Teachers’ assns claim political agenda behind mass transfers

Jaipur: Teachers' associations across Rajasthan have expressed opposition to the transfer of 4,527 school principals announced Monday. The associations argued Tuesday that the transfers appear to be politically motivated rather than based on merit, raising concerns over the integrity of the educational administration.The mass transfers, which impact nearly one-third of the state's nearly 14,000 school principals, followed recent inspections conducted by school education minister Madan Dilwara. During these inspections, discrepancies were identified, prompting the sweeping reassignment of principals. However, associations contended that many of the affected principals have been reassigned within the same districts, indicating a lack of true accountability for their actions. Narayan Singh Sisodiya, spokesperson for the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj Evam Madhyamik Shikshak Sangh, criticised the decision, saying, "Last month, the education minister visited several govt schools in Jaipur and vowed to take strict action against principals where discrepancies were found. Yet, those same principals are now being posted in Jaipur again. Meanwhile, the transfer of Grade-III teachers, which has been pending for over eight years, remains unaddressed."As district-level teachers' conferences are set to take place on Sept 27-28, the issue of long-overdue transfers for Grade-III teachers is expected to be a focal point. Following the principal transfer list, messages have circulated on social media urging teachers to voice their demands during these conferences, which typically feature local MLAs as guest speakers.Vipin Prakash Sharma, state president of the Rajasthan Primary and Secondary Teachers' Association, highlighted further injustices in the transfer process. He noted that the recent transfers did not accommodate requests from widows, single women and physically challenged teachers, who traditionally receive exemptions from such transfers. "Typically, these requests are considered but this time they were overlooked. Many principals transferred were previously assigned under the Congress govt and their merit seems to have been disregarded," Sharma said.