At schools across state, colleagues stay glued to TV
Times of India | 8 April 2025
123456 Kolkata: As CM Mamata Banerjee stood up to speak for nearly 33 minutes at Netaji Indoor Stadium on Monday to address the affected teachers and staff of schools across Bengal, their colleagues remained glued to television sets and cellphone monitors, tracking every moment. As CM Banerjee concluded her speech, there was a sense of optimism amid the rising anxiety.
CM Banerjee's repeated assurances that the eligible will not lose their jobs and her appeal to the teachers to join work were seen as a positive message. School heads and teachers felt this indicated that the Bengal govt is aware of the challenges of keeping schools running without the affected teachers and staff.
Around 197 kilometres away from Kolkata, Shruti Ganguly, headmistress of Basanti Debi Vidyamandir in West Burdwan's Raniganj, was glued to her cellphone, watching along with her remaining teachers as the CM addressed the deprived teachers. In her school, out of 27 teachers and three para-teachers for 1,419 students, 12 lost their jobs. All these 12 teachers attended the CM's programme at Netaji Indoor Stadium on Monday.
Ganguly said, "Any hope now is good. We were pushed to the brink after the SC order. We did notice with interest that the CM urged all to report back. She also assured that none will lose their jobs. This is optimistic. We are hopeful. But I will get to know more from my colleagues once they speak to me later."
In Jangalmahal, at the Pingbani High School in Goaltore, the teachers were glued to the TV sets during the CM's speech. This school has 25 teachers. After the SC order, six teachers and two Group D and one Group C staff lost jobs. The school has only 16 teachers left, and their examinations start on Wednesday. All nine who lost their jobs were in Kolkata on Monday, but their colleagues, including headmaster Prolay Banerjee, were tracking everything from their school. "I am not sure how to manage supervision or grading. I will have to ring the school bell myself," he said, adding they hoped the teachers who lost their jobs get to continue working.
Closer home in Kolkata, after the CM addressed the teachers, Bhawanipur Mitra Institution's headmaster Raja Dey said, "The two subject teachers from the 2016 batch are regularly attending classes. I also requested them to continue, as we did not receive any order from the state. Other teachers in the teachers' room are also trying to make them feel at ease."
Amitesh Choudhury, Advanced Society for Headmasters and Headmistresses President, said, "The SC issue has a legal complexity. It is not certain how the staff who lost jobs will react to it. But the CM's appeal to teachers to start working can also be viewed from a humanitarian prism. It is also a call for duty given the impact it is having on schools."
(Written with inputs from Mohammad Asif in Burdwan & Sujoy Khanra in Midnapore)