Teacher takes up farm labour to protest salary delay | Bhubaneswar News
Balangir: Balangir district education authorities released one month’s salary for 72 teachers in Puintala block on Friday, following a unique protest by a govt school teacher, who took up agriculture labour to highlight unpaid wages.
Prabhudatta Sahu, an assistant teacher at Bandhanbahal Government Primary School, made headlines when he submitted a leave application to work as a daily wage labourer, protesting the non-payment of salaries for Dec and Jan.
“The mounting financial pressure and administration’s negligence forced me to take this extreme step,” said Sahu, who earned Rs 300 for a day’s farm work on Thursday. He had threatened to continue working as a labourer if the salary dues remained unpaid.
The teachers, who receives around Rs 45,000 monthly, have been struggling to manage household expenses and EMI payments due to the delayed salaries. These teachers were appointed under the Education Guarantee Scheme in 2001 and were later classified as ex-cadre in 2017. The district has 809 such ex-cadre teachers.
Additional district education officer Keshab Meher attributed the delay to technical issues and a strike by accounts staff. “We are expediting the process to clear all pending dues,” said Meher.
Prabhudatta Sahu, an assistant teacher at Bandhanbahal Government Primary School, made headlines when he submitted a leave application to work as a daily wage labourer, protesting the non-payment of salaries for Dec and Jan.
“The mounting financial pressure and administration’s negligence forced me to take this extreme step,” said Sahu, who earned Rs 300 for a day’s farm work on Thursday. He had threatened to continue working as a labourer if the salary dues remained unpaid.
The teachers, who receives around Rs 45,000 monthly, have been struggling to manage household expenses and EMI payments due to the delayed salaries. These teachers were appointed under the Education Guarantee Scheme in 2001 and were later classified as ex-cadre in 2017. The district has 809 such ex-cadre teachers.
Additional district education officer Keshab Meher attributed the delay to technical issues and a strike by accounts staff. “We are expediting the process to clear all pending dues,” said Meher.
