RAWLAPINDI: The education department Rawalpindi has failed to implement the reallocation policy in letter and spirit. In order to meet the teacher-student ratio of 1:40 in classrooms, the education department, under the reallocation policy, transferred 1307 teachers within the district but 442 of them managed to cancel their transfers.

The remaining teachers are also trying to get their orders cancelled.

After filing appeals with the EDO office and a redressal cell set up by the city district government, the 442 teachers managed to either retain their seats or get choice posting in the name of readjustment.

Teachers having political backing get their transfer orders cancelled

The department cancelled the transfer orders in two phases. In the first phase, 287 teachers were readjusted while two days ago 155 more teachers got new transfer orders from the rederssal cell.

The redressal cell is hearing scores of new cases and it is expected that the cell would issue new orders soon.

A source said teachers who were earlier transferred to far-flung areas managed to get new transfer orders in the name of readjustment.

The source said schools in Murree were badly affected due to the shortage of teachers as teachers posted there had not joined duty.

Recently, four teachers were transferred to the Riaz Model Sehr Bagla School but all of them managed to get their orders cancelled. He said teachers having political links had managed to get themselves readjusted.

Another source, who was part of the team which readjusted 287 teachers, said the department had to face a lot of pressure from politicians.

Being a government employee, how can we take stand against politicians, he added.

When contacted, Executive District Officer (education) Qazi Zahoorul Haq said: “We readjusted 287 deserving teachers and as far as readjustment of 155 teachers is concerned the department has nothing to do with them as they got the readjustment orders through the redressal cell.”

In reply to a question, he confirmed that many schools in the hilly area were facing the shortage of teachers.

He agreed that massive transfers, cancellation and readjustment had affected educational activities in the schools.

Last month, a group of teachers challenged the transfer orders in Lahore High Court’s Rawalpindi bench.

However, after authorisation by the court, the secretary education directed the EDO office to implement the reallocation policy.

“When we have a court order and the secretary education’s backing, I fail to understand why the department has failed to implement the policy,” said a senior officer who wished not to be named. He said to improve education standards the department had to take strict action. “We should not bow to the pressure from politicians, teachers unions and others and take a principled stand,” he said.

Published in Dawn, September 8th, 2014