The Democratic Teachers’ Front (DTF) on Monday hailed the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s decision to lift the stay on the promotion of government school principals, saying the order has removed a major hurdle in the long pending promotion process.
The teachers’ union said it had been pursuing the issue since long and expressed hope that the state Education Department would now expedite promotions not only of principals, but also of other teaching cadres.
DTF state president Digvijaypal Sharma and state secretary Resham Singh Khemuana said promotion to the post of principal had remained stalled for several years. They said the government had revised the recruitment policy from 50:50 to 75:25, under which 75 per cent of principal posts said to be filled through promotions and the remaining 25 per cent through direct recruitment. The decision had raised hopes among senior lecturers, master cadre and other teachers awaiting promotions. However, the process came to a halt after the High Court granted a stay.
Calling the High Court’s recent order a significant development, the union urged the Education Department to issue promotion orders without delay. It claimed that nearly 65 to 70 per cent of principal posts in Punjab’s secondary schools are lying vacant, leaving many schools without regular heads, affecting their day-to-day administration.
The DTF also demanded that the department complete pending promotions from master cadre to lecturer, headmaster, centre head teacher to BPEO and primary to master cadre. It further sought immediate recruitment against vacant posts under the direct recruitment quota to address staff shortage in government schools.
The union credited its sustained campaign and legal efforts for the latest development and thanked its members who represented the matter in court. It said the focus should now be on ensuring that the court order is implemented at the earliest so that schools receive regular principals and the long-pending promotion process across different cadres can move forward.
