Shillong, Dec 23: In a major relief to the agitating SSA teachers protesting over the pending salaries in Meghalaya, the Centre has released fund tuning to Rs 158 crore for payment of pending salaries of teachers in the State and other education-related activities.
However, these teachers have to wait till January first week for their pending dues.

Informing about it, Education Minister Lahkmen Rymbui said, “At around 3:30 on Wednesday the fund has gone to two districts and for remaining nine districts the fund is going, so by the time they receive the fund it will be late and as you know it is a holiday and then I see that may be in the first week of January they will get because there is a practical problem.”

A day after the centre releases the funds, the Meghalaya government wasted no time to transfer the fund to various districts.

“We have received Rs 158 cr. from the central Government yesterday for the payment for the component of elementary, Secondary and teachers education including for the SSA teachers, so today as I speak three districts the mission director has already sent the money to different District Mission Coordinator (DMC) to do the necessary thing, all of them they will receive in the due course of time, till will take time but at least they have got their pending salaries,” The Education Minister added.

Although, the Centre has released over Rs 150 cr. but the disbursing the agitating SSA teachers will receive only four months pending salaries.

“Due of the SSA is five months but as we calculate the money which we receive we are disbursing for four months,” he said.

Earlier, acknowledge the receipt of the funds, Chief Minister Conrad Sangma tweeted, “I would like to express my gratitude to the @EduMinOfIndia for the release of the SSA funds yesterday which will cover the pending salaries of the teachers in our State. The Dept. is now working for release of the same to the districts at the earliest.”
Now, around 16 thousand teachers including 12,451 SSA teachers will be getting their pending salaries.

Meanwhile, the All Garo Hills SSA School Teachers’ Association (AGHSSASTA) has decided to call off their agitation following the disbursement of pending dues.

“We, the members of All Garo Hills SSA School Teachers’ Association (AGHSSASTA) would like to express our gratitude to the Chief Minister Shri. Conrad K. Sangma, Education Minister Shri. Lakhmen Rymbui, Finance department and State Project Director (SPD) for their great efforts to disburse our four months SSA Teachers’ pending salaries at the earliest,” the Association said in a Press release.

“Although we have received our disbursement of salaries untimely before Christmas, We AGHSSASTA have decided to call off our agitation program i.e. Hunger Strike in front of Chief Minister’s residence scheduled to be held on 24th and 25th December 2020,” the release said.