Teachers cannot choose place of work, says MHC on hearing transfer plea

Offering a slew of suggestion in this regard, Justice S Vaidyanathan, said: “The authority concerned shall assess the average strength of students in the school and thereafter, decide regarding deployment of teachers as per the guidelines issued time and again on or before September 30 of every academic year.”

Noting that the assessment report shall be forwarded to the competent authority in the State on or before October 31 of every academic year, the judge said: “The competent authority on receipt of the report shall identify the schools where surplus teachers are deployed and transfer them to the needy schools on due notice to the correspondent of such schools. Such exercise shall have to be completed on or before December 31 of every academic year.”

“The teacher, who is found to be a surplus requirement in a school, should join the school where he or she has been deployed on or before commencement of the successive academic year, on receipt of the order to be issued by the competent authority,” the judge added.

Vaidyanathan was passing the above suggestions while dealing with a plea filed by T Paulraj, a PG teacher, that though he is the seniormost, his request for a transfer to Kanniyakumari District, his native place, was not entertained, whereas, his juniors were transferred there.

On schools run by corporate management, the order held that the group of schools should be considered as a single unit. Thereafter, the strength of the students shall be assessed and after calculating the total number of surplus teachers shall deploy teachers to the needy school, failing which the grant-in-aid being extended to the management shall be stopped.

Further, expecting the State to issue a GO at the earliest based on the guidelines issued so that it can take effect from the academic year 2019-2020, Vaidyanathan held that the guidelines are only illustrative and it is open to the government to incorporate such other conditions as may be required in the interest of the student and not in the interest of teachers.