Gaya: Sixty-five-year-old Manorama Pandey, a retired government school teacher from Bodh Gaya, is battling a serious brain ailment while fighting an equally exhausting bureaucratic struggle. Scheduled for brain surgery in Vellore on March 14, 2026, she has been forced to take high-interest loans after failing to receive her pension and long-pending dues even 10 years after retirement.
Manorama retired in 2020 from a primary school in Bodh Gaya but is yet to receive her pension, earned leave payments pending since 2011, and salary arrears. She alleges her file was deliberately withheld at the District Education Office because she refused to pay a bribe.
“I am unwell. If I speak too much, I feel severe tingling in my head. My husband has visited the office several times, but no one listens,” she said. “This is my own hard-earned money, yet I am being forced to borrow for surgery.”
The issue surfaced during a public hearing held in Gaya, where several retired teachers narrated similar ordeals. Another retired teacher, Prahlad Prasad Sinha of Daudnagar, Aurangabad, said he has been chasing his revised pay-scale arrears for 30 years.
“I retired in 2005, but my dues from 1997 are still unpaid. I must have worn out 50 pairs of slippers and spent ₹25,000 just traveling. At 75, how much more can I run?” he told officials.
The complaints drew a sharp response from Shashank Shubhankar, who publicly reprimanded officials of the District Education Office.
“If teachers themselves are harassed, how will children get quality education?” he asked, directing strict action against negligent staff, including salary stoppage, suspensions, and departmental proceedings.
Taking immediate cognisance, the District Magistrate ordered a vigilance inquiry, seeking a report within 15 days. During the hearing, action was taken against three clerks for negligence. Salaries of two clerks were stopped, while another official was transferred to a remote block and faced departmental proceedings.
“There is large-scale corruption in the education office. No file moves without money,” alleged headmaster Shashi Ranjan Patel, echoing complaints made by multiple teachers.
District officials were instructed to submit timelines for resolving all pending cases. “Along with stopping salaries, explanations have been sought from responsible officers,” the District Magistrate said, warning that continued negligence would invite harsher action.
For Manorama Pandey, however, time is running out—as she waits for both justice and life-saving surgery.
