Team Goemkarponn
CANACONA: Tension gripped Ziltawadi–Gaondongrim on Monday morning as students and parents of the Government Primary School launched a protest and boycotted classes after a sudden transfer of their teacher.
Around 26 students of GPS Ziltawadi refused to enter their classrooms after the morning assembly, instead sitting outside the school in protest. Parents soon joined them, expressing solidarity and demanding immediate cancellation of the transfer order.
PTA Chairman Pradeep Gaunkar, backed by the majority of parents, appealed to Chief Minister and Education Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant to revoke the transfer within 24 hours, warning that the boycott would continue until the teacher is reinstated.
Students said the transferred teacher had been actively preparing them for the school gathering, organising activities, and even planning a school picnic. “The transfer came without rhyme or reason,” one child said.
Parents highlighted that the teacher had played a crucial role in revitalising the school, which once faced closure due to low enrolment. “At one point, only 7–8 students attended. This teacher brought in more admissions and saved the school from shutting down,” Gaunkar said, adding that the school is now growing and attracting students from surrounding areas.
Parents questioned the timing of the transfer, calling it suspicious as it happened a day before the ZP election model code of conduct came into force and in the middle of the academic year, even as students were preparing for their annual gathering. Several suggested the move may be linked to political interference.
“We don’t know who transferred the teacher, but until the order is cancelled, our children will not attend classes,” Gaunkar declared. Other parents echoed similar concerns, noting that children were emotionally attached to the teacher and preferred her over others.
With the election code now in force, the PTA has submitted a formal complaint to the Returning Officers of Poinguinim (23) and Khola (22) and informed Canacona Police. Parents also stated that the ADEI–Canacona has been orally notified of the ongoing boycott.
The parents have made it clear: unless the transfer is revoked within 24 hours, the school boycott will continue.
