Grace marks for some PTTI students, courtesy high court

Updated on: Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Calcutta High Court on Tuesday directed the state government to treat those holding Primary Teachers’ Training Institute (PTTI) certificates, issued between 1998 and 2004 as special category candidates and grant them a grace of 22 marks, if they apply for jobs as primary teachers.

Justice Biswanath Somadder was hearing a petition by Tumpa Ghosh from Burdwan and others. The petitioners had submitted that the West Bengal Board of Primary Education (WBBPE) used to grant a 22 marks grace to PTTI certificate holders till the high court declared the training institutes illegal on October 1, 2008.

It was contended by the petitioners that while the court had ordered that certificates issued in 2005 and 2006 are invalid, the state government was refusing to accept certificates issued between 1998 and 2004. In fact, the WBBPE had done away with the 22 marks grace altogether. Ghosh and the others could not get jobs as primary teachers as the grace marks were not granted to them.

“We had applied for jobs as primary teachers as we were sure of the grace marks. Had we been granted 22 marks as grace, we would have certainly got through. How can the state refuse to accept our certificates when the court has only declared those issued in 2004 and 2005 as invalid,” the petitioners submitted through their counsel.

After hearing the matter, Justice Somadder directed the state to treat Ghosh and the others as ‘special category’ candidates and grant them grace as their certificates were issued before 2004. (TNN)

Grace marks for some PTTI students, courtesy high court

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