No Permanent Urdu Teachers Hired in Delhi Schools

New Delhi: The last time teachers were hired for Urdu medium schools in the capital was in 1989. Twenty-three years on, these 115 teachers, recruited with the help of the Urdu Academy, are still working on a contractual basis. Earlier this year, the government had announced that 100 new teachers will be added to Urdu medium schools in Delhi under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) as well as in schools where Urdu was taught as a second language. The figure was later revised to 200. But they are yet to be recruited. Speaking to Newsline, Education Minister Kiran Walia said a fresh notification will be issued soon by the government which will “exempt teachers from the Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET)”. The qualification certificate is a key requirement in the appointment of these teachers as they are being recruited under the SSA scheme of the Central government. Prof. Akhtarul Wasey, vice-chairman of the Urdu Academy, said owing to the dismal performance of many in CTET, finding teachers has been difficult for Urdu medium schools. Wasey wrote to the Delhi government in July 2013 raising concerns over the acute shortage of Urdu medium teachers in the city. He said “either Urdu schools are without teachers or the job is entrusted to non-Urdu teachers.” According to Wasey, there are 84 primary Urdu medium schools in the city under the municipal corporations and 22 senior secondary schools under the Directorate of Education.