'Being told to do guard's job': Order on nodal officers for strays irks teachers

GURGAON/NOIDA: Teachers in the NCR cities are protesting govt orders making them part of the stray dog management exercise in schools. Issued in line with Supreme Court directions, the orders ask all schools to appoint nodal officers and strengthen campus security to prevent entry of stray dogs inside.In Gurgaon, the order was officially communicated to schools on Tuesday with the subject line: "To appoint a nodal officer to upkeep and cleanliness of the premises and for assuring that stray dogs don't enter or inhabit the campus." In Noida, the order was issued on Dec 20, while schools in Ghaziabad were notified on Dec 30.On Nov 7, Supreme Court had directed state govts and local bodies to take urgent measures in the interest of public safety and health to curb instances of dog bites in institutional areas such as schools, hospitals, sports complexes, bus depots and railway stations.While teachers criticised the order as yet another non-academic assignment being thrust on them - in UP, teachers have been doubling as block level officers (BLOs) to carry out the challenging enumeration exercise in special intensive revision of electoral rolls - education department officials told TOI the orders were based on Supreme Court directions and nodal officers would specifically have a coordinating role.Principals have been asked to appoint a teacher as nodal officer to deal with all stray dog-related issues. The designated officer is supposed to act as single point of contact with municipal bodies for reporting, removal and relocation of stray dogs within school premises. Schools have also been instructed to conduct physical inspections of boundary walls, gates and entry points, and ensure that campuses are adequately secured to prevent more stray animals from entering."Apart from teaching work, we have been given the job of carrying surveys of out-of-school children, supervision of construction work, and medical-related duties such as checking students' height and weight," said a teacher at a govt school in Gurgaon, asking why govt doesn't appoint guards instead. "We are also expected to look after kitchen gardens and cleanliness drives."Another teacher said that the cumulative impact of such duties is affecting classroom teaching. "Every few weeks, a new task is added. While each duty may appear small in isolation, together they significantly reduce the time and energy teachers can devote to students," the teacher said.A senior official from the Haryana Education Department dismissed the criticism, emphasising that student safety is a fundamental responsibility of school authorities. "When children are inside the school, whose responsibilities are they? This order is only to ensure that no stray dog enters and bites them," he said. Drawing a parallel with parental responsibility, he also added that just as parents protect their children at home, school staff must ensure that gates remain closed and campuses remain secure.In Noida, a teachers' association pointed out that they are already severely bogged down by SIR work. "Teachers are overburdened with non-academic work such as BLO duty, election duty, polio duty, family surveys and census, vaccination and medical duties, etc. Campus security and stray dog management should be handled by guards or non-teaching staff, not teachers," said Praveen Sharma, president of Noida's govt primary teachers' association. "If it is work related to academics, then we are always ready to do that. But imposing such thankless jobs on teachers, which they are not meant for, demeans the teaching profession," Sharma added.A senior education department official in UP said responsibility to ensure a child's safety lies with school managements and they must coordinate with municipal authorities. "Student safety remains the top priority," the official said.