The High Court of Karnataka has suggested that the State government should not resort to contract system through outsourced agencies by a process of inviting tender to appoint school teachers but endeavour to continue its effort of recruitment of teachers in terms of the cadre and recruitment rules.
Justice M. Nagaprasanna made these observations while disposing of the petitions filed by hundreds of teachers, who are working in various residential schools run by the State government, seeking regularisation of their services.
Though the court did not find merit in the petitions filed by Ashwiniraj R. and others for regularisation for their jobs, it has expressed concern about the practice of appointing teachers in residential schools through outsourced agencies by calling tenders by the Karnataka Residential Educational Institutions Society, which is created by the government.
Mushrooming of agencies
The HC pointed out that the outsource agencies have mushroomed into mountainous proportions in the last 10 to 15 years because of the policy of the State to get appointments made through outsource agencies.
However, making it clear that the court would not pronounce upon permissibility or otherwise of appointments made through the outsource agencies as it is in the realm of policy, Justice Nagaprasanna said that appointing teachers through outsource agency by way of tender is a cause for concern as it relates to interest of students and their education.
“If a teacher from out of his monthly salary has to pay, month on month, a portion of his salary to the outsourced agency, under the head of service charges, there cannot be any better exploitation of human labour by the State, by encouraging appointments of teachers through outsourced agencies,” the court observed while noticing the proforma of salary calculation for the teachers appointed through outsource agencies during 2011-12.
The salary calculation chart, which included contributions and deduction, has a column for deducting monthly service charges from the salary payable to the outsourced teaching staff.
“In the life of a student, a teacher plays a very important role. A teacher is a dynamic force; the lamp of knowledge; a harbinger who would mould, hone and chisel the life and living of a child,” the court observed while pointing out that “it is for this reason a teacher would need security of tenure and not suffer vagrancies with regard to their work or wages, as they need to be dynamic, resurrect themselves to adopt to the changing teaching skills.”
