NA Speaker rules all 300 plus teachers stand regularized, entitled to all benefits with retrospective effect
Zubair Qureshi
Monday turned out to be the big day for over 300 teachers (mostly lady teachers) working on deputation in several schools of the federal capital for the last many years as Speaker of the National Assembly Raja Pervaiz Ashraf in a ruling gave all of them one-time blanket absorption.
Raja Pervaiz Ashraf who as Prime Minister back in 2013 had approved a summary for the same but it was not implemented by the successor Monday finally accomplished the unfinished agenda and announced in the ruling the same summary now stands implemented.
“The condition of five years maximum period will not be applicable for deputationists under wedlock policy. A summary for the Prime Minister was moved on March 8, 2013 for absorption of teaching staff of the FDE working as deputationists under wedlock policy…and I was the prime minister at that time,” said the NA Speaker in his ruling. Since then several employees of the FDE were absorbed and more than 50 teachers were also regularized on pick and choose policy resulting in discontent among the remaining employees who were working on wedlock policy, the Speaker said adding the concerned ministries therefore, are directed to resolve the issue immediately w.e.f. March 8, 2013. In addition, one time blanket absorption is given to various scales, cadres with all benefits retrospectively, the speaker ruled.
NA Speaker’s ruling has resulted in great relief for all of the teachers who have been called for absorption for the last many years and for this purpose they also staged protest demonstrations, blocked roads in the cold winter season, faced discrimination from the Federal Directorate of Education (FDE), said a lady teacher with tearful eyes.
Finally, our struggle has resulted in immense relief and the coalition government of Pakistan People’s Party and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has addressed our grievances, she said.
In Islamabad, there is 10pc quota for absorption of teachers on deputation but it has not been implemented for last many years, said another teacher, adding if the FDE had adopted the 10pc quota policy there would be no backlog and all the teachers on deputation would be regularized on their turn but unfortunately, pick and choose policy was adopted and the teachers were discriminated against.
She also paid rich tributes to Rana Tanveer Hussain and the current government for listening sympathetically to the concerns of the teachers on deputation and for assuring them one-time absorption. In one of our meetings, Rana Tanveer was loud and clear when he said, “Rest assured all of you [deputation teachers] will be absorbed and no one will be sent away from her/his family back to his/her parent schools.”
