Teachers resent move to appoint JKAS officers as CEOs

Srinagar, Nov 16: Resentment is brewing among the teaching community of the School Education Department (SED) as the J&K government is mulling to posting the JKAS officers at the post of Chief Education Officer (CEO).

The move is being considered to strengthen the administrative and academic oversight in all the districts across Jammu and Kashmir.

The issue was deliberated during the high-level meeting chaired by the J&K Chief Secretary, Atul Dulloo to review the key issues of SED.

The meeting was convened in October this year and was attended by the Secretary SED, besides other senior officers of the department.

As per the official document, CS Atul Dulloo, while reviewing the position of CEOs has directed the department to submit a proposal for holding the post of CEO by JKAS officers.

“The department should consider moot a proposal for holding the post of CEO by JKAS officers, assisted by one senior academician of equivalent status to strengthen administrative and academic oversight in each district,” an official document reads.

However, the move has been opposed by the teaching faculty members of the department, saying that induction of “outside officers” in SED will cause stagnation for the 10 2 cadre lecturers.

President of all J&K Lecturers Association, Mansoor Ahmad Khan, said any proposal to induct officers from outside the department would be seen as a direct affront to the aspirations and rights of the existing teaching fraternity.

“Any step aimed at addressing the stagnation of the 2 cadre is welcome and long overdue. The 2 cadre, comprising lecturers and principals, has been facing acute stagnation for over a decade, with hundreds of officers awaiting promotion despite fulfilling all eligibility conditions,” Khan said.

He said that several lecturers retire without a single promotion during their entire career span of over 25 years, which is demoralising and unjust.

“If gazetted officers of SED are not inducted into other departments, how can a reverse mechanism—bringing outsiders as CEOs—be justified. Such a move would disturb the administrative balance, erode career progression avenues, and demotivate an already overburdened teaching community,” he said.

He said that over 5000 lecturers and senior lecturers are presently stagnating at the same level, while a huge number of principal posts remain unfilled due to procedural delays.

“Instead of bringing officers from other cadres, the department must evolve a transparent promotion policy similar to the Higher Education Department model, where seniority-cum-merit and performance-based evaluation determine upward movement,” he said.

Mansoor Khan urged the minister for education, Sakina Itoo, J&K CS Atal Dullo and Secretary SED Ram Nivas Sharma to halt any such proposal that undermines the departmental hierarchy and professional integrity of the department.