Odisha Teachers End 21-Day Agitation After Govt Assurance
Bhubaneswar, Odisha: After 21 days of continuous agitation at Lower PMG, teachers and education-sector employees suspended their indefinite dharna following assurances from the Odisha government.
The protesters, under the banner of the Odisha School College Teachers and Employees Coordination Committee, had raised demands including pension and retirement benefits, grant-in-aid for 194 schools, filling vacant posts, implementation of 7th Pay Commission benefits, resolving grade-pay discrepancies, and raising the retirement age from 60 to 62 years.
Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj and Law Minister Prithviraj Harichandan met the agitators at Gandhi Marg, assuring them that the government would examine their issues.
Minister Suraj revealed that the government had already received 79 reports totalling around 800 pages on the matter, and a decision would be taken soon.
Following these assurances, the committee announced the suspension of the protest until the upcoming Assembly session, signalling cautious optimism among the teaching community.
