SRINAGAR: As vocational trainers in Jammu and Kashmir continued their protest for the ninth consecutive day on Friday, a vocational trainer from Kupwara, Bashir Ahmad Gojri, died after suffering a cardiac arrest.
Mohammad Asif, a vocational trainer said that Gojri was working at a Government High School in Kupwara and had been under considerable stress and frustration over the uncertainty surrounding the future of vocational trainers.
“Bashir Sahib had an elderly mother at home who was dependent on medicines. He leaves behind three very young children, two daughters and a son and a sister who is yet to be married. The family was dependent on his income,” Asif said at the protest site at Polo Ground, Srinagar.
He said colleagues received the news on Thursday late evening that Gojri had suffered a cardiac arrest.
Asif said the prolonged uncertainty over employment had been a source of worry for vocational trainers and their families, adding that Gojri’s death had come at a time when trainers were pressing the government to address their long-pending concerns.
The trainers continued their protest at Polo Ground on Friday, demanding job security, a comprehensive service and employment policy and an end to the involvement of private outsourcing companies in vocational education.
The core issue behind the agitation is the employment arrangement under which vocational trainers working in government schools are engaged through Vocational Training Providers (VTPs), rather than through a direct and clearly defined government employment framework.
Notably, trainers have been seeking an end to the outsourcing system, continuity of their services and a formal policy governing their employment. The trainers say they have been providing vocational education in government schools for years but continue to face uncertainty over their jobs, service conditions and future.
“We demand to include a comprehensive job policy, protection and continuity of services, resolution of service-related concerns and removal of the private VTP arrangement,” said a protesting trainer.
Another protesting trainer, Jeelani, said the prolonged uncertainty had affected vocational trainers and their families. “We have families to support and responsibilities at home. After over 11 years of service, we want clarity about our jobs and our future,” he said.
The trainers said they have repeatedly approached the authorities with their demands and are seeking a concrete policy rather than continued uncertainty.
It is important to mention here that, the vocational education programme was introduced in government schools in J&K under the Samagra Shiksha framework in 2016, with implementation involving private Vocational Training Providers. Trainers have since repeatedly raised concerns over the employment structure and sought a direct and stable framework for their services. (KNO)
