Patna: The government of Bihar has signalled a significant policy shift on teacher transfers, with the state’s education minister indicating that inter-district moves for graduate grade teachers and elementary school principals appointed under the old pay scale are likely to be facilitated.
Speaking in the legislative council, said the administration would take a “positive stance” on long-pending demands for inter-district transfers. He was responding to a short notice question from .
Kumar told the house that approximately 250,000 teachers had been transferred across the state so far, with what he described as a 75% to 80% satisfaction rate among those affected. The process, he said, would remain “continuous and balanced”.
District-level committees will continue to oversee transfers, taking into account student strength and vacancies, the minister said. The objective, he added, is to prioritise postings in areas facing acute teacher shortages in order to improve educational standards and ensure a more equitable distribution of staff.
The issue of salary arrears for employees of madrasa and Sanskrit schools was also raised during the session. questioned the delay in paying the difference between the Fifth and Sixth Pay Commission scales, despite allocations of Rs 571 crore for madrasa institutions and Rs 411 crore for Sanskrit schools.
In response, Kumar said the finance department had been asked to release the outstanding sums and that funds earmarked for districts would be disbursed soon. The government was making efforts to ensure payments were cleared by March, he said.
Concerns were also expressed over discrepancies in the calculation of casual leave in government schools, with Sundays and intervening public holidays reportedly being counted as part of leave periods. The education minister acknowledged the issue and said necessary amendments would be introduced to make leave calculations more “practical and fair”, adding that instructions had been issued to the relevant officials.
