Ahmedabad, April 7 (IANS) Krida Bharati, the Gujarat wing of the national sports organisation affiliated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), officially extended its support to the physical education teachers (Vyayam Shikshaks) who are protesting in Gujarat’s Gandhinagar over permanent recruitment.
Hundreds of physical education instructors from across the state have been staging a sit-in at Gandhinagar for several days, demanding long-overdue permanent recruitment into government and grant-in-aid schools.
The teachers, many of whom are currently working on temporary 11-month contracts, allege that no full-time recruitment has taken place in Gujarat for the past 15 years.
Krida Bharati, in a press statement, called the situation contradictory to the nation’s sporting ambitions.
“While the Central government is striving to bring the Olympic Games to India in 2036, Gujarat has not conducted a recruitment drive for physical education teachers at the primary, secondary, and higher secondary levels for the past one and a half decades,” the statement read.
The organisation emphasised that sports assistants have been voicing these concerns for years without any meaningful response from the state.
Krida Bharati said it has submitted memorandums to District Collectors across Gujarat, urging immediate government intervention.
The campaign is being led by Western Region Coordinator Rameshbhai Prajapati and Karnavati Mahanagar President Pratapsinh Jhala, who, along with a delegation of sports professionals, teachers, and Krida Bharati members, met with the Ahmedabad District Collector earlier.
Similar representations were also made to Collectors in Mehsana, Patan, Vadodara, Surat, Tapi, Sabarkantha, Anand, Palanpur, and Navsari, among other districts.
Krida Bharati said that the aim is to escalate the issue through official channels and ensure it reaches the attention of top policymakers.
The protesting teachers argue that despite multiple assurances over the past 13 years, the state government has failed to implement a sustainable recruitment policy.
They said that working on short-term contracts deprives them of job security, benefits, and a stable career path in the education sector.
With a powerful sports body like Krida Bharati throwing its weight behind the protest, pressure is mounting on the state government to address the grievances of thousands of physical education teachers awaiting permanent appointments.
–IANS
janvi/dan