District inspectors of schools have issued a notice announcing that teachers of government-aided schools will not be allowed to “take any kind of leave without prior permission of the head of the institution”.
The notice said the order was issued following a surprise visit by a Calcutta High Court judge to a school where 12 teachers were “allegedly” absent on that day.
Justice Biswajit Basu had sought a report from the school about the reasons behind the absence.
“No teacher shall be allowed to avail any kind of leave without prior permission of the head of the institution,” the notice issued by the district inspectors of schools on Monday said.
“In case of taking any leave appropriate documentation in support of his/her prayer has to be furnished by the incumbent teacher before the school authority…,” it said.
Granting of leave will be subject to the satisfaction of the competent authority.
The notice said: “The head of the institution has to ensure that no teacher should use mobile phones in the classrooms during instruction hours”.
It said the decision was taken after the surprise visit of Justice Biswajit Basu to Fanindra Deb Institution, Jalpaiguri district, on March 15 during school hours.
A district inspector who did not want to be named said what the judge saw during his visit made the education department realise there was a need to issue the order.
Teacher attendance has been a problem in schools.
The Telegraph reported on March 5 that the state secondary education board had asked teachers in government-aided schools to comply with the guidelines regarding their attendance.
A notice issued by an official of the board in February said: “The ambience of the schools is getting vitiated due to the non-compliance of the various directions....under the heading: “Prayer/ Assembly/ Attendance”.
However, the scenario has not improved much.
In many cases, teachers are taking leaves just by telling the head of the institution over the phone, sources in the department said.
Chandan Maity, headmaster of Krishnachandrapur High School, Mathurapur, South 24-Parganas, said: “It is amazing that the department suddenly woke up to the issue of attendance after the surprise visit by a judge. Why does the department not have a mechanism to carry out checks on their own?”