Dhanbad (Jharkhand), Nov 3 CPI(ML) Liberation legislator Arup Chatterjee on Tuesday began an indefinite hunger strike against alleged irregularities, corruption and arbitrary transfers and postings of teachers.
The Left party extends outside support to the JMM-led coalition government.
The Nirsa MLA, who is observing the fast in front of the Dhanbad Deputy Commissioner’s office, told reporters that his protest is not against the government, but against the flaws inherent in the administrative system.
The two-time lawmaker claimed that while the government has recruited teachers, they are not being posted in schools according to actual requirements.
Raising concerns about the functioning of the education department, the MLA alleged that “rules are being flouted and large-scale corruption is taking place in the transfer and posting of teachers across the district”.
He noted that although the government has recruited teachers, they are not being deployed to schools based on need.
He said that though a large number of children reside in rural areas, teachers are not being assigned in accordance with the required student-teacher ratio.
Consequently, children in rural regions are being deprived of quality education due to a shortage of teachers, Chatterjee claimed.
The MLA stated that approximately 1,500 teachers have been transferred or posted over the past year, with the majority being assigned to urban areas.
He questioned why teachers are being posted in cities while rural schools—which are in greater need—are being neglected.
The MLA also raised questions regarding the implementation of the Right to Education (RTE) Act.
He alleged that the benefits intended for underprivileged children under the Right to Education (RTE) Act are not reaching those who truly need them; instead, they are being availed of by children from affluent families.
He said that his protest will continue until concrete steps are taken to reform the system—specifically by addressing the needs of teachers, streamlining staff postings, and curbing alleged corruption.
(PTI News)
