The AAP government has told the Delhi High Court that the salary budget for teachers in its schools is being properly utilised.
The government denied as “false frivolous, vexatious and devoid of any truth and merit” allegations that half of the salary budget lapses as a large number of posts of teachers are lying vacant. “The salary budget of the teachers is being utilised judiciously and properly by the Directorate of Education,” the government said in an affidavit before the court.
Contempt petition
The affidavit was filed in response to a contempt petition moved by NGO Social Jurist alleging that “due to non-recruitment of teachers by the Delhi government and the MCDs in the past few years, around 26,031 posts are lying vacant.
The said figure does not include 9,000 new posts which have been created by the Delhi government recently.
The government said taking into account the present strength of guest teachers and those under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan, the total strength of teachers engaged in Delhi government schools comes to 47,267 as on January 1, 2016, as against 50,382 sanctioned posts of teaching staff.
Increased posts
The total strength of teachers engaged as on January 1, 2017, in Delhi government schools is 51,763 as against 59,409 sanctioned posts, which makes 12.87 per cent deficient teaching staff, it informed the court.
The government said principals and vice-principals are not included in the strength of teachers. “However alarming, the disproportionate figure regarding deficiency of teachers in government schools in contempt petition is far from truth,” the government told the court.
