In Chandigarh, India, a significant delay in salary payments has left nearly 1,000 educators and staff under the Samagra Shiksha (SS) scheme without their March salaries. This includes Junior Basic Training (JBT) and Trained Graduate Teacher (TGT) teachers, coordinators, special educators, and office staff. As the new financial year commenced, many faced increased household expenses, leading to complaints from the teachers. Despite guidelines in the SS scheme's financial management manual that allow for salary disbursement from unspent funds, the payments were not made on time. Director of School Education Nitish Singla explained that the delay stemmed from the postponement of the board of finance meeting, which typically approves the budget, and a lack of clear directives from the central government regarding the use of leftover funds. However, in a recent update, officials confirmed that the necessary approvals have been granted, and the pending salaries are expected to be disbursed within the next one to two days.