KOLKATA: Under normal circumstances, Soma Das would have been happy and relieved after the Supreme Court's SSC verdict. But she is not.
The cancer survivor is the sole teacher (among the 25,753) whose job is not on the chopping block after the apex court on Thursday upheld the Calcutta High Court decision to scrap appointments of 25,752 teachers. Das was exempted on "humanitarian grounds" both by the HC and the SC. It might be a personal relief for her, but she is not happy as two of her colleagues are set to lose their jobs. Both, like her, belong to the 2016 SSC panel.
"How can I be happy while I was one of those battling against the job scam?" Das, who now teaches at Modhura High School in Birbhum, told TOI over the phone.
"I cracked the exam based on merit, and my name was on the merit panel. However, I got the appointment based on the HC order passed by former HC judge Abhijit Ganguly, which, on humanitarian grounds, the Supreme Court upheld," she added. "I know there are many deserving teachers who fought for a long time to get this appointment. They don't deserve this fate. It's a complete failure of the SSC, which was unable to submit proper documents despite getting adequate time for that," Das said.
"I never wanted others to lose jobs. Their battle was mine too. This verdict is not acceptable to me as many others on the panel were qualified. Due to some negligence on the part of the govt and SSC, it was not possible to separate the qualified and the ineligible," Das said.
Das joined the Birbhum school following an April 18, 2022, order passed by the former HC judge Ganguly. She has to spend a huge amount of money on her follow-up treatment, which is continuing. "This job is the only option for me and my family to survive because my brother is still preparing for govt jobs. As a lower middle-class family, a govt job is the only option for us to survive," she added.
"In our school, two teachers are on this list. Of them, the physical science teacher is the only one in the school to teach that subject. In that case, the school will face trouble conducting science classes."
Key highlights- Soma Das, a cancer survivor and teacher, is the only one among 25,753 teachers whose job was spared after the Supreme Court upheld the Calcutta High Court's decision to scrap the appointments of the others due to a job scam.
- Despite her personal relief, Soma Das expressed sorrow over the impending job losses of her colleagues, emphasizing that their struggle for employment was also her battle.
- Das highlighted the failure of the School Service Commission in providing proper documentation, which contributed to the situation affecting many deserving teachers who were qualified for their positions.
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