Row over teachers’ transfers, lists ‘altered’ after last date

Aparna Banerji

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, July 5

Even as official transfers in the Education Department were sealed by June 30, officials in Jalandhar are allegedly creating “back-dated” transfer lists in the district.

Teachers are being given posts that were declared filled in the recent rationalisation process allegedly on high-profile political and administrative recommendations.

Even though Education Minister Daljit Singh Cheema on Friday said the procedure of transfers across the state had closed, and transfers till June 30 were the final ones, in Jalandhar, transfer lists are surfacing like skeletons from the department’s closet.

The Tribune has a copy of new lists of transfers containing names of 57 teachers in primary schools of the district. The lists – dated June 30 – have been duly signed by DEO, Elementary, Jalandhar, Jaspal Singh, who has officially been transferred to Moga, but is yet to be relieved. However, primary schools’ transfer lists that were uploaded on the district SSA website on June 30 are missing from the department website and have been officially termed “non-existent” by department officials. This despite the fact that some teachers named in the old lists have already joined their new schools. Earlier, the lists had a total of 101 candidates.

The DEO (Elementary) was allegedly “caught” making these new lists by Sanjha Adhyapak Morcha (Dhillon) president Sheetal Singh Chahal at the SSA office in Jalandhar on Friday. The DEO as well as “applicants” for transfers hurriedly left the spot when Chahal questioned the process.

Sources say department officials were now secretly preparing lists from city hotels. It has also been alleged that these applicants have the recommendation of senior political leaders, administration officials or Education Department officials.

During the rationalisation process and official transfers till June 30, it was shown that 19 city and periphery primary schools had all posts filled but now, these schools too have “opened up” for applicants.

Moreover, at some Government Primary Schools – Bute Dian Challan, Chachowal, Sarangwal – the only teachers of the schools have also been transferred.

DEO (Elementary), Jalandhar, Jaspal Singh said, “All the transfers closed on June 30 and no new transfers have been made in the elementary department. All final transfers have been put on department’s official website.” When asked about new elementary school transfer lists doing the rounds, he said, “I have not made any new transfers, these must be from the top.”

Meanwhile, five of the official June 30 transfers in the district have been cancelled. Transfers of teachers with serial numbers 12, 24, 25, 26 and 27 on June 30 have been cancelled as per a letter released by the DEO (Elementary).