PMK condemns termination of 300 Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare school teachers

CHENNAI: PMK founder S Ramadoss on Monday condemned the state government for terminating 300 teachers, who were working in Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare schools, and called for their reemployment, stating that the quality of education would be affected.

"Failing to fill more than 400 teachers' vacant posts in these schools, the state government has now also terminated 300 temporary teachers. The Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare department runs 320 schools across the state where around 30,000 students are studying at present. As 438 teaching posts are vacant, the department appointed 300 temporary teachers. They were terminated last week," the senior leader said in a statement.

As Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare schools are mostly in remote areas, most teachers with TET (Teachers Eligibility Test) qualifications hesitate to work in such institutions. Due to this, the students of these marginalised communities are suffering, Ramadoss stated.

He went on to add, "Instead of working on correcting it, the department director has started to pull up the teachers who raised this concern and notices have also been issued against the leaders of the teachers' association. Denying education to Adi Dravidar and tribal students is a most serious social injustice."

The opposition leader urged the state government to take measures to fill the 438 vacant teaching posts and to allow the temporary teachers to continue in the schools until then. He also demanded that the department withdraw the notices against the teachers' association.