M M Jasim :
The Education Ministry has finalised the “Independent Ebtedayee Madrasa Policy” with the provision of increasing salary of the teachers by 140 percent (more than double).
The officials of the ministry said, the policy has fulfilled the demand of the teachers with a view to accelerating the academic activities of the ebtedayee madrasas.
The Education Ministry, on September 13, sent the draft of the policy to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) for approval. In the draft, the ministry proposed to increase salary of the headmasters of ebtedayee madrasas by 140 per cent and 117 per cent for assistant teachers.
The PMO gave the approval of the draft on September 20 and the Education Ministry has sent it to the Finance Ministry for budgetary allocation.
According to the Bangladesh Madrasa Board, there are 6,998 ebtedayee madrasas across the country.
However, 2016 data of the Bangladesh Bureau of Educational Information
and Statistics (Banbeis) said, the number of ebtedayee madrasas is 3,433. Of them, 1,519 madrasas are getting grants. These madrasas have around 15,242 teachers and 51,997 students.
Sources said, private primary schools and equivalent independent Ebtedayee madrasas were registered in the same circular issued in 1994. Later, only the primary schools were nationalized. Ebtadayee teachers attached to Dakhil madrasas are getting Tk 9,918 as salary, whereas head teachers of ebtadayee madrasas get only Tk 2,500 and assistant teachers Tk 2,300.
To remove the disparity, four Ebtedayee teachers filed a writ petition with the High Court on February 7 last year.
During a primary hearing, the court ordered the authorities to end the discrimination and asked the Education Ministry to settle the issue within 90 days. Following the order, the ministry formed an 11-member panel on October 4 last year with Additional Secretary Rawnak Mahmud as its convener.
Meanwhile, Ebtedayee madrasa teachers organised a set of protest programmes since January 1 this year, including a hunger strike, to press home their demand for the nationalization of their institutions under the Bangladesh Madrasa Education Board. They called off their demonstrations on January 16 following a government assurance of realising their demand. After that, the government began work on finalising the policy.
Md Alamgir, Secretary (Technical and Madrasa Division) of the Education Ministry said, the target of the government is to welfare of the country’s people. A good number of students are studying in the ebtedayee madrasas all over the country. “We made the policy considering the privileges of the teachers and students. I think the policy will help imparting quality primary education,” he said.
The Education Ministry has finalised the “Independent Ebtedayee Madrasa Policy” with the provision of increasing salary of the teachers by 140 percent (more than double).
The officials of the ministry said, the policy has fulfilled the demand of the teachers with a view to accelerating the academic activities of the ebtedayee madrasas.
The Education Ministry, on September 13, sent the draft of the policy to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) for approval. In the draft, the ministry proposed to increase salary of the headmasters of ebtedayee madrasas by 140 per cent and 117 per cent for assistant teachers.
The PMO gave the approval of the draft on September 20 and the Education Ministry has sent it to the Finance Ministry for budgetary allocation.
According to the Bangladesh Madrasa Board, there are 6,998 ebtedayee madrasas across the country.
However, 2016 data of the Bangladesh Bureau of Educational Information
and Statistics (Banbeis) said, the number of ebtedayee madrasas is 3,433. Of them, 1,519 madrasas are getting grants. These madrasas have around 15,242 teachers and 51,997 students.
Sources said, private primary schools and equivalent independent Ebtedayee madrasas were registered in the same circular issued in 1994. Later, only the primary schools were nationalized. Ebtadayee teachers attached to Dakhil madrasas are getting Tk 9,918 as salary, whereas head teachers of ebtadayee madrasas get only Tk 2,500 and assistant teachers Tk 2,300.
To remove the disparity, four Ebtedayee teachers filed a writ petition with the High Court on February 7 last year.
During a primary hearing, the court ordered the authorities to end the discrimination and asked the Education Ministry to settle the issue within 90 days. Following the order, the ministry formed an 11-member panel on October 4 last year with Additional Secretary Rawnak Mahmud as its convener.
Meanwhile, Ebtedayee madrasa teachers organised a set of protest programmes since January 1 this year, including a hunger strike, to press home their demand for the nationalization of their institutions under the Bangladesh Madrasa Education Board. They called off their demonstrations on January 16 following a government assurance of realising their demand. After that, the government began work on finalising the policy.
Md Alamgir, Secretary (Technical and Madrasa Division) of the Education Ministry said, the target of the government is to welfare of the country’s people. A good number of students are studying in the ebtedayee madrasas all over the country. “We made the policy considering the privileges of the teachers and students. I think the policy will help imparting quality primary education,” he said.
