Education dept to notify child care leave for women staff this month

The minister acknowledged the procedural delays, saying that a committee, headed by the secretary, higher education, was set up to draw the SOP and frame eligibility criteria for CCL and maternity leave and submit the report

After a decade of procedural wrangle, the education department is set to notify the provision for child care leave (CCL) for women staff, both teaching and non-teaching, of the institutions of higher education this month.

Former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi with the state's education minister Sunil Kumar during the budget session at the Bihar Legislative Council in Patna on Friday. (Santosh Kumar/HT)

This was announced by education minister Sunil Kumar in the legislative council during the question hour on Friday. Reply to a short-notice question of Janata Dal (United) member Sanjay Kumar Singh and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member Nawal Kishore Yadav, the minister said that the standard operating procedure (SOP) for the CCL has been framed and it would be notified in the next 15 days.

The ruling party legislators sought to know when the women teaching and non-teaching staff of colleges and universities would start offering 730 days of CCL during the service period, which was decided by the state government way back in 2015 in accordance with the gazette notification of the Central government. While the same is applicable for government staff, it wasn’t available for those working in universities and colleges.

The minister acknowledged the procedural delays, saying that a committee, headed by the secretary, higher education, was set up to draw the SOP and frame eligibility criteria for CCL and maternity leave and submit the report. The report, as per the written reply of the education department, has not been submitted.

The minister said that he had reviewed the issue with the department last evening and got to know that the SOP has been prepared. “It will be notified within 15 days,” said Kumar.

Intervening in the matter, Sanjiv Kumar Singh of the JD(U) drew the government’s lackadaisical approach in adopting the norms and regulations as notified by the University Grant Commission (UGC) from time to time. Citing a case of probation period of teachers in higher education, he said that the UCG had reduced the probation period to one year about three years ago, but the state universities are carrying on with the practice of keeping the probation period of two years.

Women teachers to be posted in home districts

Acknowledging the demand of former chief minister and leader of the opposition in council Rabri Devi, education minister Sunil Kumar said that the department would take up measures to ensure that women teachers of schools and colleges are posted in their home districts.

Rabri Devi had said that women teachers were facing great difficulties in attending and teaching in their schools and colleges outside their home districts.