Kathmandu, October 29:

Temporary teachers working in government schools today served a 24-hour ultimatum to the government to meet their demands. They also threatened that they would announce a decisive movement against the government on Tuesday if they did not receive “assurances by tomorrow”.

“If we did not receive reassurances from the government by tomorrow, we will be compelled to announce further protest plans that includes locking out of all the district education offices and disrupting classes,” said Dinesh Thapa, general secretary of the Temporary Teachers’ Central Struggle Committee.

Ram Prasad Basyal, under-secretary at the Education Ministry, said the ministry would act according to the amended Education Act, which is in the House for discussion. The proposed bill on Nepal Act states that the temporary teachers will be made permanent.

Officials said the representatives of the seven-member ‘population and social committee’, which was formed by the government to solve the problem of temporary teachers, and the temporary teachers’ struggle committee will sit for next round of dialogue tomorrow. Two

rounds of discussions have already taken place.

The temporary teachers are on a relay hunger strike since September 20 and they have been holding sit-in protests in front of the district education offices since October 8, demanding re-appointment of the displaced temporary teachers.