How a hiring scam and a court order drove thousands of Bengal's teachers into joblessness

In 2014, Prasanta Manna became the first in his family of daily wagers to become a graduate.

But even with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics, the 31-year-old from West Bengal’s Purba Medinipur district continued to struggle, working as a labourer to earn a living.

His luck turned when he cracked the 2016 West Bengal teacher recruitment test. In February 2019, he was appointed as an assistant teacher at a government school in South 24 Parganas, about 185 km from his village Badalpur.

“After I got the job, I started to breathe,” he said. “We married off my sister and built a home. I got married last year.”

For the last two weeks, however, Manna has been in despair.

On April 3, the Supreme Court struck down the appointment of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff in state-run and state-aided schools in Bengal, citing extensive fraud in the recruitment process that began in 2016.

Manna found himself without a job. “I still have a home loan of Rs 8 lakh to repay,” he said. “Besides the EMI, I need at least Rs 6,000 for medical bills for my elderly parents.”

The family’s financial condition was still precarious, he said. “My father still works as a daily wager. We only have one bigha...