Editorial: Follow rules for reprimand
Srinagar: Though for wrong reasons most of the time, teachers have been in the news in our state. During the past two weeks the teaching community has been on the receiving end for not performing their teaching assignments- but for various other reasons.
A couple of days back a sub-divisional magistrate allegedly thrashed and made a teacher to rub his forehead on his sputum as a punishment for using unparliamentarily language against him. This was the second incident when a senior official had taken direct action against any official for not doing his job properly. Earlier, a SDM had threatened a medico of dire consequences for not maintaining proper dress code while attending to his duties.
Interestingly, in case of the teachers bearing the brunt of the officials is somewhat uncalled for. The administration has been seeking the involvement of teaching community for various activities which includes performing the election duties and in some cases the census and other related activities.
The teachers representatives bodies have been insisting that the tussle between the administration and the teaching community stems from the fact that they are engaged in non-academic activities particularly election duties. Though the incumbent Minister has time and again been stressing on the fact that teachers will be exempted from all the non-teaching assignments, but unfortunately nothing seems to be working on the ground.
Unfortunately, when the recent incidents were being resolved another incident has happened wherein a senior most official of the education department had reportedly humiliated the Principals of various higher secondary schools during a meeting convened at SKICC in Srinagar on Sunday.
During the proceeding of meeting called to review implementation of centrally sponsored scholarship scheme- Prime Minister’s Special Scholarship Scheme (PMSSS), the official rebuked the higher secondary school principals while asking personal and weird questions to them.
This is in not befitting for a senior official who is experienced in administrative matters and functioning of the government machinery. Teachers, no doubt are the builders of the nation, but this does not mean that they can escape any responsibility and accountability. If the teachers have been appointed and have been working in various educational institutions and are not performing their job that does not mean that they only are to be blamed for the rot.
The entire system needs to be made answerable as they have not been functioning in isolation. The teachers have been tasked and appointed by this very system which finds loopholes and errors in their functioning. The system of reprimand and other punishments has a procedure which needs to be followed by all.
No official whether a junior administrative officer or a senior most officer, has any right to humiliate any lower rung government official.
The system of bringing in reforms and announce punishments is in place and it does not augur well for the senior officials to bypass that system as such happenings will set a bad precedence.
KV Correspondent
