Speaking at a programme to observe Teachers’ Day here, Mamata also said the state government has initiated the recruitment process for “untainted” candidates of the 2016 school teacher recruitment test.
“I am consulting legal experts on options of appointing ‘tainted’ teachers to non-teaching posts. For those who have been teaching for years now, but have been marked ‘ineligible’, I am trying to seek a legal solution whether they could be recruited in Group C or D posts,” the Chief Minister said.
“We look at things not through a political prism, but from a human perspective,” she said during the event at the state-run ‘Dhana Dhanya’ auditorium.
The West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) had released a list of 1,806 “tainted” candidates last week. In April, the Supreme Court ordered the sacking of 25,753 teaching and non-teaching staff at state-run and state-aided schools, describing the recruitment process as “vitiated and tainted.” The apex court later modified its order, allowing “untainted” teachers to carry on at their workplaces and draw salaries till December 31.
“We still have 56,000 vacancies in teaching posts. Of this, advertisements have been published for 35,726 posts, and around 21,000 vacancies are still pending. Many times we want to do something, but there are legal hindrances because of a few people. I will not blame the court, though. There are some people who go to court to stall everything, and then people’s futures are ruined,” she said.
“The process for recruitment of ‘untainted’ teaching candidates has already started and will end in 2-3 months. We have given priority to teachers with 10-12 years of experience. Whatever we can do to help,” the CM said.
According to the Chief Minister, as far as Groups C and D are concerned, the court has already said they can work elsewhere. “We will conduct the exams for Groups C and D later. I will ask the chief secretary to deal with it legally,” she added.
Taking a jibe at the BJP government at the Centre, Mamata explained the reason behind holding the Teachers’ Day programme on the eve of the birth anniversary of Radhakrishnan, which falls on September 5.
“Since there is a holiday tomorrow on account of Prophet Mohammed’s birth anniversary, we are observing the event today. I don’t know whether the Centre has declared a holiday, but we have in Bengal,” she said, without naming the BJP-led government directly.
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