Thiruvananthapuram: Chief minister V D Satheesan on Wednesday defended govt’s handling of the ongoing protest by LPS teacher job aspirants, saying his govt hadn’t adopted the approach of ignoring protesters.“The protesters had put forward five demands, of which govt has accepted four. The general education minister has explained about the details,” he said.Satheesan said the minister had held eight rounds of discussions with the protesters, while he himself had met them twice. Subsequently, the general education minister’s secretary had requested the protesters to temporarily withdraw their agitation.On the demand to reduce teacher-student ratio from the existing 1:30 to 1:25, Satheesan said govt wasn’t in a financial position to implement it any time soon.A reduction in the ratio would necessitate creating additional posts not only for lower primary school teachers (LPSTs) but also for upper primary school teachers (UPSTs), high school teachers (HSTs) and even higher secondary teachers, he said.He said any increase in posts in govt schools would lead to similar demands from aided schools. If different teacher-student ratios were maintained in govt and aided schools, the latter could approach the courts, potentially forcing govt to extend the same benefit to them.“We are not in a financial position to reduce the ratio and create additional posts. We can consider it when the financial situation improves. We haven’t rejected their demand; we have explained our limitations to them,” he said.Satheesan expressed concern over the protesters resorting to extreme forms of agitation, including cutting their hair. “When I saw them cutting their hair, I was deeply saddened. Tears filled my eyes. After all, they are young women,” he said.Valarmathi to continue strikeHowever, Valarmathi, who is at the forefront of the rank-holders’ protests, accused the chief minister of repeating the same arguments without addressing their core demand.She said the protesters had placed five demands that wouldn’t impose any additional financial burden on govt. While govt claimed to have accepted four demands, no official orders were issued to implement them, she alleged.Valarmathi insisted that the teacher-student ratio be reduced to 1:25 in all schools; it was govt’s responsibility to implement it. She urged govt to at least reduce the ratio in schools where a decline in student strength could result in the loss of divisions and teaching posts.“I won’t withdraw from the demand for a reduction in the ratio,” she said. Govt is using financial constraints as a ruse to deny the protesters’ demands, she alleged. She said three cases were registered against her.
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