KATHMANDU, April 14: The government has begun preparations to bring community school teachers back to classrooms. These teachers have been protesting on the streets of Kathmandu for the past 12 days, demanding the enactment of the School Education Act. They launched the protest to push for a unified management system for teachers, more effective teaching-learning procedures, and greater stability and professional development for teachers and school staff.
Shiva Kumar Sapkota, spokesperson for the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology, stated that the government has initiated detailed discussions on the teachers’ demands. According to the teachers, only the School Education Act can address their concerns.
“Student enrollment for the new academic year starts on April 15. To support this, teachers need to conduct door-to-door enrollment campaigns beginning from the second week of Chaitra,” he said. “This period involves many enrollment promotion activities. In addition, teachers must check the answer sheets of the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) as scheduled by the National Examination Board and prepare for the Grade 12 exams set to begin on April 24.”
He stated that teachers should not be sitting on the streets at a time when they should be working. “Therefore, the government has already started efforts to bring teachers back to schools before April 15.”
Minister for Education, Science, and Technology Bidya Bhattarai mentioned that both the teachers and the government have become more flexible and have started discussions on issuing an act to address the teachers' demands. According to her, the ministry is discussing each of the teachers' demands in the education subcommittee. She also stated that the government is holding inter-ministerial discussions on the financial and legal aspects of addressing the teachers' demands.
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“Teachers have raised the issue of salaries for Early Childhood Development (ECD) teachers, and we are discussing this with the Ministry of Finance,” said Minister Bhattarai. “The Ministry of Education, Ministry of Finance, and legal bodies need to address some of these demands. We are also discussing the financial burden that will arise once the act is issued. We have already coordinated with the Ministry of Finance to include these costs in the upcoming budget.”
Minister Bhattarai stated that the Ministry of Education has proposed an additional two thousand rupees increase in the salary of Early Childhood Development (ECD) teachers. She also mentioned that the government is working to link continuous student learning with the law and improve exam management. “As per the rights granted by the Constitution, the education subcommittee has started discussions regarding the management of Grade 10 and Grade 12 exams,” said Minister Bhattarai. “In reality, we are conducting two secondary exams at the school level—Grade 10 and Grade 12. This seems complicated. A three-hour exam cannot adequately assess a student's abilities!”
She emphasized that teachers must prioritize continuous assessment of students to progress in this direction. "Discussions on this matter are ongoing in the law. The government is preparing to introduce a teacher, student, and school-friendly law and is making efforts to bring teachers back to schools."
Spokesperson Sapkota said the government has addressed the teachers' issues positively and initiated inter-ministerial discussions to seek solutions. "After the law is enacted, the government will analyze the financial aspects it will add," he said. "The ministry is continuously engaging in discussions with the teachers. The education subcommittee of Parliament is also discussing the law's clauses." He stated that the government is working to create an environment that will bring teachers back to schools quickly.
He added that the government has set a monthly salary of 17 thousand rupees for Early Childhood Development (ECD) teachers. The central government provides 10 thousand rupees, while the local government adds another 7 thousand rupees. However, some local governments have failed to provide the additional salary. This is one reason why teachers are demanding a unified salary structure for the 17 different types of teachers currently in schools.
In response to the teacher hospital federation's demand, the Ministry of Education has forwarded the proposal to the Ministry of Health, Sapkota said. He also stated that efforts are underway to include accumulated leave, relief, and grade adjustments in the upcoming budget.
Spokesperson Sapkota stated that the ministry will address some of the teachers' demands, while others will be handled through policies and programs. He added that work is underway to address teachers' demands in the upcoming budget. The government has created an environment for teachers to return to schools soon. Teachers must return to schools to make the enrollment campaign successful, and the government will ensure their return.
Chhabi Lal Biswokarma, the chair of the education subcommittee in Parliament, reported that the subcommittee is actively discussing and reaching agreements on the teachers' demands. "The discussion process is progressing smoothly," said Chair Biswokarma. "We have completed discussions on 82 out of the 163 clauses, and we are moving forward with agreements, including those related to the Constitution." He also mentioned that discussions regarding school-level exams are ongoing.
Tula Thapa, General Secretary of the Nepal Teachers' Association, stated that the government holds the responsibility to bring teachers back to schools. He added that the faster the government enacts the law, the sooner the teachers will return. "The Association has no new demands. We are simply asking for the implementation of our previous requests," General Secretary Thapa said. "When the government invited us for discussions, we presented our demand for the enactment of the School Education Act to implement our past agreements. Now, the next steps are in the government's hands. We will return to schools once the law is enacted."
According to General Secretary Thapa, the Association demands that the bill address the stability, promotion, services, and benefits of all types of school-level teachers, as well as the stability of school staff, as outlined in past agreements.
The proposed bill currently includes a provision to place teachers under local governments. However, teachers have demanded that the federal government retain authority over them, citing the increased political influence at the local government level. Since the constitution places school education under local governments, teachers' demand to remain outside local government jurisdiction can only be met through a constitutional amendment.
According to the agreement between the Teachers' Federation and the government on September 22, 2023, teachers have made several demands. These include periodic promotions every 10 years, a minimum of five years of service for eligibility to be promoted to specific categories in secondary education, and measures to address the displacement of teachers and staff due to movements or conflicts. They have also requested that the disrupted service period, from the date of displacement until reinstatement, retirement, or resignation, be considered when calculating retirement benefits, allowances, and other entitlements.
