Horatti slams govt move to appoint teachers as nodal officers for stray dog control

Bengaluru : Strong objections have been raised against the Karnataka government’s reported move to appoint school teachers as nodal officers to control stray dogs. Chairman of the Legislative Council Basavaraj Horatti has criticized the decision and termed it an insult to the teaching community.

In a letter addressed to Primary and Secondary Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa, Horatti expressed concern over assigning such responsibilities to teachers who are already burdened with numerous non-academic duties. He pointed out that teachers are currently engaged in several government assignments including election-related duties, census activities, caste enumeration, voter list revision and other administrative tasks.

Apart from these responsibilities, teachers are also involved in welfare programmes such as distributing milk and eggs to students under government nutrition schemes. Due to these additional tasks, Horatti said teachers are already struggling to devote sufficient time to their core responsibility of providing quality education to students.

According to reports, the state government has directed officials to appoint teachers as nodal officers to monitor and control stray dog populations in their respective areas. Reacting strongly to this proposal, Horatti said such a move sends the wrong message and appears as though the government values teachers less than stray animals.

He further stated that Karnataka is already facing a shortage of teachers in several government schools across the state. In such circumstances, assigning additional duties unrelated to education would further affect the academic environment and the quality of teaching in schools.

Horatti also pointed out that the central government is expected to conduct a nationwide census soon, in which teachers will again be required to participate. With multiple government programmes depending on teachers for implementation, the new proposal to involve them in stray dog control has been widely criticized.

In his letter, Horatti emphasized that the government should focus on strengthening the education system rather than diverting teachers into unrelated administrative roles. He warned that such decisions would negatively impact students’ learning outcomes and overall academic performance.

Calling the proposal “unreasonable and impractical,” Horatti urged the government to immediately withdraw the decision. He stressed that teachers should be allowed to concentrate on their primary duty of educating children rather than being assigned tasks unrelated to education.

The issue has triggered discussions within educational circles, with many teachers and activists expressing concern over the growing burden of non-teaching duties imposed on school staff across Karnataka.