State awards teacher but forgets to give her pension

Mou Chakraborty
Kolkata, September 5, 2007
Jaba Mazumdar, a retired teacher, received top honours from the state government on Wednesday in the presence of the chief minister and Governor. But she is yet to receive her pension more than a year after her retirement.
While addressing the gathering, Governor Gopal Krishna Gandhi urged the state government to ensure that pensions and salaries are paid on time. “Today some teachers met me and said if I could help them ensure that the government pays pension and gratuity and their salary on the first day of every month. Will the state government be able to fulfil this small demand of theirs,” asked Gandhi. “Of course,” said Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.
Jaba Mazumdar, a retired teacher of Bidhan Chandra Memorial Government Girls High School was one of the ten teachers who received the award. During her 37 years tenure as Bengali teacher of the school she has contributed a lot. But though she retired on June 30 2006, Mazumdar is running from pillar to post for her pension.
Unlike the state-aided institutions, the teachers working in government schools get their pension through finance department and not the district inspector. During her service, Mazumdar had shifted from a state-aided institution to a government school. So when the time came to claim her pension there was some complications.
Though the school education minister Partha De was present at the programme, Mazumdar did not press her case directly. “The file is now going from one desk to another. I do not want anybody’s help. I have become a teacher because I wanted to be in this profession. Even today I feel attached to my school and I can only hope that this problem will be solved very soon,” she said.
However, Mazumdar is not the only teacher going through this hassle. Two of her colleagues retired from the same institution are waiting for their pensions. “Currently I am trying to get attached to an NGO to offer free teaching for needy students. No matter how much problem a teacher has to face I would always like to be one in my next birth,” an emotional Mazumdar said.
The school education minister is not aware of her situation. “We try to ensure that all teachers get pension after their retirement. However, if any of them are not getting their pension, we will take up the mater,” said De.
Mou.Chakraborty@hindustantimes.com