GPS move to ensure Kalaburagi teachers don't bunk classes

The Kalaburagi North Block Education Officer (BEO) seems to have found a surefire way of disciplining government school teachers amid complaints of absenteeism.

Teachers of 207 government schools under his purview have been instructed to share their GPS (Global Positioning System) locations through WhatsApp to confirm their presence during the morning prayers and also after the school closes.

Though not compulsory, the disciplinary measure has been well-received by teachers and parents alike.

The move by BEO Veeranna Bommanalli follows several complaints about teachers bunking classes and taking unauthorised leaves, especially in remote areas. The problem is more pronounced in the schools of Kamalapur taluk.

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Though the government had announced Kamalapur as a new taluk a few years ago, a full-fledged block education office was not established. This made it difficult for education officials to visit schools in remote areas.

"Many government schools are situated almost 70 km away from the headquarters and it is difficult to monitor teachers. Therefore, we have resorted to the GPS measure which has received a good response," BEO Bommanalli said.

The schools in Kamalapur are facing a shortage of teachers just like the other government schools in the Kalyana Karnataka region. Parents say schools in remote areas are on the verge of closure as children are taking admission in private schools. They also complain that the education standards have not improved despite crores of rupees being spent on infrastructure. They have sought a separate BEO office for the taluk to address these issues.

"There are 226 students in the government school in our village, but only four teachers. Earlier, the teachers used to skip classes by leaving the work to guest teachers. But the strict measures adopted now have prompted them to turn up," said Sanjeev Kumar Rathod, a resident of Maramanchi tanda.

Kannur government higher primary school teacher Sangamesh Kopparad said that most of the villages and tandas lack adequate bus services. Now, they are hiring cruisers and other vehicles to travel to their respective schools every day, he said.

Anand Prakash Meena, Additional Commissioner for School Education, Kalyana Karnataka, said the department has received several complaints about teachers remaining absent, and the GPS step is a good idea to discipline them. He said he would study the pros and cons before extending it to all government schools.