New Delhi: In a landmark decision, the Kerala High Court has overturned a directive from the Director of General Education, which had mandated that Saturdays be treated as a working day for all government and aided schools up to the 10th standard. A single bench of Justice A. Ziyad Rahman issued this ruling while disposing of a batch of writ petitions filed by various associations of school teachers and students challenging the government’s decision. Although the directive was already in effect, the court clarified that its ruling would take effect starting this coming Saturday.
The court also instructed the state government to reconsider the decision after consulting stakeholders and experts to determine the optimal number of working days. Earlier, various teachers’ organizations had openly opposed the government’s decision to increase the total number of school working days to 220. This opposition included teachers’ organizations affiliated with opposition parties and the Communist Party of India (CPI). Even the organization under the Communist Party of India (Marxist) CPI(M) conveyed its objection to the government’s decision.
The Kerala Education Act mandates 220 working days in an academic year. However, in the 2022-23 academic year, the number was only 195 days, which was later increased to 204 following a directive from Education Minister V. Sivankutty.
Although there was a directive to raise the number to 210 days this year, the committee overseeing the Quality Improvement Programme recommended maintaining it at 204 days. Teachers’ organizations also voiced objections to increasing the days to 210. Some schools, however, approached the High Court against the move to cut the number of working days. Despite a court-directed hearing on the matter, no favorable decision was reached.
While the High Court was considering a contempt of court petition against the government, the Department of General Education abruptly issued an order in early June, increasing the working days to 220. After reviewing petitions from the Congress-affiliated KPSTA and others, the court has now annulled this government decision. During the trial, the court emphasized the importance of students participating in sports and arts events, which help build personal relationships and social commitment. The significance of involvement with voluntary organizations like the NSS and NCC was also highlighted.
The court noted studies cited during the argument, which suggested that reducing the school week from five days to four in some U.S. schools improved student efficiency. It stressed the need to assess the impact of a six-day school week on students’ mental health. Out of the 45 Saturdays in an academic year, excluding the 10 second Saturdays, the government decided to make 25 out of the remaining 33 working days. However, this decision was made without consulting teachers, their organizations, educational institutions, or students, the court noted. The government should have at least considered the opinions of experts on this matter.
The court also rejected the argument that making Saturdays working days would not affect the teachers. The court further stated that although the authorities held discussions with a few teachers’ organizations, these meetings were conducted merely for formality. An overall analysis of the statutory provisions and schemes under the Right to Education Act, the Kerala Education Act, and the rules framed thereunder reveals that the decision to declare 25 Saturdays as working days was made without properly hearing the stakeholders and obtaining their views. The possibilities of implementing a system based on the working hours or instructional hours contemplated in the Right to Education Act were also not explored.
The decision was apparently made in undue haste, without considering relevant parameters and without proper consultations and hearings of stakeholders and experts. Furthermore, the Director of General Education’s decision to designate Saturdays as working days oversteps his authority, as Act 25 of the Kerala Education Rules explicitly designates 25 Saturdays as holidays. The court noted that only the state government has the power to amend this rule, and must do so through a legally established procedure.