State files review petition in apex court, seeks 1-yr breather
Times of India | 8 April 2025
123 Kolkata: The Bengal secondary education board has filed a review plea in the Supreme Court on Monday seeking a breather for the ‘untainted' school staff to continue "until the end of the academic year or until the process for fresh appointments is concluded, whichever is earlier", to pause the "devastating impact" of the mass terminations of 25,752 school staff in Bengal.
The board stated that the present teacher-student ratio in state high schools is 52:1, against the central norm of 30:1, and immediate mass terminations will increase the gap to 58:1, with many schools losing their science and language subject teachers midway through their academic year. However, the board made it clear that it was seeking breather for candidates "not found to be tainted".
Spelling out the impact of the judgment on Bengal high schools, the board in its petition said, "The teacher strength of 1,51,568 (excluding headmasters) in the state is already strained, with most schools relying on a single teacher per subject for classes V to X. Services of 17,206 out of the 1,51,568 teachers, i.e. 11.3% of the existing teachers, are to be terminated pursuant to the judgment, which would have a devastating impact across the schools in the state." The board runs 9,487 high schools, of which 6,952 have HS sections (classes XI and XII), catering to over 78.6 lakh students. The board says the 2025-26 academic year commenced in Jan, and the classes are midway. "Sudden stoppage of teaching would have a significant detrimental impact on the learning process of the students," the petition read.
The board in its petition argued, "The education system in the state, including classroom instructions (particularly in subjects such as mathematics, science, and languages), would be gravely and irreparably prejudiced. The students would suffer from a significant learning gap (especially for those preparing for board examinations), and the many ongoing classes will also come to a halt."
The petition also states that the mass termination could impact the Madhyamik and HS examination evaluation. "Board examinations for both the Secondary and HS levels were just concluded, and the evaluation of the answer scripts is under process. The immediate termination of services of teachers who are involved in the evaluation process would cause a significant delay in evaluation and publication of results of the board examinations, jeopardising the future academic cycle and careers of such students and may affect the standard of evaluation."
The petition says the mass termination will also impact "non-teaching staff from groups C and D, who are mostly clerks, lab assistants, peons, security staff, and sanitation workers, who are essential for carrying out various administrative tasks".