**Executive Summary**
This document is a response to Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 2525, answered on December 15, 2025, concerning the recruitment of teachers and the restoration of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). It outlines the government's position on these issues, noting the roles of both central and state/UT governments in education administration. The document states there are no proposals to restore OPS.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Education Administration:** Education falls under the concurrent list of the Constitution, with most schools managed by State/UT governments.
* Recruitment, service conditions, pension benefits, teacher deployment, and related court cases are primarily managed by State/UT governments.
* **Old Pension Scheme (OPS):**
* There is no proposal to restore the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) for Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) employees.
* Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti employees who joined before 01.01.2004 are under the Contributory Provident Fund (CPF) scheme.
* Employees who joined Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti on/after 01.04.2009 are covered under the New Pension Scheme (NPS).
* Employees who joined between 01.01.2004 and 01.04.2009 were given a choice to opt for CPF or NPS.
* **Teacher Workload and Quality of Education:**
* As per the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, teachers should only be deployed for non-educational purposes like census, disaster relief, or election duties.
* The government supports measures to minimize teacher workload and improve education quality.
* The Central Government provides financial assistance for maintaining appropriate Pupil-Teacher Ratios (PTR) through the Samagra Shiksha scheme.
* Large-scale teacher capacity building through NISHTHA is being implemented.
* National Professional Standards for Teachers (NPST) have been issued to define teacher competencies and provide mentoring support.
* The Department periodically issues advisories and holds review meetings with State/UT Governments to encourage mission-mode recruitment plans and rational deployment.
* The Department supports States/UTs in adoption of ICT platforms (DIKSHA/PM e-VIDYA) and cluster-level academic support (BRC/CRC).
**Impact Analysis**
**Central Government**
* **Impact:** Responsible for providing guidance, financial assistance, and setting standards for teacher competency and workload.
* **Action Required:** Continue supporting States/UTs through various schemes and advisories to improve education quality and manage teacher workload.
**State/UT Governments**
* **Impact:** Primarily responsible for managing recruitment, service conditions, pension benefits, teacher deployment, and related court cases.
* **Action Required:** Implement central government guidelines and initiatives, manage teacher recruitment and deployment effectively, and address issues related to teacher workload.
**Teachers**
* **Impact:** Affected by policies related to workload, deployment, pension benefits, and professional development opportunities.
* **Action Required:** Engage in capacity building programs like NISHTHA and adhere to deployment guidelines.
**KVS and Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti Employees**
* **Impact:** KVS employees are not able to apply for OPS and are governed by Ministry of Finance pension rules. Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti Employees are covered under CPF or NPS based on their joining date.
* **Action Required:** Employees must understand and adhere to the applicable pension scheme based on their joining date and organizational rules.
Key Entities Referenced
Old Pension Scheme (OPS): Scheme related to pensionary benefits for teachers, particularly concerning its restoration.
Ministry of Education: The primary governmental body responsible for education policies and interventions, including teacher recruitment and workload.
Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009: A legal framework that governs aspects of education, including teacher deployment for non-educational purposes.
Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti: An autonomous organization under the Ministry of Education responsible for the administration of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas.
Samagra Shiksha: A centrally sponsored scheme providing financial assistance for various aspects of education, including teacher-related interventions.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION AND LITERACY
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO- 2525
ANSWERED ON- 15/12/2025
Recruitment of Teachers and Restoration of Old Pension Scheme
†2525. Shri Ramashankar Vidharthi Rajbhar:
Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:
(a) the current policy of the Government on restoration of Old Pension Scheme (OPS) for
teachers at the Centre and in the States and the details of suggestions received and meetings
held in this regard;
(b) the details of pending appointments and delay in joining of teachers in various States and
non-appointment of selected candidates as per advertised posts;
(c) the present status of recruitment of 69,000 assistant teachers in Uttar Pradesh along with
the number of the candidates who have been appointed so far and the number of the cases
which are pending in the court or the department;
(d) whether the Government teachers are assigned to conduct elections, censuses, surveys and
other non-academic tasks in addition to teaching and if so, the details thereof; and
(e) the steps being taken by the Government to minimize teacher workload, establish a list of
non- academic tasks and ensure quality education in the country?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
(SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY)
(a) to (c): Education is a subject in the concurrent list of the Constitution and majority of
schools are under the administrative control of respective State and Union Territory
Governments. The recruitment, service conditions, including pensionary benefits,
deployment of teachers and court cases relating to these matters are primarily in the domain
of the State/UT Government.
Pensionary benefits for the employees of Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan run by
central government follow the instructions of the Ministry of Finance from time to time.
There is no proposal for the restoration of the old pension scheme for employees of KVS.
All the employees of Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti who joined before 01.01.2004 are
governed under the Contributory Provident Fund (CPF) scheme. Employees who joined
Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti on/after 01.04.2009 are compulsorily covered under the NewPension Scheme (NPS). Employees who joined between 01.01.2004 and 01.04.2009, an
option was given to the employees to opt for CPF or NPS. A few employees opted on NPS
scheme while majority of opted for CPF scheme. As on date, employees of Navodaya
Vidyalaya Samiti are covered either under the Contributory Provident Fund (CPF) scheme or
the New Pension Scheme (NPS).
(d) & (e): Section 27 of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE)
Act, 2009 states that no teacher shall be deployed for any non-educational purposes other than
the decennial population census, disaster relief duties or duties relating to elections to the
local authority or the State Legislatures or Parliament, as the case may be. The Ministry of
Education has also issued guidelines to all States and UTs that emphasize that teachers should
not be deployed for non-educational duties other than those which are in accordance with the
RTE Act. The Government has taken and supports a range of measures to minimise teacher
workload and to strengthen quality of education. These include:
• The Central Government, under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Samagra Shiksha,
provides financial assistance to States/UTs for maintaining appropriate Pupil–Teacher Ratios
(PTR) and for teacher related interventions including in-service training and institutional
academic support through SCERTs, DIETs, BRCs and CRCs.
• Large-scale teacher capacity building is being implemented through NISHTHA -
National Initiative for School Heads’ and Teachers’ Holistic Advancement (face-to-face and
online on DIKSHA) which covers pedagogy, integration of ICT, competency-based learning,
foundational literacy and numeracy, school leadership, health and well-being and related areas
thereby strengthening classroom processes and teachers’ professional capacity.
• In terms of NEP 2020, the National Professional Standards for Teachers (NPST)
guiding document and the Bluebook on the National Mission for Mentoring (NMM) have
been issued to define teacher competencies and provide mentoring support to in-service
teachers to improve instructional practice and reduce professional isolation.
• The Department periodically issues advisories and holds review meetings with
State/UT Governments to encourage mission-mode recruitment plans, rational deployment
including school-complex/clustering approaches, adoption of teacher-sharing or pooling
mechanisms where appropriate, and use of contractual/short-term engagements (such as
Shiksha Mitras/Anudeshaks) as interim arrangements to safeguard academic interests. These
are implemented by the respective State/UT Governments/Administrations as per their rules.
• The Department supports States/UTs in adoption of ICT platforms (DIKSHA/PM e-
VIDYA) and cluster-level academic support (BRC/CRC) to provide on-demand resources and
pedagogical support to teachers and to mitigate the academic impact of staff shortages to the
extent possible.
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