Kolkata: Controversies have surfaced against the state administration over assigning poll duties for the forthcoming panchayat elections in West Bengal to differently-abled teachers employed in state-run schools.
Alleging that even wheelchair-bound teachers have been issued notices to be present for training purposes on poll-related duties, state secretary of West Bengal Teachers' Association Kinkar Adhikari has claimed that this was not the first time when such things have occurred in West Bengal.
According to him, this happened during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls and 2021 West Bengal Assembly polls, where the differently- abled teachers concerned had to make fresh applications for relief from poll-related duties on physical ground.
"There is a simple solution to avoid this. The state election commission should issue an overall circular barring the administration for selecting differently-abled teachers for the election-related duties. This will relieve the teachers concerned from taking the trouble of making fresh applications of relief from poll-related duties," he added.
Earlier, the teacher's body expressed grievance over indiscriminate allotment of polling duties for the panchayat polls where headmasters or very senior teachers having completed a specific period of teaching services in state-run schools were assigned the duties of ordinary polling officers rather than presiding officers.
The teacher's body had pointed out that although allotting polling duties to school teachers has been in practice for a long time, though by tradition the headmasters or senior teachers completing a specific period of teaching services in state-run schools were allotted the duties of 'presiding officers' instead of subordinate 'polling officers'.
Controversies have also erupted after the administration in Kolkata's adjacent Howrah district allotted election related duties to doctors associated with the state-run medical outfits. The Association of Health Service Doctors, West Bengal has written to the State Election Commission expressing their objection to the development.
With inputs from agencies