Hyderabad: In order to tighten the attendance system for both teachers and students, biometric attendance system was proposed by the Telangana government in 2016, but it has not seen the light of day till date though it was supposed to start functioning this academic year. This system basically aims at improving the quality of education by cutting down the irregularity of teachers and students. But there are also voices saying that just having a biometric system alone, without having the basic amenities in school, like supervising staff, benches, blackboards and toilets, cannot improve the quality of education. Experts also say that some teachers have complained against this system as it compels them to be on time for classes. In many rural government schools, teachers come only at 11 am although school starts at 9 am, due to the lack of proper transportation facilities.
Mr Chava Ravi of United Teachers Federation (UTF) said, “It was decided in 2016 to have this biometric system for at least 25 per cent of schools in all districts. But due to reasons like non-allocation of budget and tenders not being called for have held it back. So it stopped in the initial stages itself. This year, the biometric system is going to be implemented in twelve districts, tenders have also been called for and teachers are being trained regarding the usage of the equipment. This will help curb irregularities of teachers and students.”
He added, “Now the government has taken a decision to install biometric systems in twelve districts benefitting 9,000 schools. These should have been installed by now and implemented by the beginning of this academic year. However, it is still in process. The installation process itself has not started. There were misconceptions and unnecessary fears among teachers that they were being targetted with this biometric system. But that is not the case and this method would ensure that everyone is regular and gets the best out of the time we have.”
There are voices which say that biometric system implementation would put both students and teachers at risk. Mr N. Narayana, an education expert, said, “Midday meals might get affected with the biometric system, as according to rules, meals are cooked based on the attendance registered. There are thousands of schools, in nooks and corners of the state, and many students find it difficult to come to school on time. If they are not registered, then they will lose their meals. Also for teachers, if there is any technical issue in the machine, they will be asked to go to the Gram Panchayat and register their attendance and come back, like it happened in West Godavari. That is again a waste of time.”
Mr Muthyala Ravinder, vice president TPTF, said, “The biometric system might only improve attendance but without manual supervision, how can we depend on technology alone? There are many supervisory posts that are lying vacant due to lack of promotions.”
As a result, existing teachers are getting burdened at the ground level. Many positions of DEO, MEO and HMs are lying vacant and supervision is lacking. Under these circumstances, only installing biometric systems might not improve the quality, as both manpower and machine power should go hand in hand.“
He added, “Since the formation of the state, no new teachers have been recruited. How can we improve the quality without having manpower?”
