The agitating block grant school and college teachers Wednesday wore black badges as a mark of protest to Odisha government's 'lack of response' to their demands.
Notwithstanding heavy rainfall in the state capital, the agitating teachers who are on indefinite dharna since August 16 wore black badges and stood on line for hours together in the rains demanding fulfilment of their demands.
The agitating teachers are demanding regular grant-in-aid, equal facilities as the teachers in government schools get and service conditions.
"Members of different student organisations have supported us and have joined our strike. It will continue till the state government fulfils our demands, including abolition of block grant system, full grant-in-aid and service conditions," said member of All Odisha School-College Teachers and Employees United Forum, Ramakanta Mohapatra.
Another teachers leader Golak Nayak said that the teachers will gherao residence of their respective MLAs and apprise them on the government's alleged apathy towards them.
Pressing for their demands, the teachers had boycotted both matriculation and Plus II evaluation process in April this year by staging protests before different evaluation centres.
Opposition Congress and BJP have supported the teachers agitation and asked the state government to immediately solve the issue so that normalcy returns in 1500 colleges and 2500 schools across the state.
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