‘Vendetta’ transfers for demanding DA, say Bengal teachers

Several government employees and school teachers have been slapped with transfer orders in West Bengal, allegedly for participating in protests in demand for dearness allowance

Several government employees and school teachers have been slapped with transfer orders in West Bengal, allegedly for participating in protests in demand for dearness allowance (DA).

A large number of teachers in West Bengal happen to be women and many have been transferred to places far from their places of residence. While authorities could not be reached as to why these transfers are suddenly taking place, most people being served with such orders are those who participated in protests led by Leftist organisations.

“A female teacher I know was transferred from Rajarhat [in Kolkata] to a remote location in Murshidabad. Even staff from [West Bengal] Public Service Commission, which is a statutory body and whose employees are not supposed to be transferred, were randomly ordered by the State government to report for deputation in other districts,” the principal of a government-run school said, asking not to be named.

“It is sad when the government turns on its employees just because they had demanded, very pertinently, a dearness allowance. Whether that demand is justified can be a matter of debate, but it is plain vengeance when the government picks employees and transfers them to faraway districts,” she said.

All State government employees were aggrieved when DA was scrapped — something unprecedented — and house rent allowance (HRA) reduced to 12% from 15% during the 2019 Revision of Pay and Allowances (ROPA). That’s when the protests began — strikes, dharnas, pen-downs — and they continued until this year.

The protesters went to the Calcutta High Court, demanding DA on par with the central government scale, and won the case, but the State government appealed to the Supreme Court where the matter is currently pending.

Meanwhile, the State government brought back DA of 3% in January 2021 and in March this year, added another 3%. That’s when, claim the aggrieved teachers, the transfers began. According to sources, a few thousand people from various departments, including schools, are expected to be transferred.