The Arunachal Pradesh Teacher Educators’ Association (APTEA) has temporarily suspended its indefinite pen-down strike after receiving a written assurance from the Arunachal Pradesh government that employees of the 11 District Institutes of Education and Training (DIETs) will receive their monthly salaries on the same timeline as other regular state government employees. The government has also promised to explore salary disbursement through the state exchequer from the next financial year, subject to approval from the concerned departments.

While welcoming the assurance, APTEA clarified that its core demand for regular and timely salary payments remains unresolved, noting that June salaries are still unpaid. The association stated that it will closely monitor the implementation of the government’s promise and warned that it may resume its protest if salary delays or irregularities continue.

The association started an indefinite pen-down strike from 9 July after the government failed to provide a written assurance regarding the resolution of irregular salary payments. APTEA teacher educators have faced irregular salary payments since the 2019-20 financial year and want an end to this uncertainty by seeking the fixation of monthly salaries to ensure regular and timely payments, prompting the protest.
It remains to be seen whether the government will actually act on its assurance or wait until the next protest. However, if it wants to be serious about the welfare of its own employees and their families, it is essential to ensure that they are paid on time and that the work environment is made less stressful.