In the face of continuous protests, the interim government has decided to increase the house rent allowance for teachers and staff of MPO-listed private educational institutions to 15% of their basic salary. The allowance, however, will be disbursed in two phases.
The decision was made during a meeting on Tuesday between protesting teacher leaders and Education Adviser Professor CR Abrar.
Following the meeting, the Ministry of Finance approved the 15% house rent allowance in a letter signed by Sharifunnesa, Deputy Secretary of the Regulation Wing under the Finance Division of the ministry. The letter also declared the previous approval letter issued on October 16 null and void.
According to an official of the education ministry and two teacher leaders who attended the meeting, teachers and staff will receive 7.5% of their basic salary as house rent allowance in the current fiscal year, while the remaining 7.5% will be implemented in the next fiscal year. An official notification on the matter will be issued soon.
Meanwhile, MPO-listed private school teachers and staff have been staging a hunger strike at Shahid Minar, demanding a 20% house rent allowance among three other demands. The protests have been ongoing for 10 days.