High Court freezes fresh appointments of teachers

A bench comprising Justices N Kirubakaran and SS Sundar also directed aided schools to implement bio-metric attendance for students as well as teachers to ensure there was no likelihood of boosting the students’ strength. The judges directed that the government should not approve any appointment in the aided schools till the surplus teachers under the same management were exhausted.

However, they made it clear there was no prohibition for approval of teachers in cases where orders had been obtained from the court. Where ever there was no dispute with regard to existence of surplus teachers, it was open to the managements to deploy them in other aided schools.

The court was hearing an appeal by the State government against the order of a single judge directing it to grant approval for the appointment of a secondary school teacher in RC Diocese run school. The government opposed appointment of the teacher on the ground that the management had 116 surplus teachers in Thoothukudi zone.

The number of surplus teachers in government schools was 1,079 and in aided schools 5,200, it said.