Uttar Pradesh has started putting into effect a statewide check of the qualifications of teachers working in government-run basic schools, which teach classes 1 to 8. Basic Education Director Anil Bhushan Chaturvedi has directed district Basic Shiksha Adhikaris (BSAs) to collect each teacher's documents and forward them to the Special Task Force (STF) for verification, Amar Ujala and Newstrack reported on 30 October.

The move follows an Allahabad High Court order of 16 October, passed by a bench of Justice Vinod Diwakar, which called for a wide review of teachers' documents across the state. EFC reported on that order earlier; the new development is the department's instruction to districts to begin the collection.

What teachers must submit

According to both reports, teachers must provide copies of their high school and intermediate certificates and marksheets, graduation records, teacher-training qualifications such as B.Ed, BTC, D.El.Ed or B.El.Ed, TET or CTET certificates, and their appointment papers.

Each teacher must also file a notarised affidavit stating whether a close relative holds, or has held, a senior post in the education department. Teachers with no such relative must file an affidavit saying so. Newstrack reported that the court wants to examine the role of relatives in appointments as well as the qualifications themselves.

How the verification will work

BSA offices are to compile the records for each teacher in a prescribed Excel format and send them to the relevant STF range office. STF officers can seek help from district police chiefs and police commissioners. Newstrack said copies are due within a week of the BSA's directive and that the court has listed the matter again on 4 November for a progress report.

Newstrack put the number of teachers covered at more than 1.5 lakh. District reports in Amar Ujala give a sense of scale: about 2,200 teachers in Ghaziabad, about 6,000 in Mirzapur, about 5,000 in Auraiya and about 4,000 in Sonbhadra.

Why the court acted

The case arose after an STF report found that the educational documents of one teacher had allegedly been used by another person to obtain a job. Amar Ujala reported that a single certificate was linked to 10 appointments; Newstrack said 10 or more. Amar Ujala also noted that the department has never compiled a statewide count of teachers appointed on fake certificates.

For schools and education offices elsewhere, the case shows why verification should go back to the issuing board or university, and why a certificate's roll number should be checked for use in more than one appointment.

Sources

This News Desk report summarises information published by the sources above, written in our own words. Persons named in criminal matters are accused, not convicted, unless a court has ruled otherwise. To report an error, use our contact page.

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