The deprived education cadre officials have received no promotion during the one-and-a-half-year period of the interim government, coupled with their promotion deprivation ranging from five to twelve years, has caused severe discontent among them.
They are supposed to be assistant professors after five years of working. However, many general education cadres of 32nd BCS officials have not received promotion even after serving the nation for more than twelve years.
More than 400 lecturers from the 32nd and 33rd batches have met a similar fate. Besides, those who have completed 34th BCS ten years, 35th BCS nine years, and 36th BCS seven years of service have still not received a promotion.
They have started agitation under the banner of ‘BCS General Education Cadre Lecturer Council’ and have already demonstrated a ‘human chain’ and called a ‘news conference’ before DSHE to draw the attention of the government.
It is indeed a positive sign of democracy that these deprived teachers could not dare to raise their rightful demands during the previous autocratic regime. The interim government, not unknown to them, has been formed in response to a profound political upheaval in the country. Meeting these types of demands and deciding on these crucial issues for the country usually falls outside the purview of this government.
Still, all the professional groups have raised their voice, which undoubtedly proves the severe suppression of the previous types. Moreover, the most significant issue appears here that ‘education’ has always been an issue of state negligence. That has surfaced once again. My pen sounds basically for this reason.
It has been long overdue for the lecturers from the 32nd to 37th batches of the BCS General Education Cadre to be promoted to the post of Assistant Professor. However, due to the prolonged delay in issuing the Government Order, they expressed frustration and resentment, announcing a “No Promotion, No Work” program until their demands are met.
Receiving a fair promotion based on qualification is their rightful demand, so they have urged the current government to immediately issue the GO for the time-scale promotion to resolve the ongoing crisis. Otherwise, they warned of launching tougher programs in the future. There was a DPC (Departmental Promotion Committee) meeting on 4 June to promote teachers.
Since then, five months have passed, and still, no progress has been made in this regard. In response to the teachers’ movement, the ministry convened several meetings on 6 November of this year. However, no order has been issued that has further exacerbated the situation.
Nationalised and assimilated teachers filed a case with the Administrative Tribunal, and their rival party is the BCS cadre members. The Administrative Tribunal gives importance to considering the alternative order that the length of service and seniority of the assimilated teachers would be counted from the day the colleges became nationalised.
While developing the debated Policy 2000, the Ministry of Education did not seek the opinion of the Ministry of Law and Public Administration. According to this policy, Section 6(5), nationalised teachers join as education cadre officials after fulfilling all the competencies. However, with the help of some influential officials from the Ministry of Education, 54 orders were released in 2024, effectively disregarding the 2000 policy to provide undue benefits to the assimilated teachers.
That will make the BCS education cadre officials junior to the assimilated teachers. So, they filed a case against this decision. In these orders, around 2,000 nationalised/assimilated teachers would have the opportunity to join as cadre teachers. To revoke this illegal order, the sufferers applied to the senior secretary of the ministry, but the ministry has yet to respond.
By this time, a discriminatory step has already surfaced in the world of cadre officials. The 36th batch of cadres, except those in the education cadre, received promotions in 2023, and the 37th batch received promotions in 2024. This means that during the current government’s tenure, it has been remarkable.
This government is not politically motivated. Still, a sign of that makes us surprised. All cadre officials should receive equal treatment from the state, and this government should set an example that will be followed by the government that comes into power through the election. BCS health cadre officials have been given supernumerary promotions to more than 500 officials.
However, education from the 32 to 37 batch has no promotion. The officials believe that if the government desires it, they can obtain the promotion that requires initiative and a genuine desire for the state. Graduation officials in the 32nd BCS (54), 33rd (361), 34th (631), 35th (740), 36th (460), and 37th (153) who have been waiting to be assistant professors from lecturers.
According to BCS policy and rules, when a lecturer qualifies all the necessary criteria for promotion and completes five years of service, they should be promoted to the position of assistant professor. However, in the general BCS education cadre, lecturers from the 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, and 37 batches have satisfied all the criteria for promotion; yet, BCS education cadres have not been promoted to the next higher position for 8 to 13 years.
They were still in the 9th grade when they entered the service. They have been facing losses in terms of social status as well as financial benefits, which has upset them. The deprived education cadre teachers say that the education cadre has also been affected by various other problems, including position upgradation and creation.
The council members have urged the government to issue a government order by promoting them as soon as possible; otherwise, they would announce non-stop protest programmes. If their demands are not met by the deadline, they will be forced to observe a stern movement, such as ‘no promotion, no work’. The teacher council also states that between 2019 and 2025, promotions within the BCS education cadre were given only twice, which has created promotion congestion.
We know the members of the current government are knowledgeable, honest and not politically motivated. They might not have shrewd political acumen, but they have true dedication, sincerity, and merit to face the challenges developed during the previous regime. We want to see its reflection in this issue as well. Cadre officials should not exhibit any attitude that is contrary to the interests of our students and proper education.
About the Author
Masum Billah works as a President of the English Teachers' Association of Bangladesh (ETAB), Dhaka, Bangladesh. He previously worked as an Education Specialist at BRAC, an international NGO in Bangladesh.