SHILLONG, NOV 9: Accusing the government of dragging its feet on promises made years ago, the Khasi Jaintia Deficit School Teachers’ Association (KJDSTA) on Saturday resolved to launch a fresh round of agitation for its pending demands.
Addressing members after the meeting, KJDSTA president Boswell Pala said teachers had gathered to take stock of issues that have remained unresolved for two to three years, and some for even longer.
“We had a meeting to enlighten the members more about the different issues that we are facing, the different issues that have been pending for two years, three years, some more than that,” Pala said.
At the top of the list is the Centralised Provident Fund. Pala said the CPF was constituted in May 2023 after all formalities were completed, but the government simply stopped implementing it.
“To help members of the public recall again, the issue of the Centralised Provident Fund, the Centralised Provident Fund that was constituted in May 2023, that the government, for reasons that it would know best, just stopped implementing,” he said.
“After all that was necessary was done, they just keep it hanging in the air, and then try to do harm to the CPF by trying to motivate teachers, employees to opt out of the CPF,” he added.
The meeting also took up the non-implementation of the National Pension System for teachers appointed after April 2010.
“We also discussed about the NPS, the NPS that the post-April 2010 teachers are supposed to get, and again, the government must answer us first, and more than answering us, why it is not implementing it, it should implement that for the post-April 2010 teachers,” Pala said.
Pala said the association remains firm on the 2023 scheme and rejects the 2026 scheme being pushed by the government.
“Then we discussed at length regarding the 2023 scheme, the 2026 scheme. The 2023 scheme that we are supposed to get, the 2026 scheme we reject it, we are not supposed to get it, the government is trying to push it through,” he said.
He alleged that the Board of Trustees, of which teachers are members, has been pushed aside while a new board without them is being set up.
“The Board of Trustees of which we are members is just left aside in one corner, we are not sure where, and now they are putting up this Board of Trustees of which we are not members,” he said.
The delay in DA enhancement drew the sharpest reaction. Pala pointed to a letter dated October 8, 2026, assuring release of DA enhancement of 51% and 53% along with arrears before the Puja holidays.
“We took a very strong objection to the fact that the government does not give our DA enhancement, especially after we got the letter on the 8th of October 2026, that it would give the DA enhancement of 51% and 53% and the arrears, and it would release the DA and the arrears before the Puja holiday. Now we are long after the Puja holidays,” he said.
He said when the association met the Commissioner and Secretary on November 4, the officials feigned ignorance about the procedure.
“On the 4th of November, when we met the Commissioner and Secretary, they pretended as if they are not aware of this, they do not know about the procedure of how to give our DA enhancement,” he said.
“It is quite disappointing to have officers who work for us acting like this. We know that they are intelligent, they are wise, but then it is all pretence and manipulation, I should say,” he added.
Pala also flagged the government’s refusal to allow advertisement of deficit posts and the move to bring the SPF or composite grant into the deficit system, warning that it would hurt students and aspiring teachers more than the present teachers.
“That situation of not giving permission to advertise for the deficit posts, or trying to push the SPF or the composite grant into the deficit system, is another big worrying thing for us,” he said.
“We are not being affected, let me be very clear about this, we are not being affected by that. What we worry about is the negative impact that it will have on the students, present students, future students, the aspiring teachers, who are doing their B.Ed, their ITEP and so on,” he said.
“When these good posts, the deficit posts, the government posts are weakened, they are abolished, education is bound to be impacted, and that is really worrying us. We request the members of the public to really understand this issue and give us at least moral support,” he added.
Asked about the number of vacant deficit teacher posts in the state, Pala said he could not give an exact figure, but said they run into hundreds and have been piling up for two to three years.
He said the association will not retreat.
“We made a resolution that we will not give up. Today, with all the members of the KJDSTA present here, we made a resolution that we will keep fighting for our dues, for our rights, for the rights of education, we will keep agitating,” he said.
“What exactly the programme of agitation will be, we will have to sit in the core committee and then we will chalk it out. We will announce this soon,” he added.
