KASARGOD: A day after primary school teacher Padmanabha M (47) -- deployed on COVID duty -- died of the viral disease, many teachers have spoken out against the collector's 'Maash' programme, which required them to go to marketplaces, businesses, funeral, and wedding houses and ensure people adhered to COVID protocol.
Since July 15, Collector D Sajith Babu has deployed 1,740 school teachers in 777 local body wards in the district under the initiative 'Maash', an everyday word for master or teacher.
On paper, 'Maash' is a voluntary programme and only those teachers who sign up for it are deployed on COVID duty. But in reality, it is a diktat from the collector to the deputy director of education (DDE) -- the top education officer in the district. The DDE forwards the registration link to the headteachers who forward it to the teachers of their respective schools. "Once we get the registration link on our phone, we have little choice but to register," said a 55-year-old teacher in Kinanur-Karinthalam panchayat.
She mentioned in the remark column that she is set to retire next year in the hope that she would be exempted from the duty. "I am undergoing Ayurveda treatment for body pain but still I was listed for the programme," she said.
The teacher reported for COVID duty at the panchayat office on Monday. When she asked the panchayat secretary to exempt her, the official told her only the collector could do it.
Another female teacher (51) in Vellarikkundu said she was "in fear and is anxious" after the death of Padmanabha. "My husband has hypertension and diabetes. I have to cook at home for my children and I am over 50 years. Won't I be endangering my family by going out and interacting with strangers?" she said.
Yet, she said she did not mind the COVID duty "because it is the responsibility of a teacher to create awareness in society". When asked if she would have signed up for the duty if it was voluntary, she said no.
The Congress-affiliated Kerala Pradesh School Teachers' Association (KPSTA) said there were many teachers above the age of 50 deployed on COVID duty. "If they seek an exemption, they will be made to run between the DDE's office and the collector's office," said Alocious George, state committee member of KPSTA.
To be sure, among the first 100 COVID deaths in Kasaragod, 88 persons are above the age of 50, and 25 persons between the age of 50 and 60 years. Twelve persons under the age of 50 years died of COVID in the district.
'No training given to teachers'
The teachers said they were given no training on how to take personal precautions.
Another male teacher, aged 51, in Madhur panchayat said he was doing the 'Maash' duty for the past two months. "But today (Monday) was the first time Madhur panchayat secretary convened a training session," he said. "I came to know of the mandate of a Maash is by reading newspapers," he said.
When the programme was rolled out mid July, the collector held a session for the teachers via Google meet. "Several teachers could not even log in for the session," he said.
To be sure, the panchayat secretaries are the implementing officers of the programme. "In the initial days, the collector had pulled them up for their shoddy approach," said K Raghavan, state committee member of Kerala School Teachers' Association, which is affiliated to the CPM. Later, a nodal officer was appointed and WhatsApp groups were created to disseminate information, he said.
However, most of the information in the groups was about how to create awareness among the public. There was no message hard-driving the importance of personal protection of teachers, said the teacher from Madhur panchayat.
He said he wore a mask and carried a bottle of sanitizer with him when he went out on duty. When asked if he used the handrub after exiting every shop, he said no. "But I used it before going home," he said.
On October 1, Padmanabha had posted 15 photographs on his Facebook where he was seen posing before grocery shops and vegetable shops. In several photos, his bare hands were touching vegetables and toffee jars in the shops. If he was not using sanitiser to clean his hands after exiting every shop, he could have been theoretically transporting the virus from one shop to another. "I also carry sanitizer with me but I have not used it after checking out of every shop," said Sunil Kumar Karichery, district secretary of All Kerala Teachers' Union, which is affiliated to the CPI.
Karichery, who works as a 'Maash' in Kuttikol panchayat, said there was a gap in the training given to teachers.
The organisation had expressed "concern" over the death of Padmanabhan and demanded an enquiry into the circumstances that led to his demise. "He contracted the disease while on Maash duty, and it is a concern that there are allegations that he did not get the best medical attention," Karichery said.
Teachers on Maash duty are not given masks, face shields, gloves and sanitisers. Most of them go for the duty armed with just a mask.
Are Maash effective?
The teachers are required to ensure shop keepers and salespersons wore masks and gloves. They also have to ensure that there is no crowding in marketplaces and in front of businesses. "It is not a regular 10 am to 5 pm job. They can check the shops anytime. They don't need to check every day either," said Dileep, the nodal officer of the programme.
Raghavan of the CPM-affiliated KSTA said teachers have voluntarily signed up for the programme and there were no complaints till now.
In the first batch, 820 male teachers signed up for the programme, and one Maash was deputed in every ward in rural areas. In urban areas, two or three Maash were deployed in one ward.
But as cases increased, another set of 920 teachers, both male, and female, were signed up, said Dileep. Maash are deployed only in their resident wards to reduce pressure.
"We had to depend on female teachers because 70% of the teachers in the district are females," Raghavan said.
He said a female colleague of his was worried initially but after the training session on Monday, all her fears were addressed.
Applications to organise weddings are forwarded to the 'Maash' and they would have to go to the wedding house a day before and counsel them to avoid crowding. "The next day, there will be the usual rush and crowding in the wedding house. But we just observe from afar," said the Madhur teacher.
Maash have the powers to report crowding and repeat violators to a WhatsApp number with photographs, but they rarely do that. "In my two months as Maash, I have not reported anyone," said the Madhur teacher. Karichery said he has also not reported anyone. To be sure, any person can report protocol violations to the WhatsApp number.
On Monday, the collector readied another set of 51 higher secondary school teachers to do the same job. They are given the power of executive magistrate and have to visit at least 20 shops every day to ensure people adhered to COVID protocol. They are called the sectoral magistrates.
Earlier in May, the collector set up 100 helpdesks and deployed more than 100 teachers at Thalapady to register non-resident Keralites coming from other states when the Lockdown I was lifted. The number of desks was disproportionate to the travellers coming to the state, and after protests, the number was reduced to 60 and then to five.
Teachers are now also used to enter data of COVID patients are swab collection centres because they are computer literate.