The negotiations between Federal Government College Teacher Association (FGTA) and Capital Administrative and Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) have hit snags on Saturday after which the teachers announced protest from tomorrow (Monday).

According to information, a meeting between FDE DG Atif Kiyani, Senator Sayeda and FGCTA was held in the hall of Federal Government College for Women, F-7/2, and ended without any consensus.

FDE DG, on the occasion, informed teachers that the file regarding their upgradation has been sent to finance division and would soon get approval so there was no need to continue protest demonstrations.

Meanwhile, Senator Sayeda also asked teachers to delay their protest demonstration for a week but the FGCTA did not agree to her. The officials of FGCTA were of the opinion that they have already waited for a long time for their demands to be met but all their tolerance was in vein.

The FGCTA President Zahid Ali Shah after a short discussion with other officials announced the protest demonstration on 3rd October in front of the National Press Club (NPC).

According to information this would be a fourth phase of protest by the teachers as in first phase teachers have tied up black bands on their arms, in second phase they have stopped taking last two classes of the day while in third phase they only took two initial periods and freed students afterwards.

The FGCTA announced that if their demands were not met until Monday, they would hold a protest demonstration in front of Parliament House on 5th October and would mark World teachers day as black day.

According to information, teachers had been struggling and raising voice for upgradation ever since they were assured by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on World Teachers Day, on October 5, 2006. Later, the current Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani again reiterated his pledge on November 8, 2010 in an extraordinary gathering specially called for in Islamabad.

However, the demands of the teachers have not been taken seriously by any government. FGCTA Joint Secretary (JS) Tahir Mahmood said that dozens of FDE teachers of 16 grades were waiting for promotions for last 20 years, but nothing has been done so far to promote them. Prime minister has announced the one scale upgradation of teachers last year, but teachers are still waiting for their due right, he said.

He said that they were aware of the academic loss of students in case of boycotts and protest and that was why they were trying to resolve the matter peacefully. We have given enough time to the authorities to implement what has been announced by the prime minister, but they didn t appear serious in this regard, he said.

He said that they would recover the academic loss of the students once their demands are met. We would take extra classes to cover the syllabus of students. It has become inevitable for us to take extreme step of boycotting classes to press authorities to meet our demands, he said.

He vowed that the teachers will not end their campaign until their demands are met. He said that college teachers have been demanding one-step upgradation like university teachers that was announced in 2006 by the then prime minister Shaukat Aziz. The decision was implemented in universities, but not implemented in colleges. Now colleges teachers are appointed in grade 17 and universities teachers in grade 18.

It is also pertinent to mention here that the administration of various colleges was trying to wake the movement and the principals have been asked not to allow the teachers to continue their protests.

The teachers alleged that they have been misguided by the FDE DG Atif Kiyani when he assured teachers that their upgradation has been approved by the Establishment Division and showed them a letter, but the upgradation was never mentioned in the letter rather the letter informed that the Establishment Division has nothing to do with that upgradation.The news.