Delhi Teacher Body Demands Guest Teachers to Fill Vacancies During Election Duty
The Government Schools Teacher’s Association (GSTA) in Delhi has written to Delhi Education Minister Ashish Sood requesting the temporary employment of guest teachers to address an impending staff shortage. The association sent the letter on Tuesday, raising concerns that the deployment of thousands of school teachers for election-related duties from July 1 to October 7 will severely disrupt the education of students, particularly those in classes X and XII.
According to the association, thousands of teachers have been assigned duties for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. Additionally, many teachers are being deployed as Booth-Level Election officers (BLOs) and BLO supervisors. The GSTA pointed out that this three-month deployment coincides with the reopening of schools after the summer vacation, which is one of the most crucial phases of the academic session when regular academic activities resume.
The GSTA requested that the Delhi government employ guest teachers on a temporary basis to fill the gap left by the deployed staff. The association stated that this temporary hiring is necessary to ensure that teaching-learning activities can continue uninterrupted, which will help safeguard the academic interests of students and contribute to Delhi’s overall performance.
GSTA General Secretary Ajay Veer Yadav stated that the duty for teachers assigned to the election exercise is scheduled from 10 am to 6 pm. Because of these hours, it is impossible for the deployed teachers to teach at their respective schools.
Yadav noted that because the teachers have to carry out these duties for three months, they will be away for one quarter of the academic year. He added that smaller schools are currently facing the absence of around five teachers, while larger schools are facing shortages of approximately 15 teachers.
The Delhi education department did not provide a response to the association's letter by the time of publication.
