Bhubaneswar: After the Supreme Court made the Teachers’ Eligibility Test (TET) mandatory for both teacher appointments and promotions, the Odisha Government is preparing to issue fresh guidelines in line with the directive.

School and Mass Education Minister  said on Tuesday, “Since the apex court has ruled that qualifying the TET is mandatory for aspiring teachers as well as in-service teachers seeking promotions, our department will review the order and take decisions keeping teachers’ interests in mind. We will also examine the measures being taken by other states for implementing the directive.”

He further noted, “Many teachers are already serving in Odisha without qualifying the Odisha Teachers’ Eligibility Test (OTET), as no such system existed earlier for recruitment. Following the Supreme Court’s verdict, the department will deliberate on the steps required in this regard.”

On Monday, a bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and Augustine George Masih ruled that clearing the TET is a must for recruitment and promotion of teachers. Teachers with more than five years left for retirement must qualify the test within two years to continue in service; otherwise, they may opt for voluntary or compulsory retirement with terminal benefits.

However, teachers with less than five years of service remaining have been exempted from the TET requirement. But such teachers will not be eligible for promotion.

The verdict came while hearing multiple petitions from Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, which raised questions about whether the TET should be compulsory for teaching services.