Finance deptt. contradicts DoSE

NSSATA TO BEGIN AGITATION FROM TODAY
Contradicting the stand of the Department of School Education (DoSE) that no fund was received from the government of India for payment of salaries to some 2730  teachers Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), the Finance Department (FD) has revealed that Rs.16.53 crores were received for payment of salaries to 1379 Hindi teachers appointed under Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS).
On receipt of the amount, the state finance department, on the same day, concurred the release of pending salaries in its entirety, for the financial year 2013-14 to the Department of School Education (DoSE) in February, 2014.
A letter issued by secretary finance Y. Kikheto Sema addressed to the principal director treasuries and accounts also stated that no further payment was to be made beyond the stated period till further instruction as fund was received only for the above mentioned period.
It may be recalled that the commissioner and secretary Department of School Education (DoSE) T.Imkonglemba Ao had on Saturday, clarified that salaries of SSA employees had been cleared till the month of November 2013 and also  requested controlling officers to take up the matter with their respective treasuries.
There are over 2700 teachers appointed under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and  the Nagaland SSA Teachers Association had threatened to boycott work from March 10 for non-payment of salaries for the past four months (November, 2013 to February, 2014). Also, the ANSTA had appealed to the DoSE to release the pending salaries of the teachers appointed under Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) failing and warned that it would be compelled to take “hardest step” and the authority would be held responsible for any untoward incident. ANSTA had, in a representation to the Commissioner & Secretary DoSE & SCERT, stated that teachers under SSA, another 300 plus teachers appointed as Special Education Teachers under IEDSS and 1379 Hindi teachers have been so far appointed under different schemes of the centre.
NSSATA refutes DoSE clarification
DIMAPUR, MAR 9 (NPN): Nagaland SSA Teachers’ Association (NSSATA) has refuted the clarification by the commissioner & secretary, department of school education (DoSE) T. Imkonglemba Ao regarding teachers’ salaries as published in local dailies on Sunday. NSSATA has also decided to go ahead with its proposed agitation from Monday (March 10).
 NSSATA president Visechol Chaya and general secretary Samina Meru clarified that the association did not cite nor questioned the authority on diversion of funds. However, NSSATA said it wanted to know from the authority, if the SSA funds were not diverted, then why salaries of October and November 2013 were released only in the month of February and March 2014 respectively?.
NSSATA revealed that October 2013 salaries for districts of Kiphire, Mon, Tuensang were released only in the month of February 2014. The commissioner and secretary claimed that the salaries have been cleared till November 2013.
NSSATA however clarified that the finance order – Vide Order No. BUD/11-31/201-12 for the release of November 2013 salary was sanctioned and passed only on February 26, 2014. In addition, the November 2013 salary has not been received. Even the arrears for the year 2013 were still pending, said NSSATA.
On the commissioner & secretary’s information that the SSA Mission was currently camped in Delhi to pursue release of funds, NSSATA said it could have been done much earlier.
NSSATA also clarified that SSA teachers (2010-2013) were not supposed to be treated like other teachers under any other flagship programmes practiced in other states.
It asserted that the appointment of SSA teachers in Nagaland was done through proper channel after approval of the cabinet, finance department and P&AR department. Hence, the question of comparison with other states did not arise, said the association.
NSSATA claimed that its members were appointed as regular state government employees that was made clear in the appointment order and so should have been absorbed under the non-plan category.
Regarding the request of the DoSE to call off the agitation, NSSATA said its decision remained firm and would go ahead till the demands were fulfilled. NSSATA alleged that it had been given false assurances since the beginning of the last academic session and so, warned that any untoward incident or hardships meted out to the SSA teachers and the educational system as a whole would be the sole responsibility of the state government.