Teachers of 210 nationalised schools without salary for 2yrs

While Sajek, a newly designated tourist spot in Rangamati's Baghaichhari upazila, is booming with tourism activities day by day, education of hundreds of school kids in the area is facing various problems and uncertainty.

Moreover, there are no pure drinking water facilities and proper health care service for the local inhabitants.

The government included 22 non-government primary schools in Baghaichhari upazila under nationalisation scheme about two years ago, but the area hardly saw any improvement in education system as teachers of those schools are yet to receive any government facilities, including regularisation of the their jobs under the ministry concerned.

A total of 210 primary schools, earlier managed by the hill district councils, in three hill districts were included in the nationalisation scheme in February 20, 2017.

Of the 210 schools, 81 are in Rangamati, 80 in Bandarban and 59 in Khagrachhari.

During a visit to Hamachang Furongni Government Primary School at Tripurapara beside Baghaihat-Machhalong-Sajek road, about 40 kilometres from Baghaichhari upazila headquarters, this correspondent found four teachers of the school living a subhuman life as they are not getting their salaries since the nationalisation of the school about two years ago.

There are 64 students in the school, which has four tin-shed classrooms.

Although the school has toilet facilities for its young learners, there is no arrangement for pure drinking water.

Kalpo Ranjan Tripura, president of the school managing committee, said all the 210 schools were established under supervision of United Nations Development Program and Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Facility (UNDP-CHTDF) in 2010.

Prior to stopping their activities in the hill districts, UNDP-CHTDF paid the teachers salary for nearly five years.

After that Rangamati Hill District Council paid the teachers' allowances for another two years, till the nationalisation of the schools, Kalpo Ranjan said, adding that, the teachers are not getting their salaries since the declaration of nationalisation in 2017.

According to the government's notification, the primary education offices concerned will first create posts for required number of teachers and then hire them under the government scheme, which is still awaited.

Headmaster of Furongni Government Primary School Jagadish Tripura said in reality many teachers often have to work as day labourers to maintain their families.

Acting Upazila Primary Education Officer in Baghaichhari Sona Mitra Chakma said as the teachers are not getting their salaries they cannot put pressure on them to attend their institutions on humanitarian ground.