Accountability crises in J&K SED

For many years, the Jammu and Kashmir School Education Department (SED) has claimed to uphold accountability and transparency, asserting that more attention will be given to academic excellence every coming day.

However, the reality is that the few people (teachers) in the department are exempted from the accountability and transparency claimed by the department. They are people who enjoy their prolonged stint in the offices of ZEO, CEO, Director and SCERT. Certain selected teachers, who are close to those in power, are not held accountable. In J&K's SED, a very wrong trend has been going on for many years, which is greatly damaging the department's reputation.

For years together, the department has initiated a wrong trend where selected teachers are accommodated in offices instead of fulfilling their basic duty of teaching in schools, for which they were recruited and are paid a salary as well.

However, due to the patronage of senior officers, these selected teachers are never seen in schools but are always deputed to offices. This is not an issue which the people at the helm of affairs are not aware of, for several years every officer who has held the position of Director School Education or Administrative Secretary has been informed about the issue, but in vain.

So many years have passed, and this trend continues at every level of the department, creating a significant flaw that severely impacts the working and functioning of the department.

These selected individuals, either based on CEOs' recommendations, or recommendations from the Directorate of School Education Kashmir (DSEK) or from the Civil Secretariat, are deputed to offices, neglecting their primary job of teaching in schools for which they were recruited.

If we talk about any district, in every CEO office or Zonal Education Officer (ZEO) office, you will find teachers who have never been to schools since their recruitment. When questioned, CEOs claim that these teachers are here based on recommendations from DSEK.

Last year only, one teacher in Baramulla wrote to the Joint Director that since his recruitment in the department he has worked in the ZEO office and wants to be deputed to the office of Joint Director. Unfortunately, the joint director bypassed the CEO and directly wrote to ZRO to spare the teacher for his office. I highlighted the issue which forced the department to seek an explanation from the joint director.

The trend of deputing teachers to offices increased significantly when centrally sponsored schemes like erstwhile SSA, RMSA were implemented in J&K. While this may be to implement certain components of the scheme, there should be a fixed tenure of two to three years for the teachers being deputed to the offices.

Ironically, the department has allowed these blue eyed teachers to remain in offices without such limits. With no action from the directorate level or the administrative department, these blue eyed teachers are calling the shots.

These teachers are not only harming the future of children by staying away from schools but are also promoting corruption. There are numerous complaints against teachers working as cultural coordinators and those deputed in other cells. Unfortunately, officials overlook these issues every time.

Whether it's about teachers' transfers or any other issue, these teachers sitting in offices promote corruption by interfering in every task through their manipulations in routine processes.

Few weeks ago, it was revealed that the orders for teachers' rationalisation submitted by CEOs from several districts to DSEK were manipulated and the teachers deputed in the CEO office and DSEK changed the names in the proposals submitted by the CEOs which defeated the purpose of the rationalisatrion. The move received massive criticism from the stakeholders but the department remained unmoved, saving the skin of these influential teachers to continue their stint in offices. No action or probe was initiated to ascertain how the names were changed in the proposals put up by CEOs.

The changes were allegedly made in the list by these teachers and the other clerical staff in CEOs' and DSEK's offices.

This trend has been going on for years, and the officers at the helm of affairs encourage these teachers in offices for their wrong doings.

This mess is not limited to CEO offices or DSEK but also exists in SCERT and DIETs. Once a teacher is deputed to these offices, they are never relieved back to the schools after spending a particular time at SCERT.

For instance, a ReT teacher who has been deputed to SCERT (erstwhile SIE) for many years is now an in-charge lecturer and is even listed as a Senior Academic Officer on SCERT's official documents. However, this teacher has never been to a school or taught children for a decade now. Teachers like him are never held accountable by the department but or unfortunately encouraged for remaining away from the schools.

Last year, the SED issued reshuffle of lecturers which included few lecturers deputed at one of the DIETs in Central Kashmir. The lecturers in question were not relieved by the then DIET Principal. On questioning, the DIET principal bluntly said that the DIET cannot run without the two lecturers who were deputed there. Such statements reveal how officers have created lobbyism for favouring a particular group of teachers and Lecturers to keep them away from schools.

There are many such teachers who enjoy patronage in SCERT and DIETs' offices and stay away from schools. These teachers and lecturers are often found traveling to different parts of the country on department exchequer.

Teachers who work diligently and who are giving their blood and sweat in schools are accountable for their work. They are the people whose increments are stopped in case they produce poor results in Board exams. Also strict measures are taken regarding their attendance. However, teachers deputed in SCERT or CEO offices have no such attendance or accountability requirements. They are never held accountable for their primary job of teaching.

A recent incident during the class 8th term II exam revealed shortcomings of these teachers, as it was found that a very small font size was used in question papers. The incident put a question mark on the assessment cell of the SCERT which is run by these influential teachers, who could not even conduct the exam properly.

Even if the administrative department and the Directorate of School Education have issued repeated circulars to relieve the teachers from the offices, all these circular instructions are poorly implemented on ground. The move has raised questions over the functioning of the administrative department who are not able to get these orders implemented on ground.

Amid criticism from the stakeholders for allowing influential teachers to continue their stint in SCERT, the SED last year initiated a process to post new teachers in SCERT. But during the selection process the same old teachers and lecturers who were in SCERT for many years were selected for deputation and their deputation of previous years in SCERT were not counted.

If the department truly values transparency and accountability, it should send all these teachers deputed in SCERT and other offices from ZEO, CEO and DSEK back to their schools and assess them on the basis of their teaching skills in schools.

Unfortunately, the department is paying no attention to this issue.

This is the high time for the department to reshuffle the teaching staff deputed in offices including SCERT and new faces should be deputed, if at all needed, to run these cells created in offices.

This will bring accountability for all and improve the academic culture in schools as well. Hope good sense prevails.