Baby boom8217; leaves schools in disarray

But why this sudden spurt in the number of teachers going on maternity leave? According to well-placed sources in the Education Department, fresh recruitment of some 14,000 teachers under Vidya Sahayaks saw many young teachers. Besides, around 65 per cent of all primary teachers are women.

Meover, a recent increase in maternity leave from 120 days to 135 days has also cast its shadow on the functioning of schools. 8220;By the time a teacher returns from maternity leave, it is already Diwali or summer vacation. So there is a further leave of at least 15-20 days,8221; explains Mafatlal Patel, chairman of Ahmedabad District Panchayat Education Committee.

In Ahmedabad district alone, around 150 teachers are currently on maternity leave, says Patel, who recently visited the primary school in Metal village of Dholka taluka, and was shocked to see that of the three women teachers, two were on maternity leave. 8220;The school has five classes. How can a lone teacher handle it singlehandedly?,8221; he asked.

Teachers going on maternity leave in itself is not so much of a problem. Secondary school teachers too go on maternity leave. 8220;In primary schools, there is no alternative arrangement unlike in secondary schools,8221; explains Patel, who blames the State Government for ignoring primary education. In secondary schools, there are 1.5 teachers per class-room; in primary schools there is just one teacher per class-room.

Patel also complains about some of the impractical decisions taken by the State Government regarding primary schools. One such decision is about pre-poning primary school timing from 11 am to 10 am so that students can watch the educational programmes telecast by Doordarshan at 10.30 am in the school. 8220;Of the total 1,065 schools in Ahmedabad district, 470 do not have a TV set,8221; says Patel. Also, at least 60 TV sets have been stolen in the past few years as there is no post of a sentry in primary schools.

There are no clerks or peons either. 8220;It is mostly the headmaster who has to do the clerk8217;s work. If a teacher asks students to sweep the classrooms, they often develop a dislike for education and stop attending school,8221; says Patel. He admits that after school hours, many buildings become a den for anti-social activities like gambling.

Though the State Government has recently sanctioned grant for about 1,000 new classrooms in Ahmedabad district, these is still shortage of about 600 more, he says. In the overall State scenario, there is still a shortage of around 30,000 classrooms. Classrooms in some schools are in such a poor condition that students often have to be seated outdoors, he says. 8220;We need Rs 5 crore annually to repair the school buildings. We get only Rs 5 lakh,8221; complains Patel.

Besides, in Ahmedabad district alone there is a shortage of about 546 primary teachers; there are a total 5,500 teachers in the district. 8220;Of the 546 vacancies, 183 are reserved for Scheduled Tribes. In Ahmedabad district, we do not get ST candidates despite our efforts,8221; Patel says. There is an estimated shortage of about 21,000 primary teachers throughout the State.