Vacancies push Centre to drop Goa primary teacher pay aid 15%

PANAJI: The Union education ministry has reduced the Central govt share of support for elementary school teacher salaries for Goa by 15% for the academic year 2024-25, as against the allocation that had been approved in 2021-22. The decision is based on Goa's inability to fill up teacher vacancies in govt primary schools.
In 2021-22, the Centre had approved Rs 3.3 crore as its assistance for teacher salaries, which has now been reduced to Rs 2.9 crore.
"The state is maintaining the same percentage vacancy of teachers at elementary level as in 2021-22. Therefore, after a reduction of 15% in the financial year 2024-25, Rs 293.9 lakh is recommended as financial support for teacher salaries at elementary level," stated the minutes for the meeting after Union education ministry officials reviewed implementation of schemes in Goa under the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan.
The Rs 2.9 crore will support the salaries of 254 elementary school teachers. Goa govt had submitted a proposal of Rs 7.6 crore to support its teacher salaries.
Last year, chief minister Pramod Sawant, who also holds the education portfolio, said that 270 vacancies are waiting to be filled in govt primary schools across Goa.
Rs 40L nod for Goa to set up studio to boost digital education
Of these, 142 posts had been advertised, but the process of recruitment and their posting has been dragging on for one reason or another.
The ministry has approved Rs 40 lakh for Goa to set up a studio, to help the state cover the costs of developing digital educational content and the necessary capacity building for it. Creating the digital content is a requirement under the Centre’s e-vidya programme. Fund allotment to Goa was much lower than its proposed Rs 1.7 crore.
The Centre has also not approved Goa’s proposal seeking Rs 10 lakh funding to set up a technology/computer cell at the State Council for Educational Research and Training (SCERT), as central officials pointed out that ‘two special cells (language and social studies) which were approved in 2018-19 are yet to be made functional’ at the Goa SCERT.
The state has, however, received sanction for Rs 20 lakh to set up an assessment cell at the SCERT.
“This assessment cell would be involved in the conduct of various achievement surveys, developing test materials & item banks, training of various stakeholders, test administration, data collection & analysis, report generation, etc,” the minutes state