Cuttack, Sept. 18: Orissa High Court has fixed the onus on the state government "to see at any cost that the process of education for the children is not affected" due to teachers' strike across the state.

The teachers of recognised private schools, managed by their respective managing committees and receiving grant-in-aid in the shape of block grant effect from January 1, 2004, have been on strike since August 10. They are demanding grant-in-aid to get salaries on a par with those in government schools.

Markatnagar resident Babaji Sahoo, 62, filed a PIL, seeking an order declaring the ongoing teachers' strike illegal on the ground that infringed the fundamental right (Right to Education) of students.

The PIL came up on Wednesday when the lawyers had abstained from court work in support of the agitation by the Odisha Administrative Tribunal.

While the petitioner appeared in person, advocate-general Surya Prasad Mishra submitted that the striking teachers were already receiving 100 per cent block grant and they were directly under the managing committees' control.

Taking note of the advocate general's submission, the division bench of Chief Justice D.H. Waghela and Justice Biswanath Rath said the dispute between the teachers and the state should be "amicably settled". "Teachers henceforth should not continue on strike," the Chief Justice observed.

However, the Chief Justice did not pass any order and disposed of the PIL, expressing satisfaction that the state government was taking all possible steps.

The advocate-general stated before the court that if the teachers continued with their strike, stringent action would be taken by way of no pay for the period they had not worked and withdrawal of grant-in-aid from their respective schools.

The advocate-general also stated that the state government had taken steps to relocate the students studying in the schools of the striking teachers in nearby schools.

According to the note submitted by the advocate-general, 2099 grant-in-aid secondary schools in the state have been closed as 15,702 teachers in these schools are on cease work, "causing irreparable loss for the students".