Thousands of teachers career at risk over Maha TET decision

By Mehboob Inamdar

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Thousands of teachers working in primary schools were worried about their future as they will be rendered jobless if they don’t qualify Maharashtra Teachers Eligibility Test (Maha TET).

It may be noted that the State Government started implementing the eligibility examination for the recruitment of teachers since February 13, 2013. So, it is mandatory for aspirants for teaching in primary schools (classes 1 to 8) to pass the TET. There was no eligibility test for those who joined the service in February 2013.

However, the Supreme Court delivered a judgment on September 1, 2025, stating that TET is compulsory for those who joined the teaching service even before that; otherwise, the teachers will be terminated from the services.

Thousands of teachers who joined the primary schools before 2013 worried about their future as they will have to qualify the examination to prove their eligibility. According to sources, 37,000 teachers will have to attempt the Maha TET now to remain in the teaching service. There are 6,500 teachers in the district who don’t have TET.

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Raju Dabhade (name changed), an in-service teacher, said that the State Government gave an exemption for the eligibility test to those who joined the service before 2023. “This decision will have an impact on the primary and secondary education system of the entire country. Many will lose their jobs,” he said.

Ganesh Pawar, State Executive president of Shikshak Parishad, said that the Government should not implement the law with retrospective effect and it should also file a review petition in the court and bring the facts to light.

Akhil Bharatiya Urdu Shikshak Sangh founder Sajid Nisar Ahmed said that it was necessary to review the September 1, 2025 decision of the SC and to discuss the legal aspects in detail by setting up a larger bench. He said that the matter is related to the future of 50 lakh teachers across the country.

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Teachers u

Teachers' organisations across the State requested the Government to file a review petition against the recent SC order making TET for in-service teachers. Shikshak Parishad, Shikshak Sena, Shikshak Bharati, Maharashtra Shikshak Sangh, Pragati Shikshak Sangh and others pressed for the issue.

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Larger bench to hear case

The SC, while giving an important decision regarding the TET, admitted that there are some flaws in the decision of September 1, 2025, which need to be discussed in detail in the larger bench on legal aspects. The larger bench of the Supreme Court will now hear in detail the petitions filed against making TET mandatory for teachers teaching from class 1 to 8 in government schools across the country.