21,000 teachers surplus, yet 7,000 govt schools lack staff in Telangana

A significant imbalance has emerged in Telangana’s government and local body schools, with over 21,000 surplus teachers in some institutions while 7,346 schools face acute staff shortages. The Education Department is now working on redistributing teachers to address the disparity.

Hyderabad: There is a glaring mismatch in student enrolment and teacher deployment in the government and local body schools in the State. While 7,346 schools have been grappling with a teacher deficit, the Education department identified over 21,000 surplus teachers in the State.

As per the information available with the department, the State is home to 24,227 government and local body schools. As per GO MS No. 25 order, which mandates redistribution of teachers based on the enrollment, these schools require 99,076 teachers.

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However, 1,04,605 teachers are currently employed. Of the total schools, 12,994 found to have 21,140 surplus teachers, while 7,364 institutions are facing a shortage of 15,611 teachers.

This issue, according to officials, has arisen due to a decline in student enrolment. Previously, government and local body schools had an enrolment of around 26–28 lakh.

However, this academic year, it has dropped to 16 lakh. In the last academic year alone, around 3 lakh students left the government and joined private schools. This has led to the surplus teacher issue.

According to a senior official, the department is looking into school-wise surplus teachers and redistribute the same to the needy schools.

“We will pass on the information to the district collectors and ensure redistribution of teachers from surplus to needy institutions,” the official added.