Teachers Must Clear TET for Promotions, Says SC

Hyderabad

The Supreme Court (SC) on Friday dismissed all review petitions challenging the September 2025 order making Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) mandatory for in-service teachers and extended the last date for qualification from August 31, 2027 to August 31, 2028. Teachers’ unions in Telangana have expressed disappointment over the court’s refusal to exempt teachers appointed before the TET regime came into force from this requirement.

A bench comprising Justice Divankar Datta and Justice Manmohan retained the key findings of the Anjuman Ishaat-e-Taleem Trust judgment, which required in-service teachers with more than five years of service remaining to pass TET as a condition for continuing service. and requires qualification for promotion. The court found no error in the previous decision and denied all petitions for review only after modifying the timeline for compliance. The petitions were filed by several state governments, including Telangana, teachers’ organizations and individual teachers.

Responding to the decision, Telangana State United Teachers Federation (TSUTF) president Chava Ravi and general secretary A. Venkat said the extension did not address the fundamental issue raised by teachers. “It is regrettable that TET exemption was denied to in-service teachers. The National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) and the state government have clearly stated that TET is not compulsory for teachers who have been in service for the last 15 years. Despite this, the exemption was denied.” they said.

Teacher organizations had approached the Supreme Court seeking protection for teachers appointed before August 23, 2010, when NCTE’s notification stipulating TET came into effect.

TSUTF argued that many teachers entered service under recruitment rules that did not require TET and spent 15 to 30 years in classrooms. While unions estimated that around 45,000 teachers in Telangana may be affected, national organizations claimed that hundreds of thousands of teachers appointed before 2010 in various states fell under the purview of the decision.

The high court rejected the argument that the requirement amounted to a retroactive change of terms of service. Referring to Article 23 of the Right to Education Act, the bench said the law provides for teachers already in service to acquire minimum qualifications and the legal scheme does not invalidate previous appointments.

Addressing concerns about many teachers losing their jobs, the court said that education standards cannot be compromised. The Board, which increased the adaptation period from two to three years by granting additional time in accordance with Article 142 of the Constitution, instructed the qualification to be achieved by August 31, 2028. He also said that states should conduct TET periodically and preferably twice a year.

While the court made it clear that “no further prayer for extension of time will be made”, TSUTF said the Center should amend Section 23 of the Right to Education Act in Parliament to protect teachers appointed before the TET notification.