Over 13,000 SSA teachers in Meghalaya seek PM's help for salary hike amidst rising costs

Shillong, Oct 9: The All Meghalaya Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan School Teachers Association (AMSSASTA), representing over 13,000 SSA teachers, has sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention to enhance their salaries.

“Considering the cost of living and inflation, we request your kind intervention to approach the education in-charge of Meghalaya and the concerned authorities to fulfil our demands immediately before the situation deteriorates for SSA teachers in Meghalaya,” AMSSASTA stated in its letter.

The association stresses that equitable compensation is essential for enhancing teaching quality and ensuring that students in the state receive the attention they rightfully deserve.

The last salary enhancement for the said teachers was made in 2016-17, when it was increased from Rs. 9,200 to Rs. 19,044 for lower primary teachers and from Rs. 9,900 to Rs. 20,493 for upper primary teachers.

It has been seven years since the salaries of these teachers have remained unchanged and the teachers have been demanding an increase for quite some time. “Currently, our salary has not been enhanced, which in turn has caused immense economic problems and great hardship in supporting children pursuing various streams and grades of education,” the letter continued.

The association added that due to the state government's reluctance to fulfil their demands, “SSA teachers from all sections of religions and communities have been compelled to hold sit-in demonstrations in Shillong since October 1 until this Puja vacation to protest.”