RANCHI: Students of Class VI and VII were seen sitting together in the verandah of Government Middle School, Bariatu, on Tuesday where the principal in charge was conducting a joint class for them.Sufiya Khatoon, principal in-charge of the school, said, "Two para teachers of our school are on strike while one of our permanent teachers has been deployed at the government school in Tunkatoli, where there is also a shortage of teachers due to the para teachers' strike."As a result, the school, which has 10 classes and over 500 students, is being run by only six teachers and the classes are being merged. The situation is even worse in interior areas of the state which are mostly dependent on para teachers. Around 66,000 para teachers across the state are on strike since November 16, after the lathicharge and their arrests on November 15 as they protested and pelted stones during the state Foundation Day celebrations. They have also been organising continuous protests and dharnas since March 10 this year, demanding their regularisation as government teachers.Meanwhile, para teachers across the state courted arrest at different police stations at the block level on Tuesday, the last day set by the government for them to join work.Bajrang Prasad, a member of Ekikrit Para Shikshak Sangh, the organisation of para teachers, said, "We are not going to give up this time. The government has been fooling us for ages, but this is the time to revolt. Their apathy towards us clearly shows that they are not bothered about the education of the poor."Meanwhile, the school education and literacy department had given a deadline till Tuesday for the para teachers to get back to work. "We are getting details from all districts regarding those para teachers who were absent from duty. We will be sending them a show cause notice and if they fail to come up with a justifiable reason for not coming to work, they will be terminated from their jobs," said department secretary Amrendra Pratap Singh.According to the contract of para teachers, the government can remove them immediately by paying them a month's salary, or give them a notice of one month before the termination of their contracts.However, the para teachers remained unfazed. "If they remove us, who will they hire? They do not have any alternative," Prasad said.On the other hand, the department secretary informed that steps are already being taken to ensure that children get education. "We are going to rope in those who have been given teachers' training, but are unemployed at the time being. Also, we will request retired teachers, who are willing to teach in government schools near them," he said.

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