractual teachers working in MCDs are struggling to make ends meet. Many of them have not received salaries since April and now the delay in the renewal of the contacts further creates uncertainty.”
