Process begins to fill 36,000-plus vacant primary head teacher posts: Minister

Following a Supreme Court ruling, the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education has begun the process of promoting teachers to fill more than 36,000 vacant head teacher posts in government primary schools.

The ministry was supposed to send the recruitment requisition to the Public Service Commission (PSC) by the end of today. Education, Primary and Mass Education Minister ANM Ehsanul Hoque Milon announced the move at a press conference held at the Secretariat today, Thursday.

Earlier in the day, the Appellate Division allowed the state’s appeal against a High Court verdict that had declared parts of the Acquired Non-Government Primary School Teachers (Conditions of Service) Rules, relating to seniority and promotion illegal.

The verdict was delivered on Thursday by the Appellate Division led by Chief Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury. As a result, the government will now be able to appoint head teachers.

Speaking at the press conference, the education minister noted that there are also large numbers of vacant teaching posts in secondary schools and colleges.

He said that immediately after the attorney general informed him of the court's verdict by phone, he contacted the PSC chairman, who asked the ministry to send the requisition without delay.

The requisition would be sent to the PSC by Thursday afternoon so that the commission could expedite the recruitment process, added the minister.

A ministry official said the post of head teacher in government primary schools falls under the 10th pay grade. As such, promotion proposals for the post must be sent to the PSC.

Under the existing recruitment rules, 80 per cent of head teachers are appointed through the promotion of assistant teachers, while the remaining 20 per cent are recruited directly.

According to the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education, once assistant teachers are promoted to fill the 36,235 vacant head teacher posts following the court's ruling, an equivalent number of assistant teacher positions will become vacant.

At present, more than 2,200 assistant teacher posts are already vacant. As a result, the total number of vacant assistant teacher positions will exceed 38,000 after the promotions.

Minister Ehsanul Hoque Milon said that once appointments are made to the 36,235 head teacher posts, the government will immediately be able to recruit 38,433 assistant teachers. “This is good news,” he said.

State Minister for Primary and Mass Education Bobby Hajjaj and Attorney General Ruhul Quddus also spoke at the press conference.

There are currently more than 65,000 government primary schools across the country.

In 2017, teachers from formerly non-government primary schools that had later been nationalised filed a writ petition challenging part of Rule 9(1) of the Acquired Non-Government Primary School Teachers (Conditions of Service) Rules, which deals with seniority and promotion.

After a preliminary hearing, the High Court issued a rule and, following the final hearing, delivered its judgment on 11 March 2019, declaring part of the rule inconsistent with the Constitution.

The state subsequently sought leave to appeal the verdict, which the Appellate Division granted on 20 November 2022. At the same time, it stayed the operation of the High Court judgment.

After obtaining leave to appeal, the state filed its appeal in 2023. Teachers who had been directly recruited to government primary schools also filed petitions before the Appellate Division. Following hearings, the Appellate Division allowed the appeals and delivered its judgment.