National Council for Teacher Education (Amendment) Act, 20111.
| [Act 18 of 2011, Repealed by Act 23 of 2016*] | [12th October, 2011] |
An Act to amend the National Council for Teacher Education Act, 1993
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Sixty-second Year of the Republic of India as follows-
1. Received the assent of the President on October 12, 2011 and published in the Gazette of India, Extra., Part II, Section 1, dated 13th October, 2011, pp. 1–3, No. 24
* Ed.: Act 18 of 2011 repealed by Act 23 of 2016, S. 2 & Sch. I. See also S. 4 of the Repealing and Amending Act, 2016:
"4. Savings.- The repeal by this Act of any enactment shall not affect any other enactment in which the repealed enactment has been applied, incorporated or referred to;
and this Act shall not affect the validity, invalidity, effect or consequences of anything already done or suffered, or any right, title, obligation or liability already acquired, accrued or incurred, or any remedy or proceeding in respect thereof, or any release or discharge of or from any debt, penalty, obligation, liability, claim or demand, or any indemnity already granted, or the proof of any past act or thing;
nor shall this Act affect any principle or rule of law, or established jurisdiction, form or course of pleading, practice or procedure, or existing usage, custom, privilege, restriction, exemption, office or appointment, notwithstanding that the same respectively may have been in any manner affirmed or recognised or derived by, in or from any enactment hereby repealed;
nor shall the repeal by this Act of any enactment revive or restore any jurisdiction, office, custom, liability, right, title, privilege, restriction, exemption, usage, practice, procedure or other matter or thing not now existing or in force."
Prefatory Note-Statement of Objects and Reasons.-The National Council for Teacher Education Act, 1993 has been enacted to provide for the establishment of a National Council for Teacher Education with a view to achieving planned and co-ordinated development of teacher education system in the country and the regulation and proper maintenance of norms and standards in the said system and for matters connected therewith.
2. Clause (d) of Section 12 of the aforesaid Act empowers the Council to lay down guidelines in respect of minimum qualifications for a person to be employed as a teacher in schools or in recognised institutions. The object of this provision is to ensure quality of teachers, and thereby teaching in schools uniformly across the country. In pursuance of this provision, the Council has framed regulations which are binding on all State Governments in the matter of appointment of school teachers.
3. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Basic Education Board, U.P. v. Upendra Rai, (2008) 3 SCC 432
, has held that the Act does not deal with educational institutions like primary schools, etc. Hence, the qualifications for appointment as teacher in the ordinary educational institutions like the primary schools cannot be prescribed under the aforesaid Act, and the essential qualifications are prescribed by the local Acts and rules in each State.4. The purpose of regulating the teacher education system is to ensure quality of teachers in the education system. In view of the aforesaid judgment, the minimum qualification for appointment of teachers in schools laid down by the Council has become redundant.
5. In the circumstances, it is considered necessary to amend the Act to clarify that the Act applies to schools, school teachers and the minimum qualifications for appointment of schools teachers, so as to have uniform standards of teaching in schools in the country.
6. The Bill seeks to achieve the above objects.
1. Short title and commencement.-(1) This Act may be called the National Council for Teacher Education (Amendment) Act, 2011.
(2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.
2. Amendment of long title.-In the National Council for Teacher Education Act, 1993 (73 of 1993) (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act), in the long title, after the words "in the teacher education system", the words "including qualifications of school teachers" shall be inserted.
3. Amendment of Section 1.-In Section 1 of the principal Act, after sub-section (3), the following sub-section shall be inserted, namely-
"(4) Save as otherwise provided in this Act, the provisions of this Act shall apply to-
(a) institutions;
(b) students and teachers of the institutions;
(c) schools imparting pre-primary, primary, upper primary, secondary or senior secondary education and colleges providing senior secondary or intermediate education irrespective of the fact, by whatever names they may be called; and
(d) teachers for schools and colleges referred to in clause (c).".
4. Amendment of Section 2.-In Section 2 of the principal Act-
(i) after clause (e), the following clauses shall be inserted, namely-
‘(ea) "local authority" means a Municipal Corporation, Municipal Committee, Municipal Council, Zila Parishad, District Board or Nagar Panchayat or Panchayat, or other authority (by whatever name called), legally entitled to, or entrusted by the Government with the control or management of a municipal or local fund;’;
(ii) after clause (k), the following clause shall be inserted, namely-
‘(ka) "school" means any recognised school imparting pre-primary, primary, upper primary, secondary or senior secondary education, or a college imparting senior secondary education, and includes-
(i) a school established, owned and controlled by the Central Government, or the State Government or a local authority;
(ii) a school receiving aid or grants to meet whole or part of its expenses from the Central Government, the State Government or a local authority;
(iii) a school not receiving any aid or grants to meet whole or part of its expenses from the Central Government, the State Government or a local authority;’.
5. Amendment of Section 12.-In Section 12 of the principal Act, in clause (d), the words "in school or" shall be omitted.
6. Insertion of new Section 12-A.-After Section 12 of the principal Act, the following section shall be inserted, namely-
"12-A. Power of Council to determine minimum standards of education of school teachers.-For the purpose of maintaining standards of education in schools, the Council may, by regulations, determine the qualifications of persons for being recruited as teachers in any pre-primary, primary, upper primary, secondary, senior secondary or intermediate school or college, by whatever name called, established, run, aided or recognised by the Central Government or a State Government or a local or other authority:
Provided that nothing in this section shall adversely affect the continuance of any person recruited in any pre-primary, primary, upper primary, secondary, senior secondary or intermediate schools or colleges, under any rule, regulation or order made by the Central Government, a State Government, a local or other authority, immediately before the commencement of the National Council for Teacher Education (Amendment) Act, 2011 solely on the ground of non-fulfilment of such qualifications as may be specified by the Council:
Provided further that the minimum qualifications of a teacher referred to in the first proviso shall be acquired within the period specified in this Act or under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 (35 of 2009).".
7. Amendment of Section 32.-In Section 32 of the principal Act, in sub-section (2), after clause (d), the following clause shall be inserted, namely-
"(dd) the qualifications of teachers under Section 12-A;".