Barely six months after the Patna High Court quashed the FIR lodged by the district education officer against over 114 college teachers, who had not reported for evaluation of answer books of higher secondary examination last year, college teachers are again on collision course with the Bihar school examination board (BSEB).
Reason: By the order of the board, Patna district education officer (DEO) has lodged FIRs against 72 teachers, who did not report for evaluation even by the revised deadline of March 3, under relevant sections of the Bihar exam conduct act, 1982. The number of teachers in the FIR is likely to increase after verifying the facts.
As in Bihar intermediate is yet to be delinked from degree colleges even after a decade of the government’s policy decision, the letter has gone to constituent degree colleges also.
“It is mandatory for those appointed examiners to join evaluation, as delay will affect timely publication of results,” the board has written.
In response, two premiere colleges of the State Capital – AN College and College of Commerce, Arts and Science have strongly objected to the board’s decision to depute all the teachers for evaluation work when the institutions were themselves preoccupied with their own examination work and extra classes in view of forthcoming elections.
“The college has its own work and it is difficult to relieve all the teachers, especially department heads and those holding key positions. Most of the departments have 2-3 teachers, while classes and examination related work are on. It is, therefore, not possible to relieve all the teachers for evaluation work,” wrote AN College principal Shashi Pratap Shahi.
{{/usCountry}}“The college has its own work and it is difficult to relieve all the teachers, especially department heads and those holding key positions. Most of the departments have 2-3 teachers, while classes and examination related work are on. It is, therefore, not possible to relieve all the teachers for evaluation work,” wrote AN College principal Shashi Pratap Shahi.
{{/usCountry}}Commerce College principal Tapan Shandilya has given a list of 24 teachers with specification of thei assigned roles who could not be relieved for evaluation work. “UG and PG semester classes are on and exam forms are being filled up. We have relieved all teachers, but colleges also need to run,” he wrote, citing the Patna HC order that action should not be taken against any teacher without bringing it to the notice of the university and college administration.
Pataliputra University VC Gulab Chand Ram Jaiswal said that he was in the know of things. “If teachers have to be relieved, it is for the university and college administration to decide how many they can spare. The colleges also have to run. I will write to the chancellor in this regard,” he added.
Chancellor Lalji Tandon has been very particular about maintaining the sanctity of academic and exam calendar at any cost, which has galvanized the colleges and universities. The college principals have already sent a copy of their letters to the board to the Chancellor also.
Joint secretary,-cum-exam controller Sanjiv Suman of the BSEB said that the board had issued provisional letter to the colleges around one and half month ago and they should have raised these concerns right then. “All those who are engaged in intermediate work as per the list made available to the board have been asked to report for evaluation duty,” he added.