JAMMU: Terming the notification issued by Public Service Commission (PSC) for selection to the posts of lecturers 10+2 in School Education Deptt. as legally imperfect and technically perverse, Harsh Dev Singh, Chairman JKNPP and former Education Minister, has sought the withdrawal of the same and issuance of a fresh notification after rectification of the erroneous position.
He said that the prospective candidates as well as the in-service candidates who called upon him had expressed several reservations which were required to be addressed by the concerned authorities before proceeding further with the selection process.
Pointing towards a series of defective clauses in the PSC notification no. 09-PSC (DR-P) of 2016 dated 19th March, 2016, Harsh urged for their review and removal of the anomalies so as to satisfy the prospective candidates and also to avoid any possible litigation in the matter.
He said that the notification provided that the selected candidates would have to serve for five years in ‘zone III’ as defined in the transfer policy of the govt. vide govt. order no. 622-Edu of 2015 dated 22nd December, 2015.
He clarified that the said Transfer Policy of the Education Department had categorically stated that “the tenure of teaching staff of Education posted in Zone III shall be one year and thereafter he / she shall be given posting of his preference for two years”.
He said that the PSC notification was therefore not only incompatible and incongruous with the government’s version of zone III as defined in its transfer policy but suffered from several other vices and defects. He said that the revised pay rules under sixth pay commission applicable from 1st April, 2006 provided for a basic pay of Rs. 20,100 plus admissible allowances for lecturers posts of 10+2 but the current notification stipulated that the lecturers would be selected under erstwhile basic pay of Rs. 9,300 issued prior to 2006 and the selected candidates would be given merely such minimum scale and grade of Rs. 5400 for first five years which amounted to Rs. 14,700. He further pointed out that the said notification allowed even the in-service candidates to apply without a pay protection clause. He said that even the qualified primary school teachers were drawing not less than Rs. 25,000 and this permitting them to apply without protection of their pay was violative of their rights and service rules.
Harsh further questioned the criteria adopted for inclusion of areas under Zone III for the purposes of selection of lecturers. He said that zone III as per the said notification included Leh District, Kargil District, Marwah, Warwan, Dachhan, Tangdhar and Machil area, Guraz and Mahore.
He said that while majority of the areas as included in the arbitrarily defined zone III were connected by roads and even by air, there were numerous areas in Jammu region which had no such connectivity and remained cut off from the rest of the world. Lambasting the zone III as politically created on whims and fenies, Harsh further questioned the non-inclusion of areas like Dudu-Basantgarh, Bhomag, Landar, Gulabgarh, Thakra Kot, Marmat besides other blocks and tehsils where people have to tread for 20-25 kms with the said areas remaining totally cut off during winters.
Seeking the indulgence of Governor in view of great unrest amongst the educated youth, Singh sought the issuance of fresh notification after addressing the genuine concerns of such youth.