Patna: A delegation of the Bihar Sanskrit School Teachers’ Association led by its general secretary Shobha Kant Jha met education minister Mrityunjay Tiwary in his office chamber and submitted to him a memorandum demanding payment of arrears of their pay, pension and other allowances at the earliest and save them from starvation deaths.The memorandum pointed out that more than 20,000 teachers and non-teaching staff of altogether 576 government-aided Sanskrit schools of the state, most of whom have retired from service long back, are fighting for payment of their dues from 1990 to 2015. But the state government is not making the payments despite the orders of Patna High Court issued on August 13, 2019 in their favour. After the High Court’s judgment, the education department deliberately releases the fund one or two days before the end of the financial years due to which the sanctioned amount lapses, it alleged.Earlier, in the month of July last year, the Sanskrit teachers had marched on the streets of Patna and staged a massive demonstration before the state legislature to press for the payment of arears of their salaries, pension, gratuity and earned leave encashment, but they did not get any relief.The aggrieved teachers demanded immediate release of necessary funds for payment of arrears of their salary and pension after completing their pay fixation in the revised scales of pay.After going through the memorandum, the minister assured the delegation that he would soon convene a meeting to discuss their long-pending demands and take a favourable decision.
