High school teacher gets a monthly salary of Rs 750

Jajpur (Orissa), Feb 14 (PTI) A government high schoolteacher in Orissa''s Jajpur district is getting a monthlysalary of Rs 750 for almost the similar job being performed byother teachers.

For over 30 years, there is no end to his woes evenafter Orissa High Court directive to sort out his problems.

Pramod Kumar Dash, music teacher of Mugupal HighSchool under Rasulpur block has completed 30 years of servicebut the government is yet to hike his salary.

Kapilendra Mishra, Jajpur Circle Inspector of Schools,said Dash was appointed as a music teacher in the high schoolin 1980 on part time basis. It was necessitated followingintroduction of music as an optional subject in the school.

"The government had a road map for the part timers togradually increase their wages and some of them have beenconverted to full timers drawing full scale salary as pertrained matric teacher scale," Mishra said.

The official admitted that Pramod is getting a paltrysalary but could not cite reason.

"I am discharging same duty like permanent teachersbut draw much less salary compared to them," said Dash.

"Discrimination is meted out to me but some of mycolleagues in the state are drawing full salary," he alleged.

Stating that music teachers appointed in 1998 aredrawing full scale salary, Dash alleged that a raw deal isbeing meted out to him though he put in three decades ofservice.

The teacher approached Orissa High Court for justiceand got a ray of hope in 1999, when the High Court directedthe government to settle his case within three months.

"It is now over a decade since I launched my protest,but none in the government bothered about me," he rued.

Sympathetic to the cause of the music teacher, headmaster of the high school, Sadananda Guru called forrationalization of pay scale as it is over due.

"Pramod sir is discharging the same duty as rest ofthe teachers of my school. But he is drawing a paltry salaryof Rs 750 per month while others are getting the same perday," the head master said.