Primary school teachers to boycott classes, go on an indefinite strike from September 3
The Karnataka State Primary School Teachers' Association has submitted a petition to the government in this regard and has given a deadline of August 27 for the fulfilment of their demands, failing which it has been decided to boycott classes 6 to 8.
Graduate primary teachers (GPT) are being recruited across the State from the academic year of 2016-17 to teach classes 6 to 8. Before 2016-17, the government had recruited over 1.4 lakh teachers to teach classes 1 to 7. Out of these, eligible graduate teachers were being promoted to the post of high school teachers.
But, after the recruitment of GPTs, the Cadre and Recruitment Rules (C&R rules) were amended in 2016-2017 and all teachers who were recruited for classes 1 to 7 before 2017 were demoted and designated as primary school teachers (PST) for classes 1 to 5 only.
The main reason for the teachers' protest is that over 40,000 of these primary school teachers have graduated, but they have not been promoted as GPT since 2016-17.
Speaking to The Hindu, Chandrashekara Nugli, president of the Karnataka State Primary School Teachers' Association, said: 'A meeting was held with the Chief Minister on September 4, 2024 to discuss the problems of primary school teachers and fulfilment of their demands. The Chief Minister had promised to take a decision within a month after holding comprehensive consultations with the Minister for School Education and officials. However, even after a year, our demand has not been fulfilled.'
'The struggle has started at all taluk and district levels since August 12 to demand the fulfilment of our demands. If the demands are not met by August 27, classes will be boycotted and an indefinite strike will be held at Freedom Park in Bengaluru from September 3. The struggle will continue until the demands are met by celebrating Teachers' Day at the protest site,' he added .
Meanwhile, a meeting was held, headed by Basavaraj Horatti, chairman of Legislative Council with Madhu Bangarappa, Minister of School Education, and MLCs belonging to teachers and graduates constituencies on Wednesday. The MLCs urged the Minister to promote PST teachers with degrees as GPT teachers.
Mr. Bangarappa said that action has already been taken on this issue and the opinion of the Law and the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms (DPAR) is being sought. 'The Chief Minister also expressed his agreement on this. The promotion of PSTs will be discussed with the Chief Minister soon and an appropriate decision will be taken,' he added.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
IIT Roorkee data breach: A wake-up call for higher education institutions
By Paakhhi Garg and Nachiketa Mittal In an alarming data breach, the sensitive personal data of around 30,000 students and alumni of IIT Roorkee was reportedly found to have been compromised. The leaked database reportedly contains their mobile numbers, caste, financial status, email addresses, photographs and other data. IIT-R's administrative systems seem to have turned a blind eye to cyber safety standards. It could happen to any other higher education institution (HEI). In many cases, it may already have happened, with us remaining oblivious — exposing people to the threat of cybercrimes despite no negligence on their part. Lakhs of students, parents and employees share sensitive personal data with HEIs. However, do HEIs have cyber security standards and the requisite infrastructure, training and institutional accountability measures in place? The IIT-R episode must be a clarion call to all HEIs in the country to be steadfast in protecting data. This is no longer a choice as the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023 has both the teeth and the legislative intent to penalise non-compliant institutions. Critical vulnerabilities have been allowed to grow because of the notion that academic prominence somehow correlates with digital security. The IIT-R breach was caused by a fundamental breakdown in data security. Our HEIs must take note of it. That's why a three-pronged strategy is required. First, legal safeguards. Strict compliance with legal standards must be the cornerstone of any effective cybersecurity plan. With laws like the Information Technology Act, 2000, Sensitive Personal Data or Information (SPDI) Rules, 2011 and now the DPDP Act, India has achieved significant progress. This legislation requires organisations, who are referred to as 'data fiduciaries' or 'bodies corporate' to employ 'reasonable security safeguards' to secure personal/sensitive data. This implies many things for HEIs, including that institutions must be transparent about the what, why and how of the data. All this information has to be shared in the form of a clear privacy notice and policy for external users and internal staff respectively. The HEIs must obtain explicit consent from all users whose data they are collecting and store only the data necessary for their purpose. Under the Information Technology Act, a breach must be reported to CERT-In within six hours. However, the IIT-Roorkee event shows a notable failure in this area, with a third party allegedly having found the vulnerability. Ideally, the law will hold the institution financially accountable for this 'breach' or 'contravention' in the absence of 'reasonable security practice', as stated in SPDI Rules and the IT Act respectively, with penalties. Second, technical a solid technological basis, legal compliance is pointless. The IIT-R event has exposed an essential digital hygiene breakdown. A practical approach must be much more than a firewall and antivirus program. All vital systems, such as student portals, administration databases and financial records, ought to require multi-factor authentication. To further reduce the possibility of internal data breaches, role-based access control should guarantee that employees only have access to the limited data. To monitor traffic and stop illicit activity, HEIs need to use advanced network security measures, such as modern firewalls and intrusion detection/prevention systems. Every device should have endpoint detection and response software installed to offer an extra line of defence against malware and zero-day attacks. All sensitive data, whether stored on servers ('at rest') or transmitted across networks ('in transit'), must be encrypted. This simple measure can render stolen data useless to attackers even if they manage to exfiltrate it. The practice of waiting for a breach to be discovered by an external party is a grave dereliction of duty. Institutions must conduct frequent, independent penetration testing to proactively find and address vulnerabilities. An incident response plan is a playbook for what to do before, during and after a cybersecurity incident. It should outline roles and responsibilities, communication strategies and technical steps to contain and recover from the breach. Finally, organisational safeguards. Even the most sophisticated technology can only be as effective as the people and procedures that use it. A robust organisational structure is possibly the most important component of the cybersecurity jigsaw. Every HEI must establish a clear governance structure for cybersecurity. A dedicated data protection officer (DPO) who reports directly to senior leadership needs to be part of the team. Institutions must create and implement transparent rules for handling data, managing passwords, granting remote access and responding to incidents. Effective communication and frequent updates are also required. The human element is often the weakest link. All students, faculty and staff must receive mandated and continuous cybersecurity training from HEIs. Phishing simulators may be a valuable tool for raising awareness and testing. A harsh lesson about the high cost of negligence may be learned from the IIT-R event. All Indian HEIs should take the time to reflect and acknowledge that they can no longer claim to be purely academic institutions creating knowledge — they collect the sensitive personal data of lakhs of individuals including minors, and hence are clearly responsible under the law for creating a digital infrastructure and security system for data protection. This law, the DPDP Act, will offer no immunity to HEIs when it comes to compliance. Chancellors, vice-chancellors, deans and institutional heads must act with urgency before we see a sequel. Garg is director, trainings, World Cyber Security Forum, and Mittal is registrar and professor of Law, NLU, Tripura
The Hindu
4 hours ago
- The Hindu
The State of Madras broke into unbounded joy a day before independence in 1947
Roll back 78 years to August 15, 1947, the day when India gained independence from the British. Madras awoke to the dawn in a sea of flags, music, and unrestrained joy as the capital city, much like the rest of the nation, celebrated the free India with patriotic fervour. From Mount Road (now Anna Salai) to the lanes of Mylapore, the air was filled with the sound of drums, conchs, and patriotic songs. Every street corner bore witness to the moment that generations had dreamt of. Reports published by The Hindu in August 1947 shed light on the gala celebrations in the capital. Preparations had begun well before the ceremonial transfer of power on August 15. Nearly two weeks earlier, the Corporation of Madras started making elaborate arrangements. Mayor T. Sundararao Naidu appealed to citizens to whitewash their houses and decorate them in the best manner possible. Plans were made for processions of children from Corporation schools along the main streets of each division. Lighting arrangements tested In the city's business areas, merchants competed to outshine one another in decorating their premises. The finishing touches were given on the evening of August 14 and the testing of lighting arrangements offered members of the public an early glimpse into how Madras would sparkle that night. The Hindu had deputed a correspondent to tour the city on the evening of August 14 and witness its transformation. 'While the National Flag will be hoisted over Government buildings only early in the morning [of August 15, 1947], the commercial houses in the city had the flag hoisted over their buildings by last evening,' a report said. Mount Road, Mambalam, Mylapore, and Triplicane glittered with lights and colour. In George Town, the press of sightseers brought the traffic to a crawl, and the police struggled to regulate the flow of pedestrians and vehicles. Such was the enthusiasm that it was hard to find a single person without a National Flag, the report said. As night fell on August 14, the excitement reached its peak. Thousands of residents sat by community radios, listening to the Constituent Assembly proceedings in New Delhi. The streets came alive with torchlight processions. Marchers, carrying the Tricolour, moved to the beat of drums, chanting 'Vande Mataram' and 'Mahatma Gandhi Ki Jai'. At street corners and on residential lanes, people stood in groups exchanging greetings. 'Vande Mataram' on AIR When the midnight chimes signalled the birth of Free India, the sound was echoed in temple bells and the deep notes of conchs and trumpets. The resonant strains of 'Vande Mataram', sung by Sucheta Kripalani in New Delhi, reached Madras through the All India Radio broadcast. The morning's first official function was the swearing-in of the Governor and the Ministers at Fort St. George. At 9 a.m., the Prime Minister (as the Chief Minister was then known), O.P. Ramaswami Reddiar, and his colleagues, except for P. Subbaroyan who was in Delhi, assembled in the Cabinet Room. Sir Archibald Nye, the Governor of Madras, arrived with Chief Justice of the Madras High Court Sir Frederick Gentle. The Chief Justice administered the Oath of Allegiance to the Governor, who in turn swore each Minister in. Outside the chamber, members of the public, who had free access to the Secretariat precincts, crowded in to catch a glimpse of the ceremony. Overnight, the Union Jack had been hauled down the flagstaff of the Fort, and at dawn, the Tricolour was hoisted. The flag that was hoisted on this day, measuring 3.5 metres in length and 2.4 metres in width, is preserved at Fort St. George Museum. The celebrations unfolded in a grand manner elsewhere in the city. At Banqueting Hall, Dr. Muthulakshmi Reddy presided over a large gathering of women. Freedom fighter Rukmani Lakshmipathi hoisted the National Flag. The hall rang with national songs rendered by D.K. Pattammal, including her much-loved Aaduvome Pallu Paaduvome. Parade at Island Grounds At the Island Grounds that evening, one of the largest crowds ever seen in the city gathered for the Independence Day Parade. From a saluting base near the statue of Sir Thomas Munroe, the Governor of Madras hoisted the Tricolour and took the salute. At the Ripon Buildings, the headquarters of the Corporation of Madras, a decorated procession arrived from Fort St. George, led by caparisoned elephants and camels, followed by Boy Scouts. In the lead car were Minister for Local Administration K. Chandramouli and Deputy Mayor T.G. Lakshmanaswami Mudaliar, carrying a special flag gifted by Chandramouli to the Corporation. The Mayor received the flag and invited Prime Minister Ramaswami Reddiar to hoist it on the mast before the clock tower. Addressing the gathering, Ramaswami Reddiar said India's freedom had been won through the sacrifices of her people under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi. He said independence had been secured through truth and non-violence and urged the citizens to safeguard the freedom without ill will or malice towards anyone.
The Hindu
5 hours ago
- The Hindu
U.S. has no alternative to India in diamonds, say industry leaders
Already grappling with job losses and a slowdown in orders, Gujarat's diamond sector has been dealt another setback as the United States, its largest export destination, raised import duties to 25% with an additional tariff of 25% coming into effect from August 27, taking the total to 50%. The hike, announced by U.S. President Donald Trump, has raised concerns among exporters who warn the rates are 'unsustainable' for long-term trade, and are optimistic about the business. It comes at a time when industry is still struggling with the fallout of the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the growing presence of cheaper lab-grown diamonds in global markets. Despite the grim statistics, some leaders are urging calm. 'This is a temporary phase. The U.S. has no best viable alternative to India for loose and jewellery diamonds,' said Jagdish Khunt, president of the Surat Diamond Association. 'Yes, tariffs are a blow, but it will eventually push prices up in the U.S., and buyers there will have to absorb the difference because sourcing from India remains unavoidable,' he told The Hindu. Industry estimates show that the U.S. alone accounts for more than 30% of India's gem and jewellery exports, making it the single-largest overseas buyer. In Gujarat, where nearly 90% of natural diamonds imported to India are cut and polished, trade bodies say more than one lakh workers have lost jobs since April this year. In May, the Gujarat government rolled out a relief scheme aimed at helping diamond artisans and small units hit by a global slowdown. More than one lakh former workers from the sector have sought assistance under the programme, which offers ₹13,500 per child to support affected families. 'Nearly 90% of India's supply is processed here. What other alternatives do they have? We have the best 'ratnakalakars' (diamond artisans) in the world, and a customer buying diamonds will never compromise on quality,' asks Mr. Khunt. He compared the American affinity for diamonds to the Indian love for gold, noting that just as Indians continue to purchase gold despite soaring prices, U.S. consumers remain steadfast in their preference for diamonds. 'No matter the circumstances, they pick diamonds over gold. We expect the market to steady ahead of Christmas and New Year, with fresh orders starting to flow in,' he said, adding that over 7.5 lakh artisans are working in 3,500 small and large units. Data from the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), India's apex body for the industry, shows that in the 2024–25 fiscal year, India shipped cut and polished diamonds worth $4.8 billion to the United States. The U.S. market thus accounted for over one-third of the country's total diamond exports, which amounted to $13.2 billion for the year. According to GJEPC, India's rough diamond imports fell sharply in 2024–25 to $9.52 billion, down from $14.26 billion in the previous fiscal. Babu Vaghani, president of the Lab-Grown Diamonds Association, shared Mr. Khunt's optimism, describing the current situation as a 'short-term crisis.' 'Whatever the challenges, we must keep going until Diwali. Even if it means trading on smaller margins, the work has to continue for the sake of the lakhs of people who depend on it for their livelihood,' he said. Mr. Vaghani pointed out that more than half of the artisans outside Surat, particularly in Bhavnagar, Botad, Mehsana, and other districts, are women. 'In rural areas, women play a major role in diamond polishing,' he added.
