CHENNAI: The government tribal residential schools run in remote areas are facing shortage of teachers as nearly one-third of the 1,478 teaching vacancies have not been filled. Although the vacancies in government schools were filled with temporary teachers as a stop-gap arrangement last year, the same has not been done in the 320 tribal residential schools in 17 districts, putting the students at a disadvantage, said activists working with them.
“In Erode district, there are nine middle schools and all of them don’t have a physical education teacher. In the government middle school at Kongadai, two of the teachers were sent on deputation to the high secondary school in Burgur, even as there are nine vacancies. At Bugur HSS, 10 additional posts should be created based on the student’s strength. There is no post for English and Tamil teachers for classes 11 and 12 there,” said S Nataraj of Sudar, an organisation working with tribal communities in Erode. The situation is no different in The Nilgiris where there are 42 vacancies in 140 posts.
The tribal welfare department had issued a circular to fill up vacancies in seven Ekalavya Model Residential Schools on a temporary basis. However, out of the 96 BT assistants posts 41 are vacant, and 45 are vacant in 96 post-graduate teacher posts. According to the welfare association of tribal teachers, the department last appointed teachers on consolidated pay two years ago.
“There are several challenges to working in tribal areas. The teachers in these schools should be able to communicate with the native and convince them to send their children to schools. Many of them stop girls from going to schools after Class 8. As the pay was very less, many of the teachers who were appointed on consolidated pay left the job,” said a member of the association.
Officials in the tribal welfare department said that they had a meeting with the headmasters recently and the issue of vacancies was discussed. “We have asked them to look for suitable candidates and are awaiting the government’s approval to appoint temporary teachers,” said a top official.