Kathmandu, September 3 :

Around 500 temporary school-level teachers were arrested while they were protesting in front of the Education Ministry today. They were, however, released in the evening.

The teachers had been demanding fulfilment of their 16-point charter of educational demands.

Bishwobandhan Poudel, Ram Kazi Bista and others were detained at the Kalimati Ward Police office, Sorhakhutte Ward Police Office and Maharajgung Ward Police Office.

The teachers organised a sit-in programme in front of the ministry. Their major demands include making all temporary teachers permanent and providing placements to displaced teachers. The other demands include free education to all up to grade VIII, free secondary education to women, Dalits and the disabled, setting up a national or district-level mechanism to monitor whether teachers of private and community schools are given good remuneration. Similarly, they have been demanding that children of teachers killed in the conflict be given full scholarships and government ensure teachers’ security.

OCE locked up :

KATHMANDU: First year students of Masters-level on Sunday locked up the Education Department and the Office of the Controller of Examination. The students were demanding that their answer sheets be re-evaluated. The agitated students had set on fire furniture and ransacked the Education Department on August 31. They have been protesting against the low pass rate and low marks awarded to them in examination. — HNS