Ranchi: In a significant ruling, the High Court has directed the state government to provide equal pay for equal work to primary teachers. The court has instructed the government to make a decision within eight weeks and ensure that teachers appointed in 2015 receive the same pay as their counterparts.
This verdict will benefit approximately 50,000 teachers in the state. The order was issued by Justice Sanjay Prasad’s bench, which also expressed hope that the department would make a prompt decision to avoid teachers having to approach the court repeatedly. The case has been closed with the court’s order.
The petition was filed by Dilip Pandey and other teachers, highlighting that in 2002-03, teachers for classes 1 to 8 were appointed through the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and were given a grade pay of 4200. With the implementation of the RTE Act in 2009, the state government introduced a new recruitment policy in 2012, which categorized teachers for classes 1-5 and 6-8 into separate categories, with a grade pay of 4600. This led to a pay disparity between newly appointed teachers and those already in service.
Challenging this pay discrimination, the teachers approached the court, demanding equal pay for equal work. After hearing the case, the High Court directed the government to ensure equal pay for all teachers.