Mamata to meet teachers

Mita Mukherjee, TT, Calcutta, Dec. 12: Chief minister Mamata Banerjee will address teachers, principals and vice-chancellors of all state-aided colleges and universities on January 7 at a first-of-its-kind convention.

At the programme, the chief minister is expected to discuss the challenges Bengal's education system is facing and draw up a road map.

The teachers and heads of over 500 colleges and 27 universities are expected to attend the convention. "All teachers have been asked to be present at Netaji Indoor Stadium on January 7," a source said.

Sources in many universities and colleges suspect the objective of the convention is to enlist the support of teachers for the government's higher education policies.

The majority of college and university teachers still owe allegiance to Left-backed lobbies.

"The top leaders of the teachers' lobbies are being invited individually to the convention. This shows that the programme is being held with a political motive," a leader of the CPM-controlled West Bengal College and University Teachers' Association said.

In the past, higher education minister Partha Chatterjee had attended several meetings with college and university vice-chancellors, principals and teachers.

"Those meetings hardly had the kind of impact the government was expecting. Now, the chief minister wants to herself take the responsibility of handling the problems being faced by the party in colleges and universities," a leader of the Trinamul-controlled West Bengal College and University Professors' Association said.