Mangaluru: S.L. Boje Gowda, MLC, on Thursday said the Janata Dal (Secular)–Congress coalition government had decided to accord top priority to health and education sectors. He said Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy would chair a meeting next week to take stock of all issues pertaining to the Education Department.

Mr. Gowda, who represents the Karnataka South West Teachers’ constituency, told reporters here that many decisions taken by bureaucrats in the Education Department apparently lacked foresight. The mid-academic year transfer of teachers and lecturers was totally uncalled for, he said, pointing out that teachers should not be equated with other government staff in the matter of transfers. Such a move would adversely affect the quality education in government schools.

Such decisions come to the notice of elected representatives only when affected teachers raise the matter. By the time such decisions are put on hold, the damage would have been done, he said. Mr. Gowda urged the bureaucracy not to usurp the powers of the legislature by issuing circulars without consulting them.

The MLC said the zonal classification adopted for compulsory transfer of teachers from urban, semi-urban and rural areas was fraught with difficulties. Some areas classified as urban would require a teacher to traverse 3 km across a river and 1 km on foot to reach the school; how would a teacher from a rural area opt for such an urban area, he wondered.

Rewarding or penalising teachers for SSCL results on the basis of district-average should not be enforced in Malnad and coastal regions as they have good track record in results, Mr. Gowda said, and added that he had urged the Minister concerned to desist from the move.

The government should not delay implementing reports of various committees to address issues concerning the education sector, Mr. Gowda said. The issue of excess teachers in government schools was created following fixing of the student-teacher ratio at 70:1 as against 40:1 in government residential schools. There would not be any excess teacher if the ratio for government schools is pared down to that of residential schools.