Census Duty: Teachers Form Legal Groups After School Management Fails To Support The Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court recently granted interim relief from Census duty to the CBSE School Staff Welfare Association (CSSWA), sparking a wave of similar actions among private school teachers across the region. This development has led many educators, who were left without institutional support, to form informal groups and pool resources to hire legal representation. The move comes after the Sikh Education Society (SES) previously secured interim relief for its pharmacy college staff, highlighting a growing trend of teachers seeking judicial intervention to avoid mandatory Census duties. Teachers reported being left in a precarious situation as school management failed to advocate for their interests. "While the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) is threatening us with FIRs for not reporting to Census duty, school owners are doing nothing to defend us," one teacher told The Times of India. Initially, many educators expected their school administrations to take similar steps after the SES case, but over a month of appeals to local authorities yielded no results. "Management of different schools did nothing beyond approaching local authorities with appeals," another teacher noted. Frustrated by the lack of support, teachers have now turned to legal avenues, with some stating, "We realised that interim relief is only for the petitioners. So, we too have decided to move the court." The stress on teachers has been immense, with many reporting a two-month ordeal since receiving Census duty letters. "We are running from pillar to post, asking why teachers from government and aided schools are not assigned Census duty first," a teacher explained.#times_of_india #bombay_high_court #nagpur_municipal_corporation #sikh_education_society #cbse_school_staff_welfare_association
HC Stays Census Duty Orders for Private College Staff The Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court recently stayed orders compelling faculty and staff of private unaided colleges to undertake Census duties, granting interim relief and raising questions about the legal authority behind such appointments. A division bench comprising Justices Anil Pansare and Nivedita Mehta issued notices to the Centre and the state government, directing them to respond by April 24. The court’s interim order halted the implementation of directives issued on April 5 and 6, which mandated the immediate deployment of staff from a pharmacy college run by The Sikh Education Society for Census work, with warnings of criminal action for noncompliance. The petition challenging these orders argued that private unaided college employees cannot be mandatorily assigned Census duties. Petitioner’s counsel, Purushottam Patil, cited precedents from the Delhi and Gujarat High Courts to contend that such appointments lack legal backing and could disrupt academic functioning. He emphasized that compelling faculty to participate in Census work during an ongoing academic schedule, particularly close to university examinations, would adversely affect students. The court was also informed that criminal cases had been initiated against some employees for failing to comply with the orders. Taking note of these submissions, the bench granted interim relief and observed that the issue of authority remains under consideration. It noted that available records do not clearly indicate whether the state government had delegated such powers to the municipal authority in question.#bombay_high_court #nagpur_bench #anil_pansare #nivedita_mehta #sikh_education_society
