Calcutta HC terminates job of 36,000 untrained primary teachers

A single judge of the Calcutta High Court, Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay, ordered the termination of the employment contracts of 36,000 untrained primary school teachers.

The court said they would be allowed to work at the school for the next four months, but would receive the equivalent salary of a para-educator. The court has now ordered that the state must start and complete the recruitment within three months.

The judge further stated that people whose employment is now terminated can also become part of the new recruitment process if they have already undergone training. Meanwhile, Board of Basic Education Chairman Gautam Paul has said that the order of the Calcutta High Court will be challenged. The school board will appeal the decision.

Justice Gangopadhyay further said that the entire panel of primary school teacher recruitment process 2016 will be cancelled. Tarunjyoti Tiwari, counsel for 140 applicants, said there were many flaws in the recruitment process. This opened the way for untrained teachers to get jobs. Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay of the Calcutta High Court has ordered the cancellation of 36,000 primary school teacher recruitments in 2016. Allegations of corruption during the interview process have been made on a large scale.

Appointments of 36,000 primary school teachers were cancelled

The interviewers further stated that there was not even an aptitude test during recruitment. In 2016, the appointment was made based on the 2014 TET exam and 42,500 people were recruited. Single Judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay of the Calcutta High Court ordered the cancellation of 36,000 jobs. Terminated teachers are untrained. So, out of 42,500 primary school teachers, 36,000 untrained teachers were dismissed on the orders of the Calcutta High Court.

The court also said that for the next four months they will work on the salary of the para-educator as the full salary cannot be released. The untrained teachers of 2016 will undergo two years of further training before being properly inducted.