More than 1,000 teachers, including part-time teachers, teacher-aspirants and serving teachers who were protesting on the Directorate of Public Instructions (DPI) campus, were arrested in the early hours of Thursday.
Part-time teachers had been observing a fast since September 25, demanding that they be made permanent employees of the government.
On the same campus, teachers who are also members of the Secondary Grade Seniority Teachers’ Association were protesting over “equal pay for equal work” and teachers who cleared Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) were demanding that they be recruited as teachers.
Some of them were sitting in protest with their children and a couple of them had fainted while observing the fast. School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi had held talks with the protesters and appealed to them to disperse.
In the early hours of Thursday, police personnel entered the DPI campus and removed the protesting teachers. They were taken in vehicles arranged by the police and detained at wedding halls at seven places. However, the teachers remained firm in their demands.
Part-time teachers and aspirants who cleared the TET were released in the afternoon. Later, they decided to suspend the protests. Tamizhaga Paguthinera Sirappasiriyargal Sangam (Tamizhaga Part-time Special Teachers Association) president Jesuraja said, “We have decided to suspend our protest as a few of our members had fallen ill. The venue of the protest lacks basic amenities. . We could not continue our protest in the halls where we were detained.”
Meanwhile, members of the Secondary Grade Seniority Teachers’ Association, who were released in the evening, decided to continue their protest. Robert, an office-bearer, said the agitation would continue until the demands are addressed.
According to the Tamizhaga Paguthinera Sirappasiriyargal Sangam, over 16,459 part-time teachers were appointed in 2011 at middle, high and higher secondary government schools. They have been working on a consolidated pay for the last 12 years and have staged several protests.
On Wednesday, Mr. Poyyamozhi announced certain measures to pacify the protesting teachers. He said a three-member committee constituted to look into the demand of “equal pay for equal work” would finalise its recommendations in three months and submit its report to Chief Minister M.K. Stalin.
The Minister had said there were 10,359 teachers working as part-time employees for 10 years or more. The consolidated pay of ₹10,000 they were receiving now would be increased to ₹12,500. The government would also bring them under medical insurance with a coverage for ₹10 lakh [per year], he had said.
