Parliament Question: Shortage of Qualified Teachers in Schools

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION & LITERACY LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO:- 4925 ANSWERED ON-23/03/2026 Shortage of Qualified Teachers in Schools †4925. Smt. Manju Sharma: Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state: (a) whether it is a fact that there is a persistent shortage of qualified school teachers in many schools in the country, particularly in rural areas of the country; (b) if so, the details of the number of schools currently facing this shortage, State-wise; (c) whether the Government has taken any specific steps to fill up the vacant posts of school teachers, especially in rural areas, if so, the details thereof; (d) whether it is a fact that a large number of vacant posts of teachers at all levels of primary, secondary and higher education in the State of Rajasthan is adversely affecting the teaching situation and quality of education and if so, the details thereof; and (e) the details of steps taken/proposed to be taken by the Government to fill up these vacant posts? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION (SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY) (a) to (e): Education being a subject in the Concurrent List of the Constitution, the majority of schools in the country are under the administrative control of the respective State Governments and Union Territory Administrations. Accordingly, matters relating to recruitment, service conditions and deployment of teachers fall within the administrative domain of the concerned States/UTs. Vacancies of teachers arise from time to time due to factors such as retirement, resignation, creation of new posts, rationalisation and increased enrolment, including in rural and remote areas. The data regarding vacant posts of teachers and the number of schools facing a shortage of teachers, including in the State of Rajasthan, is maintained by the respective States/UTs. As per the UDISE+ 2024-25 report, the State/UT-wise details of teachers in position in Government schools across the country, including in the State of Rajasthan, are placed in the Annexure, available at https://www.education.gov.in/parl_ques. The Central Government periodically advises States/UTs to fill vacant posts through transparent and merit-based recruitment processes, including through autonomous teacher recruitment boards or similar mechanisms. The progress of recruitment is regularly reviewedthrough meetings and advisories, with emphasis on competitive selection, consistency and technology-based teacher requirement planning and forecasting. Under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Samagra Shiksha, States/UTs are supported in undertaking rational and transparent deployment of teachers, including through online systems, to ensure equitable availability of teachers in rural and underserved areas. States/UTs are also encouraged to adopt school complex/cluster-based approaches and teacher-sharing mechanisms to address localised shortages. In order to ensure quality of teachers, the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), vide Gazette notification dated 23rd August, 2010, as amended from time to time, has laid down minimum qualifications for appointment of teachers. Further, the Central Government provides financial assistance to States/UTs under Samagra Shiksha to maintain appropriate Pupil-Teacher Ratio (PTR) at various levels of schooling in accordance with the norms prescribed under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009. Para 2.3 of the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 emphasises maintaining a PTR of under 30:1 in each school and under 25:1 in areas with a high proportion of socio-economically disadvantaged students. As per UDISE+ data, the PTR at the national level has improved from 27:1 in 2022-23 to 10 at the Foundational stage, 13 at the Preparatory stage, 14 at the Middle stage, and 21 at the Secondary stage in 2024-25. Further, the PTR in Rajasthan stands at 9 at the Foundational stage, 11 at the Preparatory stage, 12 at the Middle stage, and 16 at the Secondary stage, which is within the norms envisaged under NEP 2020. *****