Contractual teachers in the state will get a special gift from the government this Teachers’ Day. They would be entitled to pension on a par with other government employees.

Chief minister Nitish Kumar will sign a memorandum of understanding on September 5 with the Unit Trust of India (UTI), paving the way to provide pensions to contractual teachers.

On Tuesday, the state education department held a meeting with UTI officials. Education department principal secretary Amarjeet Sinha, who attended the meeting, said: “The pension schemes for contractual teachers will affect around 2.5 lakh individuals working in government schools. The scheme would be effective from January next year.”

The cabinet has already given its nod to the schemes for teachers. Education department sources said as part of the scheme, Rs 200 would be deducted from the monthly salaries of the contractual teachers and the state government would contribute Rs 200 as its share. The total sum would be deposited in the pension accounts.

The government pays Rs 7,000 per month to the trained teachers, while the untrained instructors get Rs 6,000. Persons who have passed the Teachers’ Eligibility Test conducted by the government last year get Rs 500 more.

Sources said teachers who work for 35 years till their retirement at 60 would get a pension of around Rs 11,000 after super-annuation.

The teachers are happy with the development. S. Kumar, a contractual teacher at a middle school at Gaura in Vaishali, said: “The step taken by the government is welcome. It will help teachers working in government schools and provide them with a secure future.”