More than 20,000 retired teachers from recognised Sanskrit schools and madrasas in Bihar are expected to protest outside the state legislature on November 29 over alleged delays in salary arrears, dearness allowance, pay-revision dues, pension benefits and leave encashment, according to the Times of India.
The decision was announced by functionaries of the Bihar Sanskrit Teachers’ Union and Bihar Madrasa Teachers Union. The unions said the affected teachers retired from 576 recognised Sanskrit schools and 1,125 madrasas since 1990 and were still waiting for various payments due to them.
The unions alleged that the state government had earmarked Rs 2,000 crore in 2023-24 to clear pending dues. They claimed the allocation lapsed after the education department issued a withdrawal order on March 30, a day before the end of the financial year. They further alleged that a similar situation occurred in 2024-25, when funds were surrendered by districts without being used for payments.
Shobhakant Jha, general secretary of the Bihar Sanskrit Teachers’ Union, and Syed Mohibbul Haq, general secretary of the Bihar Madrasa Teachers Union, said the government’s pre-audit cell had cleared bills linked to pay revisions effective from January 1986 and January 2006. According to the union representatives, however, funds for the remaining claims had not been provided in the current financial year.
The unions also referred to a government sanction of Rs 169.94 crore in December 2025 for 2,003 retired madrasa teachers. They said retired Sanskrit school teachers were not included in that allocation. The difference in coverage has become one of the issues raised by the unions ahead of the proposed protest.
Their demands include payment of arrears under the fifth pay revision and implementation of Patna High Court orders extending fifth and sixth pay-revision benefits to eligible staff of aided Sanskrit schools and madrasas. They have also sought pension benefits on the Jharkhand model, encashment of earned leave and the removal of restrictions on filling teaching vacancies.
The dispute places the administration of aided educational institutions at the centre of the issue. The claims involve payments accumulated across several pay-revision periods, while the unions’ allegations also point to gaps between budget allocation, bill clearance and actual disbursement. The reported protest is intended to press the state government to address those pending stages.
The unions have scheduled the demonstration outside the Bihar legislature for November 29. The supplied report does not include a response from the state education department or details of any fresh government decision on the pending claims.
