At least 850 schoolteachers deputed for Covid-19 related duties have died of the disease in the second wave of the pandemic in Madhya Pradesh over the last three months, a teachers’ association has said.
“Over 6,000 schoolteachers, who were deputed for vaccination and Covid-19 surveys, were tested positive and more than 850 died,” said Jagdish Yadav, president, Rajya Shikshak Sangh, the association, citing a survey that they have carried out across the state.
He said 100 teachers died of the disease in Chhindawara followed by Seoni (95) and Rajgarh (78).
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Teachers have blamed the government for deputing them for the pandemic-related work without declaring them as frontline workers. “The teachers are surveying Covid 19 cases and also working at vaccination centres, but without PPE [personal protection equipment] kits and gloves. Even, they use their own masks. The government set up vaccination centres at schools and teachers are working without kits,” said Bhagwan Singh Ranawat, a teacher from Rajgarh.
Ashutosh Pandey, president of Madhya Pradesh Teachers Congress, accused the government of mistreating teachers. “From census to Covid-19 duties, teachers bear all the responsibilities and work hard but hardly any government thinks about us. But now, it is a matter of life and death and of the families of teachers.” He added in Damoh, 17 teachers died of Covid 19 after being infected during poll duty during the by-election in April.
Pandey demanded ₹50 lakh compensation for teachers, who have died of Covid-19 after contracting the disease during pandemic-related duties, as frontline workers.
School education minister Indersingh Parmar said the teachers will get all benefits and safety gears while insisting they were not insensitive towards them.
