Concerned Youths of Hills, a social organisation raising youth-based issues in the hills, on Tuesday demanded immediate implementation of the School Service Commission in the hills.

Their demand to recruit teachers through the SSC in the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) area came a day after Calcutta High Court proposed to freeze the salaries of 313 hill teachers from April.

Justice Biswajit Basu, on Monday, while hearing a petition challenging the appointment of 313 teachers, proposed stopping the salaries of the teachers from April.

In 2019, the jobs of these 313 teachers who were teaching as "volunteers” in various schools had been regularised.

Sources said the judge pointed out that many of the 313 teachers did not have the basic BEd degree needed to teach in high and secondary schools.

“The judge also pointed out that the state government had not justified the appointments as it has not stated whether financial and other approvals were given to fill up the posts,” said a source.

The court also noted that the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) had in 2010 issued an order stating that hill schools and the managing committees should not further appoint volunteer teachers unless a written consent was given by the hill body.

“The judge, however, noted that most of the 313 voluntary teachers were appointed after 2010,” said a source.

The DGHC was replaced by the GTA in 2012.

Citing procedural lapses in the recruitment, the judge “proposed” freezing salaries of the 313 teachers from April.

The GTA sought time to reply to the proposal. The court has asked the GTA and the state government to respond to its proposal on freezing the teachers' salaries during the next hearing on Thursday.

“The court also reminded the GTA and state government that the court had also passed an injunction on October 11, 2023, stating that no fresh teacher appointment should be made by the hill body until further orders,” the source added.

Members of the Concerned Youths of Hills pointed out that the SSC had been defunct in Darjeeling since 2003 following which the hill body has been regularising voluntary teachers.

“We will start a poster campaign on this issue soon. We also plan to meet the education minister, the SSC chairperson and other competent authorities and raise our demand,” said Kundan Mukhia, a member of the organisation.