Notwithstanding Edu Min's word, teachers deployed as BLOs yet again; DSE-J clueless

TNN Bureau. Updated: 11/17/2017 1:07:13 AM Front Page

S.SHEKHAR

JAMMU: Contrary to tall claims of State Government that teachers wouldn't be deployed for poll duty or any other official engagement and they will have only one job to do-100% academic duty, yet hundreds of teachers have been further assigned duties of Booth Level Officers (BLOs) to manage affairs of the forthcoming Panchayat and Local Bodies elections in Jammu & Kashmir.
According to reliable sources, hundreds of teachers, who earlier were deployed as BLOs in previous Assembly and Parliamentary elections in the State, have been assigned similar duties once again in violation of the Government announcement, which has also led to commotion among the teaching community and would definitely going to affect academics in the schools across the State.
"About 90% of BLOs are teachers while mere 10% belong to other departments like Health, Handicrafts etc," sources added.
It may be mentioned here that the teachers, who have been deployed as BLOs, mostly belong to Primary, Upper Primary, Secondary and High schools while very few from Higher Secondary level have been engaged.
Meanwhile, sources further informed that directions for deployment of teachers as BLOs have been passed by Sub Divisional Magistrates (SDMs) of respective Sub Divisions in the Jammu Division, whereby the teachers have been directed not to attend their schools from November 15-30.
"During this period (November 15-30), the teachers, who have been deployed as BLOs, have to visit door-to-door in the areas falling under booths of their respective Polling Stations and register new voters as well as update the voter lists be it corrections in names of electorates or the number of members of a particular family etc," sources said while adding, "The teachers would also be provided android phones to update the concerned Supervisors (also teachers), with all these details."
If recalled here, in his maiden meeting with officers of the department soon after taking over as Education Minister in the month of March this year, Sayed Altaf Ahmed Bukhari declared that in Municipal and Panchayat polls, which will follow, the system of using teachers and education fraternity for election duties will end.
"There are clear instructions from Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti that the State Government will not deploy teachers as Booth Level Officers (BLOs) during elections," the Education Minister had said and added, "The Chief Minister has been gracious to accept this proposal by the department."
"The Education Department has decided to end the practice of using teachers for various purposes," he had said, adding, "The aim of such moves is to restore the honour and dignity of teachers, whose only task is teaching."
When contacted, the Education Minister was not available for comments over the issue despite repeated attempts.
However, Director, School Education (DSE), Jammu, S. Ravinder Singh, told The News Now that he didn't know about any such development and denied of having issued any direction for deployment of any teacher for poll duty as BLO.
"I have passed clear-cut directions to all the Chief Education Officers (CEOs) not to deploy any teacher as BLO or for any other purpose without the permission of Directorate of School Education," he categorically said and added, "I will verify this information immediately."
"I have also made it clear that if any teacher is deployed for any other additional duty, he/she would perform that before or after the school timing," the Director School Education, Jammu, further maintained.
Pertinently, there are 87 Assembly Constituencies in the State of Jammu & Kashmir, which comprise of thousands of Polling Stations and Polling Booths, for which thousands of BLOs and associates are needed to manage affairs of updating electoral rolls in each polling time.


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