Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: Efforts to hold talks between agitating teachers and the government failed on Friday.
After the talks failed, officials of the Confederation of Nepali Teachers (CNT) held internal discussions.
According to Somnath Giri, the president of Nepal National Teachers Association (NNTA), the CNT has decided to sit for a dialogue with the government on Saturday.
School teachers have been protesting in Kathmandu for the past three weeks, demanding immediate passage of the School Education Bill.
Teachers allege that although the government invited them for talks, Minister for Education, Science and Technology, Raghuji Pant, had not made any preparations.
It has been learnt that CNT decided against sitting for dialogue after the government unilaterally released a 25-member CNT negotiation team. CNT has insisted that the 25-member list was originally submitted to the ministry only to facilitate entry passes, and that it is not a negotiation team.
Sources say differences have emerged among the three major teacher associations under the CNT umbrella. While the faction aligned with CPN-UML is under pressure to withdraw from the protest, those affiliated with the Nepali Congress and CPN (Maoist Centre) want to continue the protest.
