SHILLONG, MAR 23: The Meghalaya SSA Schools Association (MSSASA) has welcomed the state government’s decision to relax eligibility criteria and qualifying marks for in-service teachers appearing in the Meghalaya Teacher Eligibility Test (MTET) 2026.

MSSASA president Aristotle C Rymbai expressed gratitude to the MDA government led by Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma and Education Minister Lahkmen Rymbui for approving the long-pending demand.

“We extend our gratitude to the MDA government… especially the education minister for giving approval to relax the eligibility criteria and for relaxing the qualifying marks for in-service teachers,” Rymbai said on Monday.

He noted that the decision follows a series of discussions held with the education minister in September and November last year, during which assurances were given to address concerns of in-service teachers.

“…today we have witnessed that what we have discussed in September and November has come to a reality,” he said.

Explaining the revised norms, Rymbai stated that eligibility for in-service teachers will now be primarily based on their length of service rather than the stricter requirements applicable to pre-service candidates.

He further informed that the qualifying marks for in-service teachers have been reduced to 68 out of 150, compared to the earlier benchmark of 90 marks.

The move is expected to provide relief to a large number of serving teachers and improve their prospects of meeting certification requirements under the MTET framework.