Gurgaon: Haryana govt is set to launch a long-awaited general teacher transfer drive based on the Haryana Teacher Transfer Policy-2026 within the next two weeks.Director of Secondary Education Jitendra Dahiya said during an online meeting that the department is targeting completion of the entire exercise in about 75 days so that teachers can join their new schools by October.According to officials, the process will begin with the rationalisation of 256 Model, 250 PM SHRI and 250 CM SHRI schools before the general transfer drive is rolled out through the MIS portal.The transfer process involves updating a teacher’s personal and service details on the portal, release of cadre- and category-wise merit lists, followed by a window for filing objections and release of the merit list. Thereafter, regular teachers will then be allowed to exercise their choice of schools in two phases. Guest teachers will be given an opportunity after the regular teachers.Schools will be allotted on the basis of merit, and after approval by the competent authority, transfer orders will be issued. Teachers who fail to participate in counselling can be posted anywhere within the district or the state.As the govt prepares to implement the policy, a major legal controversy has emerged over the merit calculation mechanism.The discontent centres around the policy’s 120-point transfer system, under which 30 marks are reserved for “Experience in Cadre”. Only service rendered in the current cadre is counted. Consequently, teachers promoted from JBT or TGT to the PGT cadre receive no credit for the years spent in their previous cadres, affecting their position in the merit list.Teachers argue that the provision violates Article 14 of the Constitution, which guarantees equality before the law, because it differentiates between directly recruited PGTs and teachers promoted within the department. While direct recruits begin earning experience marks in the PGT cadre from the date of appointment, promoted teachers lose credit for years — sometimes decades — of regular govt service.The teachers also cite the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s observations made in May and June 2026 in petitions related to cadre restructuring and service benefits to legally ground their argument. They claim that the present policy runs contrary to the spirit of the High Court’s directions to frame the new policy after considering the impact on seniority, promotional prospects and service-related benefits.Teacher organisations have argued that the policy violates the principle of natural justice, saying promotions meant to reward experience should not become a disadvantage during transfers.For instance, a JBT or TGT teacher who is promoted to PGT after 15 years of service would receive no experience marks in the new cadre and could rank below a newly recruited PGT with only a short period of service. They say this anomaly could force promoted teachers to accept postings far from their home districts despite having significantly longer govt service.Teacher associations are planning to submit detailed representations to the additional chief secretary and the director of school education, seeking an amendment to the “Experience in Cadre” provision to include previous regular service. If the govt does not modify the policy, they are likely to approach the Punjab and Haryana High Court, challenging the legality and constitutional validity of the provision.
