Kohima, Feb 7: The All Nagaland Adhoc Teachers Group (ANATG) 2015 Batch on Thursday intensified its agitation for regularisation of services, staging a demonstration in Kohima amid growing discontent over what it termed prolonged administrative delay.
Members of the group said they were identified as the 2015 batch as that was the year when 1,166 ad hoc teachers became eligible for regularisation. The teachers have been protesting in the state capital since February 4, beginning with a silent sit-in at NSF Solidarity Park, where internal consultations and a general meeting were held.
The agitators held two rounds of talks with the School Education Department on February 4 and 5, followed by a meeting with the chairman of the Screening Committee for regularisation, but said the discussions failed to produce any assurance. In response, the group decided to escalate its protest and carried out a peaceful procession from NSF Solidarity Park to the Secretariat junction.
During the demonstration, a brief incident turned violent, which the group attributed to frustration among teachers who have remained without regularisation for nearly 14 to 15 years. The situation was soon brought under control with the intervention of the police, district administration and ANATG officials.
The teachers recalled that similar peaceful protests were held in 2018 and again in 2022 after their demands remained unresolved. In 2022, an agreement was signed with the state government to constitute a high-powered committee within 15 days, submit recommendations within six months and resolve the issue by December 2023. However, the group said no tangible outcome had emerged even by 2025.
The ANATG alleged that on Friday morning, members were stopped from entering the Secretariat when they attempted to submit a memorandum through a core committee of district leaders. They maintained that they remained open to dialogue if the government offered a meaningful solution.
The teachers said they had appeared for suitability tests, undergone document verification and were placed on scale pay following protests in 2018, in line with the 2017 suitability test. They also claimed that while several departments have regularised ad hoc employees under provisions of an Office Memorandum issued in 2024, teachers continue to be excluded.
Stating that repeated demands for additional documentation had led to delays and inter-departmental blame, the group warned that the agitation would continue until their demands for regularisation were met.
