Block Grant Teachers Stage Road Blockade

Demanding equal work for equal pay and abolition of block grant system, about 310 members of Block Grant Teachers and Employees Association of Sambalpur and Jharsuguda took out a rally and blocked SH-10 for two hours in front of the Prasanna Panda BTM Square on Monday morning. Jharsuguda district president of the Association Prakash Chandra Roy said education is given the least priority by the State Government and teachers are worst paid. "Government is following Block Grant System that deprives teachers of facilities such as increment, promotion, special allowances, pension and other retirement benefits. Government must abolish Block Grant and implement grant-in-aid instead," he said. Threatening that the movement would be intensified if Government fails to fulfil their demands, he said they will gherao the Assembly on December 12.