MCD teachers to go missing?

After being unable to provide uniforms to nine lakh students studying in Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) schools, the civic agency is now struggling to meet shortage of teachers and principals for its schools.

After being unable to provide uniforms to nine lakh students studying in Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) schools, the civic agency is now struggling to meet shortage of teachers and principals for its schools.

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A majority of the civic body's budget is allocated to the education department every year. But despite this, the civic agency has been unable to ensure basic facilities in these schools.

The education department has been allocated 22.79 per cent of the budget in 2010-2011, which amounts to Rs 1441.76 crore of the total budget.

“We will face a shortage of 4,500 teachers for all our classes by next year,” said Prithviraj Sawhney, chairman of education committee of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.

“Around 1,700 of the teachers will be promoted to Delhi government schools.”

“The rest are contractual teachers who have to be phased out. Out of the 200 nursery teachers employed by us, 100 contract teachers will become over age and can no longer be employed by us,” he said.

Sahwney added the Delhi government needed to notify recruitment rules that it had not done for six years.

“As a result of the delay, even nursery teachers on contract cannot be made regular employees."

The civic agency further claimed that the Delhi government has also reduced the age limit for hiring teachers.

At present, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi has 22,000 teachers on their payroll. It is mainly facing shortage of sports and art teachers.

“Around 25 per cent of the teachers have been promoted to the principal level on ad hoc basis due to the shortage being faced by us,” said Sawhney.

“The staff selection board has been told about the shortage of staff being faced by us but we are yet to be provided with regular employees. We are also facing a shortage of 200 Urdu teachers.”

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi has 1,746 primary schools under it, out of which many are still functioning out of tents despite promises made by MCD to ensure proper buildings for all schools.