9,000 UP teachers get notice for remaining absent

Lucknow, Oct 24 (IANS) The Uttar Pradesh government has issued notices to around 9,000 government primary teachers in the state for ‘skipping’ school.

The list of absent teachers was made during an inspection drive carried out by the district and block level task force in September and October.

Acting on the education department’s directives, the basic education officers (BSAs) have issued show cause notices to these teachers and a deduction has been made in their salaries.

The inspection drive is to ensure regular attendance of both students and teachers, saturation of basic facilities curated under 'Operation Kayakalp' and assessing learning outcomes.

According to the data shared by the education department, five districts -- Azamgarh, Ballia, Gonda, Siddharth Nagar and Hardoi -- saw over 250 teachers missing schools regularly. The absenteeism was also uploaded on the Prerna portal.

The list of absent teachers has been drawn after continuous inspections in over 30,000 schools across 75 districts.

On an average, the task force visits 40 schools in each district each month. They cover schools located in the interiors.

“The absenteeism comes despite strict orders from the government to focus on academics and help UP attain foundational literacy and numeracy under the NIPUN Bharat mission. Teachers are moving out of their schools for protests, which is totally unacceptable,” said a senior official.

“The director general of school education (DGSE) has been upset over relentless protests of teachers who have been missing schools frequently. The inspection drive will help in initiating disciplinary proceedings against defaulters,” said an official.