475 graduate teachers say they want postings within their own districts

Some 475 out of 1,227 graduate newly appointed teachers have not reported for work in schools allocated to them in the Eastern province, demanding they be posted to schools in their own districts.
Newly recruited teachers had been appointed to schools to fill the vacancies which existed in schools in the three districts according to the 2005 teacher cadre position and the notification issued by the Provincial Public Services Commission.

However the provincial education authority has been firm in its stand that not a single teacher would be allowed to work in excess in a school, provincial Education Ministry sources said1227 graduates had been appointed as teachers in schools in the three districts-of Batticaloa, Trincomalee and Ampara in the Eastern province. Letters of appointments were handed over to them in Trincomalee on July 26 by the Provincial Governor Mohan Wijewickrema, Eastern province Chief Minister Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan and Education Minister Susil Premajayantha in Batticaloa and Ampara on July 28.Among the new recruits 1098 were Tamil medium graduates and 129 were Sinhala medium.

Except some 475 graduates others had reported for work on August 1 in schools allocated to them.
This matter came up for discussion at a conference held in the Eastern Provincial Education Ministry on Friday with Provincial Education Minister Wimalaweera Dissanayake in the chair. Provincial Ministers M.L.A.M. Hisbullah, and K.Navaratnarajah, Education Ministry Secretary Upul Weerawardene, Provincial Director of Education S.Thandayuthapani, Provincial Additional Director of Education M.K.M.Munsoor and nine Tamil medium Zonal Directors of Education of the East province attended.

At the conclusion of the discussion the Zonal Directors of Education were told to submit reports at the next discussion fixed for September 4 about existing teacher vacancies in schools and the number of excess teachers working in schools in their zones.

Meanwhile the Chief Minister had appointed a committee to look into the problems faced by those teachers who have been appointed to schools outside their own districts. It is reported the committee had held sittings in Batticaloa and Ampara in this regard recently but failed to find a solution to this problem.