- The Nepal Teachers' Federation warns of nationwide protests starting in Bhadra if the government fails to implement past commitments and service-related demands.
- Primary demands include the immediate enactment of the School Education Act to ensure job security, legal rights, and structural reforms for all teachers.
- The group seeks immediate clarity on incentive allowances, reform of transfer systems, and guaranteed minimum salaries for temporary and early childhood educators.
- While open to dialogue, the Federation will finalize protest details if the government continues delaying promised legislative and financial actions.
Kathmandu, Nepal: The Nepal Teachers' Federation has warned that it will launch a nationwide protest from the Nepali month of Bhadra if the government fails to implement its repeated commitments, including the immediate enactment of the long-awaited School Education Act and the fulfillment of teachers' service-related demands.
The decision was taken at the Federation's Third National Council meeting held in Kathmandu on Saturday and Sunday, where delegates concluded that continued delays in implementing past agreements and the government's lack of responsiveness had deepened dissatisfaction among teachers across the country.
Addressing the media after the meeting, Federation Chairperson Laxmi Kishore Subedi said the organization remained open to dialogue with the government but stressed that teachers would no longer tolerate further delays in addressing their concerns.
"The government still has an opportunity to resolve the outstanding issues through dialogue," Subedi said. "However, if the commitments already made are not implemented, the Federation will be compelled to launch nationwide protests from Bhadra."
He said the Federation's expanded executive committee has been authorized to determine the date, modality, and phases of the protest and is expected to announce a detailed programme in the coming days.
At the centre of the Federation's demands is the immediate promulgation of the School Education Act, incorporating the agreements previously reached between the government and teachers' representatives. The Federation argues that the legislation is essential for ensuring long-term reforms in the education sector, strengthening school governance, and providing legal certainty regarding teachers' rights, responsibilities, and career progression.
The Federation has also called for the implementation of an incentive allowance from the month of Shrawan, the abolition of what it describes as an impractical teacher transfer system, and reforms to teachers' career development and service conditions. It further demanded that the government guarantee minimum salaries, job security, and social protection for temporary, relief, wage-based, institutional school, and Early Childhood Education and Development (ECED) teachers, as well as school employees.
Although the incentive allowance was announced in the government's budget for the current fiscal year, the Federation said uncertainty persists because the circular issued by the Office of the Financial Comptroller General and the programme implementation guidelines do not clearly specify the allowance structure or implementation procedures. It urged the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology to immediately issue an official clarification detailing the applicable salary scale and implementation mechanism.
The Federation maintains that the government has repeatedly failed to honour agreements reached with teachers in previous rounds of negotiations, resulting in growing frustration among education professionals nationwide. It warned that unless concrete steps are taken promptly, the planned protest will proceed as scheduled.
Education sector observers say any nationwide teachers' protest could significantly disrupt regular classroom instruction and administrative activities at schools across Nepal, particularly at the beginning of the new academic cycle. However, the Federation has indicated that it remains willing to suspend the protest if the government acts swiftly to address its demands through meaningful dialogue and policy implementation.
