Bengaluru: Maharashtra to appoint 135 Kannada teachers in border schools
Bengaluru: The Maharashtra government has issued a notification to appoint 135 Kannada teachers in Kannada-medium schools located in border areas, following intervention by the Karnataka Border Area Development Authority (KBADA).
According to The New Indian Express, speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, KBADA president Somanna Bevinamarad said the authority had visited several Kannada and Urdu medium schools in Solapur and Sangli districts of Maharashtra.
“While communicating with the Kannada community and students there, we understood that Marathi-speaking teachers who did not know Kannada were appointed in government Kannada schools. This has created a barrier in communication between teachers and children,” TNIE quoted him as saying.
Subsequently, the authority wrote to the Maharashtra government and the education commissioner requesting that Marathi-speaking teachers should not be appointed to teach Kannada. After sustained follow-up through the Karnataka government, Maharashtra has now agreed to appoint Kannada teachers.
“They have made necessary changes in the Pavitra portal which is used to appoint teachers in schools in Maharashtra. In future, the appointment of teachers would be done as per the required medium of instruction,” Bevinamarad said.
He said that if Kannada teacher posts remain vacant, the Maharashtra government will advertise the positions instead of appointing Marathi or other language teachers to teach Kannada.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Mamata argues in SC, alleges targeting of West Bengal in SIR exercise
New Delhi (PTI): In a rare move by a serving chief minister, Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday argued her petition in the Supreme Court against the special intensive revision of electoral rolls and alleged unfair targetting of West Bengal by the poll panel and bulldozing of its citizens.
Urging the top court to "save democracy" and intervene to ensure fair special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls by the Election Commission keeping in mind the fact that people alive have been declared dead by the poll panel.
She once referred to the poll panel as the "WhatsApp commission", in an apparent reference to the directions being allegedly passed by the EC to the electoral officials on WhatsApp.
Banerjee, who was represented by senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Shyam Divan, sought the nod of a bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant to personally advance her submissions.
She said her state was not getting justice anywhere and despite having written six letters to the poll panel on SIR, she has not received any reply.
"Their SIR process is only for deletion, not for inclusion," she told the bench, also comprising justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi.
Asking why the same yardstick was not applied in Assam, Banerjee said, "West Bengal is being targeted."
"They are targeting West Bengal to bulldoze its people," said the chief minister, who was permitted by the bench to supplement submissions of her lawyer.
At the outset, Divan started his submissions and later, Mamata was seen standing besides him.
She then requested the bench to permit her to address the court.
"If you can allow me five minutes only," she asked.
The CJI responded by saying the court would give her not five but 15 minutes to advance her submissions.
She flagged difficulties being faced by the citizens due to the SIR exercise and said people were happy that the apex court gave a direction to include Aadhaar as one of the documents in the process.
Banerjee alleged that despite the apex court's direction, the poll panel was not allowing Aadhaar and seeking other documents from the voters for electoral roll revision.
"In other states, documents like domicile certificate, family register card etc. are allowed... they are only targetting Bengal on the eve of elections. What was the hurry," she asked.
She said the process, which usually takes two years, was being undertaken in a short span of three months even during festival and harvesting season in the state.
Banerjee also claimed that many people who are alive have been declared dead by the EC during the ongoing process.
She then flagged the issue of deaths of officials who are involved in the SIR exercise.
Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, appearing for the EC, countered the charges and alleged that the West Bengal government has provided the services of only 80 grade-two officers like SDMs for overseeing SIR process.
He said only low-ranked government employees like Anganwadi workers have been provided by the West Bengal government for the process.
Banerjee countered the EC's claim and said the state has provided whatever sought by the poll panel.
At the outset of her submissions, Banerjee quoted Rabindranath Tagore and said, "The problem is our lawyers always fought our case from the beginning but when everything is finished, we are not getting justice. When justice is behind doors. We are not getting justice anywhere."
"I am a bonded labourer sir... I am from a common family and I am not fighting for my party," she said.
When the counsel appearing for the EC interrupted, Banerjee, with folded hands, said. "Please allow me to speak sir!"
She flagged that married women were being put to notice for shifting to their in-laws house or using their husband's surname.
Banerjee claimed the poll panel has not complied with the top court's directions on logical discrepancy list.
When the EC's counsel objected to her submissions, CJI Kant interrupted saying, "Madam has come all the way to speak."
During the hearing, the bench observed that "genuine persons must remain on the electoral roll".
The CJI said every problem has a solution and it must be ensured that no innocent person is left out.
Concluding her submissions, Banerjee conveyed her regards to the bench for giving her the opportunity to argue and urged it to "save democracy".
The bench issued notices and sought replies by February 9 from the Election Commission and the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal on her petition.
