Shillong, Oct 25: SSA teachers in Meghalaya have filed a review petition in the Supreme Court against its judgment in September this year that made Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) mandatory for all SSA teachers irrespective of their service duration.
Informing this on Saturday, Meghalaya Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan Schools Association (MSSASA) president Aristotle C Rymbai expressed gratitude to all SSA teachers for their support and prayers in filing the petition on Friday.
“We are here to inform all the SSA teachers in particular and other categories of teachers in the state of Meghalaya that the MSSASA yesterday filed a review petition in the Supreme Court of India,” Rymbai said on Saturday.
The Supreme Court’s judgment was based on the 2010 National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) notification and the 2017 amendments to the Right to Education (RTE) Act.
He recalled that the Education Department had earlier exempted teachers appointed before August 23, 2010, from the state TET (MTET).
However, the recent verdict has overridden that exemption, bringing all in‑service teachers under the TET requirement.
The MSSASA argues that the retrospective application of the judgment would unfairly impact long-serving teachers nearing retirement.
Rymbai stated that the association will inform teachers of any updates regarding the case in the days to come.
According to Education department, there are 43,102 teachers across the state.
While the exact number of teachers who have not cleared the TET is not specified, Education Minister Lahkmen Rymbui recently indicated that the Supreme Court’s ruling could affect between 10,000 – 15,000 teachers in Meghalaya.
