SHILLONG, January 18: The SSA teachers under the banner of the Meghalaya SSA School Association on the 18th of January announced that they will organise an agitation on the 21st of this month which is the day when Meghalaya celebrates its 50 Years of Statehood. The agitation will be a sit-in and black flag demonstration at Khyndailad from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM to be followed by the lighting of candles at 5:00 PM.
The President of the MSSASA, Aristotle Rymbai said that the announcement of the association to organise an agitation on the given date is a protest against the silence of the State Government over the demand of the association to regularise the post of 12,451 SSA teachers as teachers of government schools.
On the other hand, Rymbai stated that on the 4th of this month, the SSA teachers had filed an RTI with the Office of the Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education, Government of India to find out the root cause with regards to the non-payment of salaries by the Government which has remained pending from October,2021 upto January,2022.
He stated that as per the RTI report issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education,the funds of ₹5934.92 lakhs for the financial year 2021-2022, as first installment was released on the 9th of November,2021 and another ₹7351.99 lakhs was released on the 22nd of December,2021.
Further, he also said that as per the RTI report, the Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education has informed that the funds released to Meghalaya to support with the payment of salaries to Elementary School Teachers amounts to a total of ₹20302.22 lakhs for the financial year 2021-2022.
Rymbai also said that as per the RTI report received, the Ministry of Education has clearly stated and pointed that it is the duty of the State Government to take up the responsibility in processing the recognition of the SSA teachers as teachers of government schools.