Srinagar: General Line Teachers (GLTs) in Jammu and Kashmir recruited through the J&K Services Selection Board (SSB) have called to an end to the pay anomaly at an earliest to end the disparity currently existing in the Education Department.

A delegation of the general line teachers alleged that they were being discriminated upon by the government by not addressing the “huge pay anomaly between several cadres in and outside the department”.

The teachers said that their counterparts in rest of the Indian union territories were “far ahead than them in terms of Grade Pay and other service benefits”.

“Teachers in all other Union Territories of India are placed in Grade Pays between 4200 to 5000. While as, here in Jammu and Kashmir, the same teacher is placed in Grade Pay of just 2800, a huge difference and discrimination which authorities are taking long to address to bring fairness in the department,” a statement by a GLT delegation read.

The teachers further said the department “has placed ReTs, SSA teachers and General Line Teachers in the same Grade Pay of 2800, thus, devaluing the merit and quality of those recruited through proper recruitment procedures”.

Pertinently, Commissioner Secretary Education, Asgar Hassan Samoon had also tweeted recently about the said issue even as he had prioritized the issue of pay anomaly of teachers and intended to address and solve the same.

“(The) teacher awards, TBP of lecturers, teacher Pay Anomaly, to accept qualification during service; to transfer teachers overstaying in remote areas; Transfer RRET’s; Pay Arrears/ Salaries; posting Principals, ZEO’s, HMs/ Lecturers/Masters/Teachers; Regularize CPWs/, are my priorities,” Samoon had tweeted.

The teachers hoped and appealed to Secretary Education to take up the matter as early as possible to “infuse new enthusiasm among the teachers and witness a new change in the education department”.

Reader correspondent