BHUBANESWAR: The Council of Higher Secondary Education (CHSE) on Tuesday gave a day's time to agitating block grant teachers to report for evaluation of Plus Two answer sheets.
Evaluation, which started on Monday, was hit after a majority of the block grant teachers refused to participate in the process. Against the requirement of 7,000 teachers for first phase evaluation that will continue till April 13, only 1,400 had joined on Monday.
On Tuesday, just 10 per cent of them participated and others continued picketing outside 49 evaluation zones across the State demanding abolition of block grant system and implementation of full grant aid. The CHSE held an examination committee meeting where members of the panel decided to ask the teachers to join by Wednesday in the interest of students, failing which alternative arrangements will be made.
CHSE Chairman Basudev Chatoi said as an alternative, teachers of aided/non-aided junior colleges, autonomous degree colleges and self-financing colleges will be roped in for the purpose. This apart, Officers on Special Duty (OSDs) of Rama Devi Women's University, Khallikote Cluster University and Gangadhar Meher Unitary University have been asked to send a list of their teachers who have not been assigned evaluation duty by CHSE. "CHSE will provide them regular appointment in the nearest evaluation zones where teachers are required for the correction work. Supervisors of evaluation zones have been asked to provide appointment to these teachers," Chatoi told mediapersons here.
If the block grant teachers of 488 and 662 category colleges decide to continue their agitation outside evaluation zones, the Council Chairman said the State Government has agreed to take disciplinary action against them under the provisions of Conduct of Examination Act, 1988. On Monday, the agitators also prevented teachers from entering the zones bringing the correction process to halt. Following this, Chatoi had to write to the State Police for help.
According to official reports, the CHSE requires 4,379 teachers for manual correction of papers and 2,695 teachers of e-evaluation of Science and Commerce answer sheets. "We will provide hand-holding training to teachers who join the process from Wednesday," he said. On a whole, the CHSE had a drawn a list of 8,828 teachers from across the State to be trained for e-evaluation in both first and second phase (April 16 to April 25).
Meanwhile, the block grant teachers refused to budge from their stand and said they would continue to protest till their demands are met. On the other hand, Higher Education Minister Pradeep Panigrahy said the block grant system cannot be abolished within a day or two. "It is a lengthy process and the department has approached State Government to consider the demand and do the needful," Panigrahy said while urging the teachers to join the evaluation process.