Supreme Court extends TET deadline for in-service teachers

The Supreme Court extended the deadline for in-service teachers to qualify in the TET till August 31, 2028, while rejecting exemption for teachers appointed before August 23, 2010. The court also directed States to conduct TET examinations at least twice a year.

Hyderabad: The Supreme Court on Friday extended the deadline for in-service teachers to qualify in the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) from two years to three years. With this extension, in-service teachers have to qualify in the TET by August 31, 2028. However, the court rejected the plea seeking TET exemption for teachers appointed before August 23, 2010.

The Supreme Court’s order came in response to review petitions filed by the School Teachers’ Federation of India (STFI) and several other teachers’ associations, along with multiple State governments, including Telangana, challenging the court’s earlier judgment dated September 1, 2024.

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All State governments were instructed to conduct the TET examination frequently, at least once every six months, to provide more opportunities for teachers.

Reacting to the order, TS UTF State president Chava Ravi and general secretary A Venkat expressed disappointment over the court’s refusal to grant exemption to in-service teachers.

“For the past 15 years, both the NCTE and the State government have clearly maintained that TET is not required for teachers who have been in service for many years. Ignoring this position and denying exemption is unfortunate,” they said.

They urged the Central government to intervene and amend Section 23 of the Right to Education Act in Parliament to provide legal protection to the services of working teachers.