OU rocked by protests over 60% eligibility norm

‘Thousands of aspirants from rural areas will lose an opportunity to appear for the exam for teacher posts’

The Osmania University was rocked by protests opposing 60% eligibility factor for recruitment to fill up teacher posts in residential schools in Telangana. Student groups also called for a bandh on February 9 in all the universities.

They took out a rally against the norm which they termed ‘arbitrary’ and ‘against the interests of the aspirants’, and later burnt the effigy of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao. The students said that thousands of aspirants from rural areas would lose an opportunity to appear for the exam while it would favour those from urban areas.

The students took objection to the Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC) notification issued to fill up 7,306 posts under residential educational institutions societies with certain conditions.

“The mandatory 60% norm should be withdrawn immediately,” Manavata Roy, president, Unemployed Students’ Joint Action Committee, OU, demanded. He said that the examination should also be conducted both in English and Telugu languages. “Even the UPSC conducts exams in several Indian languages. It also doesn’t have the 60%minimum mark norm,” he said.

The students also demanded that six months time be given for preparation. As per the TSPSC norm, a minimum of three months time should be given, but here the government was rushing to conduct the examination. It was likely to be conducted in March, some candidates claimed. The students also opposed the screening test saying that they had already cleared their B.Ed exam and the TET.

Meanwhile, Telangana JAC chairman M. Kodandaram extended support to the students’ cause while speaking in Warangal.

However, the officials clarifed that the 60% norm has been in existence since 1996 and incorporated in the by-laws of the Residential Schools Societies Act. “This is not a new norm,” was what officials explained, adding that the societies were created with a specific purpose of recruiting quality teachers.

The TSPSC officials also clarified that they do not frame the eligibility criteria and it was for the employer to decide what norms have to be put in place for their staff. “We are just a recruiting agency,” a senior TSPSC official said.