150 Himachal schools teacherless; 3,500 have 1

At least 150 schools in Himachal Pradesh are operating without a teacher, while 3,500 have only one, reported Education Minister Rohit Thakur in the state Assembly on Wednesday. Despite Himachal Pradesh boasting the best pupil-teacher ratio of 1:10 in the country, remote areas continue to struggle with staffing shortages, according to Thakur.

During Zero Hour, BJP MLA Reena Kashyap highlighted the shortage of teachers in her Pachhad constituency, where 12 schools have no educators, with some housing over 40 students. Parents are resorting to pooling personal funds to hire teachers. Six schools in Narag and five in Sarahan also lack teachers, along with vacant posts for principals and lecturers, she said.

Responding to the issue, Thakur stated that the government is working to fill vacant positions through a rationalization process. However, teacher deployment is influenced by various factors, and posting orders may be revised. So far, the state has filled 9,000 teaching positions and aims to recruit an additional 6,500 before the current term ends.

Despite these efforts, the shortage persists, with 150 schools and 3,500 schools having only a single teacher. Another 2,500 schools have fewer than 15 students. Kashyap emphasized that in Pachhad, 12 schools have no teachers, while several others are struggling with large class sizes. She also mentioned that the Chief Minister has intervened to address the issue, promising a policy for appointing teachers in single-teacher schools.

Interestingly, Sirmaur, designated as an Aspirational District by the central government, has students excelling in written recruitment exams, securing positions in the district.