PATNA, June 24 -- With the time running out for appointment of teachers in 211 new degree colleges, the ambit has been widened to cover class 9-12 teachers fulfilling required eligibility criteria and may be widened further. The move of Bihar education department to invite applications/details from higher secondary (11th-12th) teachers having qualification of PhD/UGC-NET for deputation or part-time appointment in degree colleges has led to similar demands from teachers in lower classes, but having required qualification for college teaching. On Tuesday, the department extended the opportunity to school teachers of Class 9-12, but some highly qualified teachers engaged with further lower classes want it for all those who meet the criteria. Education secretary Rajiv Raushan wrote to district education officers for details of eligible Class 9-10 school teachers after verification for deputation in degree colleges. Earlier, it was only for Class 11-12. It was necessitated to meet the shortage of teachers in colleges and lack of time to fill large-scale vacancies, as deputation of teachers on a large-scale from existing already understaffed constituent colleges is not possible and it has already met with some protests due to arbitrary transfers. The initiative to give school teachers having eligibility to serve in new 211 colleges in unserved blocks followed a letter from Jeevan Kumar, MLC, in April to the CM in this regard. However, the department confined it to class 11 & 12 teachers only and district programme officers, secondary education sought details from all the headmasters of Plus Two schools. A senior official of Chancellor's secretariat said that it was under consideration. "The process is on and teachers fulfilling the criteria may get the opportunity after assessment," he added. The Chancellor's Secretariat earlier this month got prepared a draft statute for engagement of fixed-term faculty in six subjects in 211 proposed degree colleges in uncovered blocks under concerned state universities of Bihar and circulated it for opinion. Apart from general academic qualifications, the statute made it mandatory that a candidate must be qualified for NET for assistant professors conducted by UGC/CSIR twice a year or equivalent examination conducted by UGC in concerned subject or done PhD in accordance with UGC (Minimum Standards and Procedures for Award of Ph.D Degree) Regulations. Many teachers from class 1-10 have shown interest to serve in the new degree colleges, as they have the required eligibility of PhD and NET, but have been overlooked as they are teaching in lower classes....