A Visionary Teacher: Mrignayani Slathia

Mrignayani Slathia is a government teacher of Jammu Kashmir, woman wing president, and head of All Teachers Association J&K. She is a visionary teacher. They say, ‘A teacher affects eternity: he can never tell where his influence will stop because teaching is the one profession that creates all other professions.’ But are all teachers aware of the fact? Do they care to fulfill society’s expectations? Do they realize how grave their profession is? I don’t think so. Teaching has become a comfortable job as there are no long working hours schedules and many leaves to take. 

The scenario is worse in India’s government schools, where teachers sit in their comfort zones and let authorities ruin everything. This attitude has affected the government school’s reputation negatively. Due to these impacts, they are considered schools for poor kids. But what led to it? Is it only teachers or something else that contributes to the downfall of the department? 

To throw light on this subject, let’s know her story. She is trying to evoke confidence in government school teachers. 

Mrignayani Slathia – My Story

I’m Mrignayani Slathia. I was born and raised in Jammu & Kashmir. I always wanted to serve as a government teacher, but I belonged to a political family, and my parents have left the government jobs because it didn’t satisfy them. At the same time, I was appointed as General Line Teacher by the Service Selection Board in 2002. They weren’t in support of my job. They said, ‘What will you do there? We come from an opposition political party, and you will have to face adverse circumstances and discrimination like us. So why would you want to do it?’ 

I didn’t care about the criticism and somehow convinced my family to pursue my dream. In the end, they allowed me to continue, but they said it wasn’t going to be easy for you. At that time, I didn’t know the system was utterly broken, especially for women employees.

I joined the job, and then I realized that the authority is at fault more than teachers. The worst part of the entire work is that teachers accept whatever they are given. They don’t raise their voice against injustice, even if authority or administration blames them for not working correctly.

If any organization tries to exhibit an accurate picture, then they are snubbed by the higher authorities. There was a dire need for an honest and dedicated authority to find the loopholes and fix them. It is the point from where my journey started. My mission was to form a healthy association that fights against injustice and works to better schools and teachers. 

In this system, women employees are treated far worse than men. There are no organizations to support their core issues. Either they are forced to follow the footsteps of so-called self-styled leaders, or they are told to follow instructions given by male leaders. Such as they are paid less, they are expected to work more.

If someone wants to manage their transfer, then women employees are targeted. It’s a very complex system. The government appoints highly qualified teachers, and they pay well. Still, the system is wrongly wired, and the blame comes from the teacher’s head. They say, ‘It’s you who is not working properly.’ 

But it’s not true. We do work. I agree that we lack infrastructure and advanced technology, but that’s in the authority’s hands. Teachers are nowhere to be blamed in this area.

So I wanted to boost the image of government teachers, and I wished to tell others that we do work hard. To combat this issue, I created an organization after collaborating with like-minded teachers. We named it All Teachers Association J&K. The organization solely works for the welfare of students and teachers. 

Visionary Teacher: Mrignayani Slathia

To start with, we motivated teachers to teach missionary students, take things forward on social media, and spread awareness through videos. On some points, I was successful in reinstalling confidence in many teachers. They began to support me. 

We fought over the issues of online transfer policies and promotions. We pulled out teachers from the office area and directed them back to teaching. Officers attempted to shield their favorite teachers by misusing their power but failed miserably. The administration tried their best to find faults in my work, but there was nothing that they could find against me. I didn’t leave a stone unturned to make things correct.

Recently, in corona times, teachers worked as corona warriors. They did everything from testing patients to surveys. They were placed in quarantine centers, and some of them even lost their lives, but no one respected them for their work. Still, teachers supported them without complaining about it. But the administration ignored them like anything. While working, we didn’t receive ppt kits and enough protection during the lockdown. Those teachers who lost their lives while serving their families are still fighting to get compensation from the government. But nothing has been given yet.

So our organization printed certificates to acknowledge their work. We honored the teaching faculty serving as corona warriors with a Certificate of Appreciation. At the same time, we appealed to the administration not to take the teaching community for granted.
When the officials noticed our work, they also followed the trail and rewarded corona warriors. Before this, they didn’t care to appreciate their efforts. They have always been unfair with teachers, and this is where I wish to work. I know I can’t bring huge change alone. I’ll need support to make it happen.

But I’d still love to try and fight against the system. Because I firmly believe that helping students find a purpose to move further in life is one of the noblest aspects of teaching. But how can I do it when I’m supporting injustice and corruption? How will I teach them to be honest about their jobs and to work hard for their goals? When I’m not following my advice. So I’ll have to walk on this path if I want them to learn it from me. 

Last but not least, I want to invite teachers throughout the country to join us in our missionary work. I want to tell all teachers to please work for the welfare of students and their self-respect as well. You are not less deserving. You do work hard, so don’t let them blame your head. Let’s fight against this injustice together.

At last, do follow Sir APJ Abdul Kalam’s advice ‘If you salute your profession, you need not salute anyone, but if you pollute your profession, you’ll have to salute everyone.’

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