Govt issues guidelines on collecting teachers' salaries during shutdown

The government has issued guidelines for teachers of schools whose management committees (SMC) ran their terms during the ongoing coronavirus shutdown to collect their salaries and allowances.

The disbursement of the salaries can now be authorised by the countersignatures of the relevant Upazila Nirbahi Officers and deputy commissioners, according to the education board.

Typically, the signature of the management committee's head is required for teachers to pick up their wages, said Prof Md Ziaul Huq, chief of the Inter-Education Board's Coordination Sub-committee.

"Under the current circumstances, the terms of many management committees have ended which is why these orders were issued to the heads of educational institutions," he told bdnews24.com.

Bangladesh reported its first cases of the novel coronavirus infection on Mar 8. The disease has since sickened more than 20,000 people and left 298 others dead.

The rampant outbreak of the coronavirus prompted the government to enforce a nationwide shutdown of offices and workplaces from Mar 26. Schools and other educational institutions across the country have remained closed since Mar 17.