Guest Teacher Policy 'Temporary', Says Himachal Minister a Day After Protest Over Issue

Shimla: Himachal Pradesh government's policy to recruit guest teachers on a period basis is a temporary measure introduced solely to address the absence of regular subject teachers during their leave, state Education Minister Rohit Thakur said on Tuesday.

His statement comes a day after unemployed youth staged a protest outside the Deputy Commissioner's office in Shimla, demanding the withdrawal of the guest teacher recruitment policy.

Assuring that this arrangement would not affect the recruitment of regular teachers, the minister said that guest teachers would be engaged on a period basis for a maximum of ten days per month.

He further said the policy was designed to ensure that students' education was not disrupted due to the absence of regular teachers on leave.

The Minister said that the state government remains committed to filling teaching vacancies through direct recruitment.

He also informed that the government is in the process of recruiting 15,000 personnel across various categories in the Education Department, with over 3,000 teachers already appointed.

The state government was recruiting hourly-based teachers to ensure that the education of the students does not suffer until the process of regular teacher recruitment was completed, he said.

Principals would be authorised to appoint hourly based teachers and there would be no need to recruit them once the regular recruitment was finalised, he added.

On Monday, the members of the 'Shikshit Berojgar Sangh' also threatened to stage a protest outside Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's office and lay siege to the Assembly during its winter session, which is set to begin in Dharamsala on December 18.

On December 12, the Cabinet gave its nod to engage guest teachers in the education department to fill the gaps in vacancy, who will be paid on an hourly basis.

Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu had said that it would help maintain continuity in teaching and ensure that children's education is not disrupted during the absence of regular teachers.

The opposition BJP has criticised the Congress government, accusing it of insulting educated youth by bringing in guest teachers rather than offering regular appointments.

In a statement issued at Dharamshala today, Leader of the Opposition Jai Ram Thakur accused the administration of imposing ill-conceived policies without public consultation and said that the Sukhu government cannot enforce policies arbitrarily, ignoring their impact on the public.

He called upon the state government to immediately withdraw its guest teacher policy, which he described as detrimental to the future of the youth and harmful to the education system.

A permanent job of 58 years cannot be equated with a one-hour teaching assignment, he said and added that BJP firmly opposes the policy of hiring guest teachers on an hourly basis.

The education minister, however, accused the opposition leaders of unnecessarily creating a hue and cry and flaring up the issue of teacher recruitment.

Before making any statement the opposition should reflect on their own tenure during which no recruitment of teachers was undertaken, he said.

Speaking at the annual prize distribution ceremony at a school in Una district's Amb area on Tuesday, the Education Minister also announced that the state government plans to send outstanding students abroad for exposure visits starting next year.

He said that the government is taking corrective steps to promote quality education in the state, prioritising exposure visits for both teachers and students.

To date, over 200 teachers have been sent abroad for such visits and now this opportunity will be extended to students as well.