Teachers have said that their talks with the government about their demands have not been positive so far.
They warned that if an agreement is not reached soon, they will intensify their protests. In a meeting held this morning, leaders from the Nepal Teachers’ Federation said the government is not taking their demands seriously, and they have decided to intensify their movement. Shankar Adhikari, president of the Unified All Nepal Teachers’ Organization, said they will put more pressure on the government by strengthening the protest.
He mentioned that because the talks have not achieved good results, the teachers have decided to continue and intensify their protest.
During talks between the Ministry of Education and the teachers’ federation, government representatives said that it would be difficult to meet demands that require substantial spending.
Earlier, the federation had presented nine demands to the Ministry of Education and the Cabinet, saying they must be solved. According to the teachers, it would require a budget of 13 billion rupees to meet these nine demands. However, government officials estimate that fulfilling all the teachers’ demands could cost an additional 65 billion rupees.
President Adhikari said, “The government is not positive about our demands. They are even trying to step back from earlier agreements. Even the Prime Minister showed a negative attitude, saying that issues requiring money would not be solved.”
Teachers’ leaders, including federation president Laxmikishor Suvedi and vice-president Nanumaya Parajuli, discussed with the Education Minister until midnight last night. However, no concrete agreement was reached in the meeting held at the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology in Singha Durbar.
The Ministry has planned to hold another round of talks today, with better preparation. Teachers hope that the Ministry will come with solid proposals; otherwise, they will make their protests stronger.
Education Minister Raghuji Pant said the talks are moving in a positive direction. He stated that while some issues are yet to be finalized, the discussion has been generally positive. He also said that the government is serious about conducting the Grade 12 exams on time and is working sincerely to solve the issues through talks.
Federation president Suvedi said that while some topics were discussed, many others are still pending. He mentioned that the protest will continue until a proper solution is reached through discussions.
Earlier, the Cabinet had given Education Minister Pant the responsibility to resolve the teachers’ issues through talks. After the Cabinet meeting, government spokesperson and Minister for Communications and Information Technology, Prithvi Subba Gurung, said the teachers’ demands would be addressed by Wednesday. Teachers have been protesting in Kathmandu since Chaitra 20, demanding changes including amendments to the School Education Act.
