Gross injustice to Navodaya Vidyalaya staff

Navodayas have brought extraordinary changes in the secondary education in the country. Though the new pension scheme is implemented to the employees appointed after 2004, the staff who were appointed between 1986 and 2004 are not extended pension.

They performed their duties and are still performing with utmost responsibility though they knew well that there are no retiring benefits awaiting them at the time of retirement.Chukka Ramaiah

As part of its new national educational policy, the Union government established Navodaya Vidyalayams throughout the country in 1986. At present, there are 598 Navodaya educational institutions, at the rate of one in each district in the country.

These educational institutions were established with the aim of achieving four issues: to provide quality education to poor students in rural areas; to follow three-language formula as per the provisions in Constitution; to inculcate nationalism among the students by admitting north Indian students in the south Indian institutions and vice versa; and to be exemplary to the other educational institutions in the districts.

These educational institutions, which were established when P V Narasimha Rao was the HRD Minister in the Rajiv Gandhi Cabinet, have brought extraordinary changes in the secondary education in the country. They provided modern education with the highest standards to the students, coupled with values, awareness on environment, adventure sports, physical exercise, training in Yoga and teaching through information and communication technology and good library facility. They achieved remarkable results within a short period.

During the last three decades, the Navodaya institutions achieved the best results in the tenth class and twelfth class examinations every year proving that they are better than Kendriya Vidyalayas, Railway schools and some other private educational institutions which follow CBSE syllabus. The corporate schools, which point out that the educational standard in the government schools is poor, could not raise a finger against Navodaya schools.

Students, parents and teachers play a pivotal role in achieving good results in any educational institution. There is a vast difference between the management of ordinary schools and Ashram schools or residential schools like Navodaya.

Both the teaching and non-teaching staff of Navodaya schools work day and night, right from 5 am to 10.30 pm in the name of teaching, study hours, self study, late night study and other responsibilities. They should also take care of health and welfare of the students regularly.

The staff in the residential education institutions need to work even during holidays and festivals. They do not have time to spend with their family members like other employees.

In fact, there should be better working conditions, good salary, pension and other facilities for the teaching and non-teaching staff working in such institutions. But in the reality, the employees who were appointed between 1986 and 2004 of the Navodaya schools do not have GPF-cum-pension.

More than 12,000 employees who were appointed between 1986 and 2004 did not have the pension facility. The Union government did not extend pension scheme to them. The employees after working for nearly thirty years retire at the age of 60 without even reasonable benefits.

They do not get a single rupee as pension leaving their families in penury. The condition of the employees with chronic diseases is pathetic.

The responsibility of the employees of Navodaya institutions is equal to the soldiers who are guarding the borders of our country. The parliamentary committee appointed in 2002 suggested to the government in its report to provide GPF-cum-pension facility to the employees of the Navodaya schools.

Though the Union Human Resources Ministry was favourable for implementing pension scheme to the employees of Navodaya, the Union Finance Ministry turned it down stating that it would be a financial burden.
Even the Supreme Court also rejected their demand as the case was not put up properly before it.

Though the new pension scheme is implemented to the employees appointed after 2004, the staff who have been appointed between 1986 and 2004 are not extended pension.

They performed their duties and are still performing with utmost responsibility though they knew well that there are no retiring benefits awaiting them at the time of retirement. However, this may reflect on their performance in future that may affect the results in the examinations.

A number of Members of Parliament have written letters to the government a number of times praying for the implementation of pension to the staff recruited between 1986 and 2004.

It is grossly unjust on the part of the government to deny pension facility to the 12,000 employees citing technical reasons. It is not proper to punish the employees for the mistakes committed by an officer who was appointed on deputation.

It is a pleasure to note that the Union government has announced in the budget that they would start 67 Navodaya schools in the country during 2016-2017 academic year.

The Union government had taken that decision since it knew that these institutions have been working well. I appeal to the Central government to provide GPF-cum-pension scheme to the staff who have been working with sincerity to provide them a fearless future and to work with utmost sincerity.