U-turn by director, says leeway given in some cases

JAMMU: Reacting to The Tribune story published on December 10 under headline —- qualification altered to transfer physics teacher for teaching math —- Director, School Education, Jammu, Babita Rakwal, who had earlier said that no Chief Education Officer was competent to pass orders for transfers and deployments, today took a U-turn, saying some ‘some leverages’ are given under certain circumstances.

Vikram Sharma

Tribune News Service

Jammu, December 14

Reacting to The Tribune story published on December 10 under headline —- qualification altered to transfer physics teacher for teaching math —- Director, School Education, Jammu, Babita Rakwal, who had earlier said that no Chief Education Officer was competent to pass orders for transfers and deployments, today took a U-turn, saying some ‘some leverages’ are given under certain circumstances.

Under a government order, dated November 28, issued by Chief Education Officer, Poonch, to Zonal Education Officer, Mankote, Sahil Kumar, a teacher (MPhil in mathematics) at Government Middle School, Keni, was deployed at Higher Secondary School, Gahni, as MPhil Physics.

The order also read that since there was no mathematics teacher in Gahni, so the said teacher, Sahil Kumar, be deployed in the school till further orders as the students of the school were suffering.

The Director, School Education, said that to save the children from hardships due to the dearth of teaching faculty, such ‘arrangement would have been effected’.

“Besides, certain leverages are given to the CEOs to make the adjustments at the primary and high school levels so that children may not suffer due to want of education,” Rakwal said.

In her earlier statement, Rakwal, to whom the copy of deployment was marked by the CEO, had termed it a serious matter, saying that it defied the Ministry of Education order.

Today, the DSE, while giving a clean chit to the CEO, said that certain situations demand swapping of postings for the betterment of the children and leverages were given at the CEO levels to make the arrangements.

The School Education Department had directed all authorities not to affect any transfer/modification. The instructions were also brought to the notice of all CEOs for strict compliance.

However, the Director, School Education, failed to justify how Sahil Kumar was deployed at Higher Secondary School, Gahni.

Sources in the department said that there were many teachers (M.Sc mathematics) in various higher secondary schools of Poonch district who could have been deployed or adjusted against the said vacancy.