Stuck in a tussle with state, city teachers worry about salaries

Hundreds of teachers in the city are worried about not getting their salaries for July as the state government is not willing to take back the new resolution on opening the teachers' salary accounts in the Mumbai District Cooperative Bank.

In a government resolution dated June 3, the state education department had asked all the government-aided primary and secondary schools in the Brihanmumbai region to transfer the accounts of their employees from nationalised banks to a district cooperative bank, a move that has received a lot of criticism from the teachers.

DNA had earlier reported about the opposition of a large number of teachers who had concerns over their salary accounts being opened in a bank that was under the scanner for a Rs 123 crore scam in 2013. While several groups of teachers and their unions have protested against the move, the government has refused to withdraw its decision.

Teachers are now worried about their salaries July onwards as the education department has recently 'warned school principals of action if the teachers accounts are not opened with immediate effect'. "We do not want our salary accounts to be opened in a bank with a tainted history. Why has the government suddenly decided to make the switch from Union bank, which is a nationalised bank, to a district bank?" said Uday Nare, a teacher at Hansraj Morarji Public School who has written to the CM on the issue.

They are also worried because their bills have not been generated for the upcoming month after they did not open their accounts in Mumbai Bank. While MLC Kapil Patil met Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley regarding the issue, Teachers Democratic Front has moved the court on the issue. The case will be heard on August 7.