STATE OF UTTARAKHAND Vs. MANOJ KUMAR.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The respondent - writ petitioners, in this batch of Special Appeals, were all working as Shiksha Acharyas earlier. They invoked the jurisdiction of this Court seeking absorption as Shiksha Mitras and to be sent for training to the District Institute of Education and Training (DIET), after being appointed in these posts.

(2.) Facts, to the limited extent necessary, are that the qualifications, hitherto prescribed for appointment to the posts of Assistant Teachers (Elementary) was a Basic Training Course (called the BTC). The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan was a programme introduced to provide education to children below 14 years, and two schemes were introduced thereunder. The first was called the Educational Guarantee Scheme (for short the EGS), and the second the Alternative and Innovative Education Scheme called the AIE. The EGS and AIE centers were hitherto operated in remote and hilly areas of the State where primary schools did not exist. Separate EGS and AIE centers were established in such areas of the State with Shiksha Mitras and Shiksha Acharyas as teachers, even though they did not possess the educational qualifications required to be appointed as teachers in regular primary schools. The State Government, by its order dated 14.02.2008, decided to close all EGS and AIE centers from 31.12.2008. Government Order dated 01.03.2009 was issued thereafter directing that those Shiksha Mitras, who had either completed their graduation or their post-graduation be sent to undergo two years training in different District Institutes of Education and Training.

(3.) The Government Order dated 01.03.2009 was followed by another Government Order dated 19.11.2010 whereby it was decided that the Shiksha Mitras, working in the EGS and AIE centres, would be absorbed as Assistant Teachers (Primary) provided they were graduates/post-graduates. Several Shiksha Mitras invoked the jurisdiction of this Court seeking absorption as per the Government Order dated 19.11.2010, and to be sent for training for two years as per the Government Order dated 01.03.2009. All these writ petitions were disposed of, by order in Special Appeal No. 131 of 2010 and batch dated 23.02.2011, directing that such of those appellants, who were graduates as on 19.11.2010, shall be treated as Shiksha Mitras, and shall be sent for training in terms of the Government Order dated 01.03.2009, and their services shall be utilized thereafter for imparting education in schools recognized by the Board constituted under the Uttarakhand School Education Act, 2006.