Assam Govt passes three education bills for teacher recruitment, engineering colleges

NEW DELHI: Assam Legislative Assembly has passed the three bills related to education today, the education minister Ranoj Pegu said. The Bills were passed during the ongoing Assam Budget 2023 session.

The three bills amended today were Assam Elementary and Secondary School Teachers' (Regulation of Posting and Transfer) (Amendment) Bill, 2023, Assam College Employees (Provincialisation) (Amendment) Bill, 2023, and Assam Science and Technology University (Amendment) Bill, 2023.

The minister said that the Assam Science and Technology University (Amendment) Bill, 2023 states that Assam engineering college will now be a constituent college of Assam Science and Technology University (ASTU).

Explaining further, the state education minister said the Assam College Employees (Provincialisation) (Amendment) Bill, 2023 provides for creation of Assam College Service Recruitment Board (ACSRB) for recruitment of both teaching and non-teaching staff in the colleges of Assam.

“Earlier, the selection was made by the Governing Body of the respective colleges. The ACSRB will conduct examinations for selection of candidates,” he said.

Pegu said that the amended law will ensure better monitoring of the recruitment process and also help candidates in getting placement by applying through a single channel.

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The Bill proposes to appoint teaching and non-teaching staff in colleges through the proposed Assam College Services Recruitment Board (ACSRB), doing away with the current provision of the recruitments being made on the basis of selection and recommendation of the governing body of the respective institutes.

"The state director of higher education will remain the appointing authority. The ACSRB will be constituted by the government for a two-year term, consisting of a chairman and six members," the PTI reported.

The Assam Elementary and Secondary Schools Teachers’ (Regulation of Posting and Transfer) (Amendment) Act, 2023 will now empower the government to transfer or shift any teacher at any time during a year for rationalization of teachers and administrative exigencies.

"The opposition parties staged a walk-out alleging that the government was attempting to centralise the recruitment process of colleges, curtail their autonomy and decrease transparency during new appointments. They also claimed that the government was trying to frame rules for appointing college faculty members which were not in line with the nationally practiced norms," the PTI reported.