Students and community organisations in the Sungro Range of Nagaland have started an indefinite agitation and sealed Government Higher Secondary School (GHSS), Sungro, in Wokha district. They are demanding the appointment of teaching and non-teaching staff at the school. According to The Morung Express, as reported by Edexlive, the protest began on November 2.
Key points
- GHSS Sungro in Wokha district has been sealed by student bodies and village councils from several villages.
- The protesters say teaching posts have been vacant since 2022 and the school has no language teachers, no physical education teacher and no lower division assistant.
- They say a departmental order issued on October 29 did not include any teacher for the school.
- The agitation will continue until the department gives a written assurance and meets the demand.
What the protesters say
The protest was joined by student bodies and village councils from Pangti, Okotso, Sungro, Old and New Aree, Yanthamo and Asha villages. Pangti Village Students' Union (PVSU) president Bonao Lotha and other representatives said several teaching posts have stayed vacant since 2022, after teachers retired or died and were not replaced.
They said only one mathematics teacher is handling classes in the lower section, after another teacher was transferred without a replacement. They also alleged that teachers going on maternity leave were not given substitutes.
The organisations said they had submitted several representations to the government and the concerned department and had also issued an ultimatum. According to them, the departmental order of October 29 did not include any teacher for GHSS Sungro, despite earlier verbal assurances.
Effect on students
The protesting groups said the shortage has hurt students' academic progress. Some students, they said, have had to appear for examinations without finishing the prescribed syllabus. Students have been without language teachers since 2022 and have also faced a shortage of teachers in environmental education and other subjects.
Bonao Lotha acknowledged that the agitation began close to the examination period. He said the community had little choice because academic activities were already being affected by the absence of teachers in several subjects.
Penthungo, secretary of the Okotso Village Development Board, appealed to the authorities to resolve the issue and said students' education should not be compromised.
Enrolment and staff allocation
Pangti Village Council chairman Zanbemo W Kithan said the matter had been raised many times. He described GHSS Sungro as an important institution serving the entire range. He said the school has one of the highest enrolments in the district after GHSS Wokha, yet has not received adequate staff despite its enrolment and past academic performance. He also questioned why staff allocation differs between this school and government schools that have fewer students.
What happens next
The joint organisations said the agitation will go on and the school will stay sealed until the concerned department provides a written assurance and fulfils the demand for adequate teaching and non-teaching staff. The source did not report any response from the department.
