Shimla – In a significant move, the Elementary Education Department has revised the recruitment and promotion rules for Trained Graduate Teachers (TGT) after 15 years, allowing both graduation and postgraduate degrees to be valid qualifications for TGT recruitment. This change aims to streamline the recruitment process and provide more opportunities for candidates. The new rules were announced in a notification issued by the Director of Elementary Education.
Recruitment for TGT positions will now be conducted through the Public Service Commission Shimla or the Staff Selection Commission Hamirpur. The state government schools currently have 14,224 TGT cadre posts. The updated rules align with the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) standards and aim to resolve discrepancies that previously led to numerous court cases.
Key changes in the new rules include:
- Unified Recruitment Standards: A common set of rules will now apply to the recruitment of TGTs across Medical, Non-Medical, and Arts faculties. This uniformity addresses the previous inconsistencies that caused legal disputes.
- Educational Qualifications: The new rules state that a PG degree will now be valid along with a UG degree for TGT recruitment. Candidates who have less than 50% marks in their undergraduate (BA) degree but have 55% or more in their postgraduate (PG) degree will be eligible. Additionally, a four-year B.Ed diploma with 50% marks in the 12th grade is required.
- Special Education and TET Requirements: A one-year diploma in Special Education with 50% marks in BA or BCom will also be accepted. Candidates must pass the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) to qualify for TGT recruitment. For general category candidates, 50% marks are mandatory either in graduation or postgraduation, a change from the current rule that requires 50% marks only in UG.
- Batchwise Recruitment: TGT recruitment will continue to be conducted in batches, half by commission. Candidates without 50% marks in UG can now apply if they meet the 50% mark requirement in their PG degree.
This update was also necessary to resolve issues arising from the subject combination dispute caused by the Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA). Some UG students were deemed ineligible for TGT due to major and minor subject combinations, leading to court cases. The new rules address these issues, making the recruitment process more inclusive and fair.
The changes are expected to benefit a larger pool of candidates and bring consistency to the TGT recruitment process in Himachal Pradesh, ensuring that qualified teachers are recruited efficiently and transparently.
