UP government school teachers unhappy with ‘three selfies a day’ attendance system

Many primary and upper primary school teachers in Meerut region of Uttar Pradesh have expressed unhappiness with the new system of uploading selfies three times

Many primary and upper primary school teachers in Meerut region of Uttar Pradesh have expressed unhappiness with the new system of uploading selfies three times a day on the recently-introduced ‘Prerna app’ to mark their attendance.

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The mobile phone app was launched by the state government in the beginning of September to ensure that teachers were punctual and regular in their duties. As per the plan, teachers have to mark their attendance by taking selfies with students three times a working day — preferably during morning assembly, midday meal and while leaving the school.

Teachers said that instead of keeping a “watch over them” through the app, the government should work at improving the infrastructure of government schools.

Omprakash Sharma, leader of the Uttar Pradesh Shikshak Mahasangh, said, “Teachers already have too much work to do. For instance, whenever, the government needs to undertake a survey, teachers are assigned the duty. All clerical work at schools is also handled by teachers. They are even assigned duties during elections. In such conditions, the government now expects teachers to do this (upload selfies thrice a day).”

“We recently organised a protest against the app and the exploitation of teachers at the Meerut kutchery. We expect the government to listen to our concerns and work to address them,” he said.

Monica Lodhi, a teacher at the Prathmik Vidyalaya in Nawada Sardhana, said, “I understand what my job is and the importance of punctuality. I live in Saraswati Lok area of Meerut -- around 40km away from the school. Each day, I have to travel around 80km but I ensure that I reach on time.”

Lodhi said there were a lot of young teachers who were very dedicated to their work. “Clicking selfies three times a day is not only time consuming and an interference in work but also a matter of one’s privacy. Female teachers uploading their photos are concerned about any potential misuse of the pictures. Then, during morning prayers, it takes 10 minutes to get the students to stand in a queue. The government expects us to do this three times everyday. That’s wasting 30 minutes straight away!” she said.

Lodhi said that a biometric attendance system would have been better.

Another teacher, Chhavi Sharma, working at a primary school in Shamli, said, “We have to send a selfie after the 30-minute lunch break too. One must understand, it takes 15-20 minutes just to ensure proper distribution of midday meal to students. Afterwards, teachers are left with just about 10 minutes to eat their own lunch before they rush for the next class. Should we forget about lunch and take selfies instead?”

Several other teachers also agreed with these concerns along with the fact that uploading selfies necessitated the use of smart phones although some teachers may want to use basic phones.

They also said that internet connectivity was also an issue many times.

“Apart from all that, a majority of schools do not have regular cleaners or clerks, and all such jobs were taken care of by teachers.There’s a lot on the shoulders of a primary school teacher. The midday meal cook gets only Rs 1,000 a month. It is quite a task just to find a cook who would agree to work at such a low salary. Then, there’s no one to clean the utensils once the meal is over,” said Sharma.

Teachers also complained that many schools still lacked basic facilities like furniture for students and proper electricity connections. “I believe, the government should focus on filling these lacunae first,” said Sharma.