LAHORE, Nov 11: Responding to the Punjab ombudsman’s directive, the provincial education department has set up a committee to frame service rules to regularize service structure of elementary English teachers.

Ombudsman Justice Sajjad Ahmad Sipra (retired) considered a complaint filed by an aggrieved teacher who submitted that he was appointed as an elementary English teacher in BPS-14 in a primary school in 1997. Despite the lapse of five years, he pointed out, no rules were framed during this period to regulate the service structure for teachers of this category.

The complainant contended that in the absence of any such rules these teachers were neither being transferred near their home stations nor was any promotion granted to them. He had prayed for intervention in the matter by the Punjab ombudsman’s office.

The office of the ombudsman referred the matter to the Punjab Public Instructions’ Lahore director as also to the provincial secretary schools education department who reported that as per policy agreed upon with the World Bank, the posts of English elementary teachers were for specific schools and non-transferable. They were not as such entitled to grant of leave, study leave, ex-Pakistan leave, increment on enhanced qualification, annual increment and appointment to higher posts from among the in-service quota and other facilities. Similarly, the extension of these recruitments had been granted to them on a year-to-year basis, the ombudsman’s office was reported.

The ombudsman observed that in the absence of service rules in respect of elementary English teachers, the department was haunted by a lot of confusion viz-a-viz leave, study leave, ex-Pakistan leave, increment on enhanced qualification, annual increment and appointment to higher posts from among service quota. The department, he said, should, therefore, consider the case of these teachers.

The department reported that the demands of the elementary English teachers with regard to framing of service rules for protection of their service were under active consideration of the government and a committee headed by the DPI (E.E) had been constituted to resolve the service matters of graduate English teachers.