Bihar Students To Go On Hunger Strike From August 18 Over Education Demands

Students in Bihar have announced plans to begin an indefinite hunger strike from August 18, demanding the resignation of Education Minister Mithilesh Tiwari and the release of the notification for the fourth Teacher Recruitment Exam (TRE 4). The decision was taken at a meeting of students preparing for various competitive examinations in Patna on Thursday. Student leader Dilip said the protest would begin at Gardanibagh and would also raise concerns over alleged irregularities and delays in other recruitment examinations.

The students have been seeking the TRE 4 notification for several months and had previously staged protests when Tiwari assumed charge as Education Minister. Dilip alleged that the minister had earlier indicated that the notification would be issued in July, but the deadline passed without its release. With August now underway and the notification still pending, the students have decided to intensify their protest through an indefinite hunger strike.

Dilip said the students would continue the hunger strike at Gardanibagh if their demands are not addressed within five days of its commencement. He also warned that the protesters would march towards the Bihar Legislative Assembly while the hunger strike continued at the protest site. The students have called for recruitment against all vacant teaching posts and have demanded that TRE 4 be conducted through a single-stage examination.

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Their broader demands include strict implementation of domicile policies, removal of contractual service weightage in Bihar Staff Selection Commission recruitments and early conduct of the Assistant Education Development Officer examination. Students have also sought faster recruitment of librarians and greater transparency in competitive examinations, including the release of answer keys and provision of carbon copies of answer sheets to candidates.

The development comes amid reports that the Education Department has sent a requisition to the Bihar Public Service Commission for recruitment to 32,388 teaching posts. The reported vacancies include 3,847 posts for Classes 1 to 5, 8,563 for Classes 6 to 8, 3,877 for Classes 9 to 10 and 16,101 for Classes 11 to 12. Students have also demanded that the Education Department send the necessary requisitions to the BPSC without further delay.

Earlier recruitment plans reportedly covered 10,778 posts for Classes 1 to 5, 8,583 for Classes 6 to 8, 9,082 for Classes 9 to 10 and 16,774 for Classes 11 to 12. Reports indicate that the State Teacher Eligibility Test is scheduled to be conducted before TRE 4, raising concerns among students about a further delay in the recruitment process. The planned August 18 protest is therefore expected to intensify pressure on the Bihar government to clarify the recruitment timeline and address the students’ demands.

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