Jammu, Mar 30 (KNO): Jammu and Kashmir Education Minister Sakina Itoo on Monday informed the Assembly that around 150 lecturers from Gurez Valley, currently serving in Bandipora and Srinagar, will be sent back to their original place of posting.
Responding to a query raised by Gurez MLA Nazir Ahmad Khan, the Minister, according to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) said these lecturers were drawing salaries against posts in Gurez while performing duties elsewhere.
She said the government will ensure that all such lecturers are detached from their current assignments and posted back to Gurez, where they were originally appointed.
“No one will be allowed to continue duties outside their designated place of posting,” the Minister said, adding that the lecturers were meant to serve the people of their own region.
The issue was raised in the Assembly with concerns over staff shortages in Gurez Valley, officials said.
The Minister assured the House that corrective steps will be taken to address the situation and ensure proper staffing in the region.
Meanwhile, protests have been witnessed in Gurez over the past several days against the shortage of teaching staff in schools, with locals alleging that many institutions remain without teachers weeks after reopening in the Kashmir Valley.
Residents alleged that the education sector in the remote valley continues to record poor results in Classes 10 and 12 every year, raising concerns over the functioning of the Education Department in the area.
Last month, locals said the government suspended Balbir Kumar, Chief Education Officer (CEO) Bandipora, after he relieved 34 teachers to return to Gurez. “He was honestly doing his work but became a victim of politics,” said Abdul Aziz, a resident. “We don’t need speeches in the Assembly, we need action on the ground like that CEO,” he added—(KNO)