Chandigarh: The Democratic Teachers’ Front (DTF), Punjab, and Democratic School Teachers’ Association, Haryana, staged a protest against the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan on Saturday.The protest was organised following a call by the Teachers’ Federation of India against the Supreme Court’s verdict dated Sept 1, 2025, which mandates retrospective implementation of TET. A large number of teachers from across the country gathered at the venue to register their opposition.Addressing the gathering, DTF Punjab state president Vikram Dev Singh demanded that the “unnecessary condition” of TET be withdrawn by passing suitable amendments to the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, in Parliament. He also criticised the Centre’s proposed “tenure track system” under the National Education Policy 2020, terming it a move that weakens job security for teachers, and called for its withdrawal.Chairman of the Democratic School Teachers’ Association, Haryana, Dharaminder Dhanda also addressed the protest and raised concerns over what he described as the privatisation-oriented approach of the National Education Policy, demanding its rollback.The leaders criticised both the central and state govts for promoting corporate-driven policies in the education sector instead of withdrawing what they termed the “unjustified” TET condition. They also expressed solidarity with ongoing struggles by teachers across states for safeguarding education and teachers’ rights.The leaders announced that the Democratic Teachers’ Front, Punjab, will organise a “Vada Khilafi March” towards the chief minister’s residence in Sangrur on April 11, protesting alleged unfulfilled promises by the Punjab govt. These include not filing a review petition against the Supreme Court’s TET verdict, not passing a resolution in the Assembly against it, failing to formulate a state-specific education policy, and not implementing the old pension scheme despite issuing its notification. MSID:: 130018017 413 |
