Nagaland ad hoc teachers will begin a hunger strike at NSF Solidarity Park, Kohima, citing no government response on service regularisation.
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KOHIMA — The All Nagaland Ad hoc Teachers’ Group (ANATG), Batch 2015, said it will commence a hunger strike from the “first hour” of Wednesday after claiming that no formal response was received from the government, even as their protest in Kohima entered its sixth day on Tuesday.
At the Naga Solidarity Park, Kohima, the group had initially planned to begin a hunger strike on Tuesday, but put it on hold late Monday following correspondence from the principal director’s office requesting them to wait for a government response.
Related: Nagaland ad hoc teachers announce hunger strike over regularisation
Core committee member Bendangtemsu Ozukum said that despite the assurance, no communication reached them by Tuesday evening. “However, no such intimations came to us even after the members were dispersed today,” he said.
Stating that members had travelled from far-flung districts and that days were passing by, Ozukum said the group was left with “no other option” but to intensify their agitation. He said around 15 volunteers would begin the hunger strike from Wednesday morning and that those participating would continue “until the last man falls down”. He clarified that no female members had been included in the hunger strike.
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While noting that official working hours end at 4 pm, Ozukum said it would be futile to keep waiting late into the evening. However, he added that if any communication is received from the government, the group would consider it and could reconsider its next course of action.
He also reiterated that the group still had faith in the government despite having served as ad hoc employees for 14 to 32 years. “We are still expecting that something will be brought out at the earliest, maybe even by tonight,” he said.
On Tuesday, the teachers wore black armbands on the sixth day of their sit-in protest to express resentment over delays in service regularisation and to show solidarity with members who had died while waiting for regularisation.
“It has been a very silent day for us as we have tried to remember all our members who have passed away while waiting for service regularisation. Twenty-eight of our members passed away, the last one being on Saturday,” Ozukum said.
The group said the armband symbolised both solidarity with deceased members and protest against the time lapse in the regularisation process.
The ANATG also said that on Monday, about 40 protesting teachers were sent back to their places of posting in view of the HSLC examinations.