Chesapat H/S symbolizes underpaid teachers' dedication
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, August 25 2014: Chesapat High School located at Kakching Khunou now stands tall and proud after successfully putting many of its students in the first division of class X exam conducted by Board of Higher Secondary Education Manipur (BSEM) .

The school has not been fully adopted by the Government and it is only a Government aided school.

It has only three approved teachers and the salaries they get are being shared between 18 teachers and two non-teaching staff.

The school has classes Nursery to Class X and there are 336 students in aggregate.

But the teachers are getting a trifling Rs 1500 to Rs 3000 as monthly.

Still they are teaching at the school in the interest of students but it remains a big question how long they could dedicate to the school.

The school was set up in 1976 by the local elders in view of the absence of any girls' school to the South of Kakching.

During the initial years, the school was for classes III to X .

It became a co-educational school in 1994 in tune to the changing requirements of the area.

For the first time, the school received grant from the Government in 1981.One year earlier, four teachers were approved by the Government before one more teacher was approved in 1984 .

Salaries received by the five approved teachers were shared among all the teachers teaching at the school.

Out of the five approved teachers, two retired in March and October, 2012.Now there are only three approved teachers.

The school is being managed without charging any tuition fee from the students.

But local people are apprehensive if any one would volunteer to teach at the school after the retirement of the remaining three approved teachers.

Notwithstanding the peanuts received by the teachers as their monthly salaries, the school has 24 students in Nursery, 16 in KG, 32 in Class I, 31 in Class II, 35 in Class III, 34 in Class IV, 32 in Class V, 32 in Class VI, 41 in Class VII, 35 in Class VIII, and 12 each in Classes IX and X .

The school's performance in 2012 class X exam conducted by BSEM was one student got first division and 16 second division out of 38 students who appeared in the exam.

Total number of students who cleared the exam was 24 .

Out of 42 students who appeared in class X 2013 BSEM exam, 36 cleared the exam including eight in first division and 28 in second division.

Senior teacher Angom Nimai said that 16 students passed in second division in the 2014 Class X exam conducted by BSEM out of a total of 40 students.

Nimai claimed many students not only secured first division but also scored letter marks in Science and Mathematics.

Although agriculture is the main occupation of Kakching Khunou and surrounding areas, majority of the people sent their children to private schools located at Kakching Khunou itself or Thoubal or Imphal.

Nonetheless, students who are reading in Chesapat High School have more faith in the aided school than other full fledged Government schools.

After 10 computer sets were given to the school under SSA, an order was issued for providing a generator set, a laptop and scanner but these gadgets have not been delivered till date.

After one of the existing teachers was sent for computer training, students are being taught computer at the school.

Even though there are enough computer sets, the school was facing the problems caused by erratic power supply.

This problem was addressed to a substantial extent after the local provided a generator set, Nimai said.

Although the school is facing acute financial problems, the school building remains quite neat and clean, thanks to the dedication of teachers, students and local villagers, he added.

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