Over 17,000 teaching posts in schools, colleges vacant in Assam: Education minister Ranoj Pegu

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• Sep 15, 2023 | Dhupali Das

Assam's Education Minister, Ranoj Pegu, revealed a troubling statistic in the Assam assembly today, stating that over...

Digital Desk: Assam's Education Minister, Ranoj Pegu, revealed a troubling statistic in the Assam assembly today, stating that over 15,000 teaching positions at the school level and an additional 1,300 in colleges and universities are currently vacant. This revelation has sparked concerns about the quality of education in Assam and the burden it places on existing educators.

Pegu's statement came in response to questions from various legislators. Congress MLA Rekibuddin Ahmed asked about the vacancies in schools, to which Pegu reported that a staggering 15,752 teaching posts remain unfilled, along with 2,830 non-teaching positions.

In provincialized high schools and higher secondary schools, there are 1,686 vacancies for head teachers, 320 for principals, and 499 for vice principals, Pegu disclosed in response to AIUDF's Rafiqul Islam.

Furthermore, when queried by CPI (M) legislator Manoranjan Talukdar, the minister stated that 860 assistant professor positions remain vacant in different colleges, along with 465 teaching positions in 12 universities across the state.

The situation is exacerbated by a declining Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) at the higher secondary level compared to elementary education in 2021–22. While the GER was a robust 109.9 percent in elementary education, it dropped to 74.5 percent in secondary education and a mere 40.1 percent in higher secondary education, as per Unified District Information System for Education (UDISE) 2021–22 data.

This teaching crisis raises concerns about the quality of education and the workload on existing educators, emphasizing the need for immediate action to fill these vacant positions.