About 700 teachers and staff of about 70 educational institutions in Chatmohar, Pabna are being deprived of the joy of Eid. Teachers and staff of kindergartens and private schools have not been receiving salary allowance for more than 15 months.
The teaching staff of non-MPO educational institutions have been working in the educational institutions for many years but they are not getting salary allowance as they are not MPO registered.
There are private primary schools and some other educational institutions at the secondary and secondary levels where the teaching staff of the institutions are also not getting salary allowance. In the Covid-19 situation, the teaching staff of these educational institutions have become even more unhappy as they have not received salary allowance for a long time.
Abdur Rahman, general secretary of the Inter-District Kindergarten Association, said there are about 42 kindergarten schools in Chatmohar. Due to the closure of schools, the teaching staff of almost all the institutions have not been getting salary allowance for a long time. They have been living an inhuman life for a long time.
During Eid, they are more emotionally broken due to financial issues. Abu Sadad Sabuj, joint secretary of the Pabna district branch of the Bangladesh Private Primary School Teachers' Association, said there are 22 private primary schools in Chatmohar. The teachers of these schools have never received salary allowance from the government. They have been giving lessons for a long time but they are living a dehumanized life as it is not official.
Abdul Matin, president of Orbital Link School and College, a private secondary level educational institution, said there are six private non-secondary and secondary level educational institutions in Chatmohar. With the exception of one or two, most of these institutions are not able to pay the salaries of teachers. Teachers are in a lot of trouble and they are living a very inhuman life.
Although Handial College of the upazila was established about a decade and a half ago, the educational institution did not have MPO registration. There are several other educational institutions in Chatmohar such as non-secondary, secondary, higher secondary level and technical. The teachers of such educational institutions said that even though they have been teaching without government allowance for many years, they are deprived of salary allowance as they are not registered with the MPO.
Chatmohar Upazila Nirbahi Officer Saikat Islam said he had not received any instructions for these teachers. VGF assistance has been distributed through Union Parishad.
