**Executive Summary**
This document is a response to Unstarred Question No. 2528 in the Lok Sabha, answered on December 15, 2025, concerning the shortage of teachers in primary schools, specifically regarding vacancies, recruitment, and teacher eligibility in Uttar Pradesh. The response clarifies that the responsibility for teacher recruitment lies primarily with the States/UTs and outlines the Government's role in advising and supporting them. There are no specific action items or deadlines mentioned for coordination with Uttar Pradesh.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Teacher Recruitment & State Authority**: Education is under the administrative control of States/UTs, meaning teacher recruitment, service conditions, and deployment are managed by respective State governments/UT administrations.
* **Recruitment as a Continuous Process**: Teacher recruitment is ongoing, with vacancies arising from retirement, resignation, and increased student enrollment.
* **Data Maintenance by States/UTs**: The data on advertised vacancies, selection processes, and current status are maintained by the respective States/UTs.
* **Government's Advisory Role**: The Government periodically advises States/UTs to fill vacant teacher posts transparently and based on merit.
* **Quality Assurance**: The National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) sets the minimum qualifications for teacher appointments through its notifications.
* **Financial Assistance**: The Government, via the Samagra Shiksha scheme, provides financial aid to States/UTs to maintain appropriate Pupil-Teacher Ratios (PTR) as per the RTE Act, 2009.
* **National Education Policy (NEP) Emphasis**: NEP 2020 emphasizes maintaining a PTR of under 30:1 in each school, and under 25:1 in areas with large numbers of socio-economically disadvantaged students.
* **Pupil-Teacher Ratio (PTR) Improvement**: The PTR of the country has improved from 27:1 to 10 at Foundational, 13 at Preparatory, 14 at Middle and 21 at Secondary stage as per the UDISE+ reports.
**Impact Analysis**
**State Governments/UT Administrations**
* **Impact**: They are responsible for the recruitment, service conditions, and rational deployment of teachers in schools under their jurisdiction.
* **Action Required**: States/UTs should transparently and fairly fill vacant teacher positions to address teacher shortages, and maintain the data on advertised vacancies, selection processes, and current status.
**Teacher Job Seekers/TET/CTET Qualified Candidates**
* **Impact**: The document reiterates that States/UTs are responsible for recruitment and that vacancies arise from multiple factors. Minimum qualification should be in accordance with NCTE guidelines.
* **Action Required**: Job seekers should monitor the recruitment announcements of individual States/UTs and ensure they meet the minimum qualifications as set by NCTE.
**Ministry of Education (Government of India)**
* **Impact**: Tasked with advising States/UTs on teacher recruitment and providing financial assistance to help maintain appropriate PTRs.
* **Action Required**: Continue to advise States/UTs on transparent and merit-based teacher recruitment processes and provide financial support through schemes like Samagra Shiksha. Regularly review the progress of filling teacher vacancies.
Key Entities Referenced
Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009: Sets norms for Pupil-Teacher Ratio (PTR) at various levels of schooling and is relevant for addressing teacher shortages.
Samagra Shiksha: A Centrally Sponsored Scheme that provides financial assistance to States and UTs to maintain appropriate Pupil-Teacher Ratio (PTR).
National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE): An organization that sets the minimum qualifications for teacher eligibility.
Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) / Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET): A test for qualified teacher candidates. The document mentions a large number of TET/CTET qualified candidates remaining unemployed.
Uttar Pradesh: Indian state specifically mentioned in the context of teacher recruitment and shortage.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION & LITERACY
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO:- 2528
ANSWERED ON-15/12/2025
Shortage of Teachers in Primary Schools
†2528. Smt. Krishna Devi Shivshankar Patel:
Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:
(a) the number of posts advertised for vacancies of primary and upper-primary level teachers
from 2018 till date along with the details of selection process and the current status thereof;
(b) whether the Government is aware that a large number of Teacher Eligibility Test (TET)
/Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET) qualified candidates remain unemployed due to a long
gap in teacher recruitment in Uttar Pradesh, if so, the details thereof;
(c) whether there is an acute shortage of teachers in primary schools in Banda and Chitrakoot
districts of Uttar Pradesh and if so, the total number of sanctioned posts, teachers working and
vacant posts in both the districts and if so, the details thereof; and
(d) whether the Government proposes to coordinate with the State Government of Uttar
Pradesh to finalise a time-bound programme for the early appointment of TET/CTET qualified
candidates and if so, the proposed timeline in this regard?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
(SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY)
(a) to (d): Education being a subject in the Concurrent List of the Constitution, an
overwhelming majority of the schools in the country comes under the administrative control of
States/UTs. Therefore, the recruitment, service conditions and rational deployment of teachers
come under the purview of the respective State governments/UT administrations. Further,
recruitment is a continuous process and vacancies arise due to a number of factors like
retirement, resignation, increased requirement of teachers because of the enhanced students’
strength, etc. The data regarding the number of posts advertised for vacancies of primary and
upper-primary level teachers from 2018 till date across the country along with the details of
selection process and the current status thereof, including in the State of Uttar Pradesh, are
maintained by the respective States/UTs.
The Government periodically advises States/UTs to fill vacant posts of teachers, to ensure
timely recruitment of teachers by adopting a transparent and merit-based process throughautonomous teacher recruitment boards or similar organisations. The progress regarding filling
up of teacher vacancies through a competitive selection examination conducted by States/UTs,
with due care for consistency and sanctity and after a technology based comprehensive teacher
requirement planning and forecasting exercise, is periodically reviewed through regular
meetings with States/UTs as well as through advisories.
In order to ensure quality, the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) vide Gazette
notification dated 23rd August, 2010, as amended from time to time, has laid down minimum
qualification for a person to be eligible for appointment as a teacher.
Further, the Government through the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Samagra Shiksha,
provides financial assistance to the States and UTs to maintain appropriate Pupil-Teacher Ratio
(PTR) for various levels of schooling, as per norms prescribed in the Right of Children to Free
and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, as amended from time to time.
Para 2.3 of the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 has emphasized to ensure a pupil-
teacher ratio (PTR) of under 30:1 in each school and a PTR of under 25:1 for areas having large
numbers of socio-economically disadvantaged students. The PTR of the country has improved
from 27:1 as per the UDISE+ 2022-23 report to 10 at Foundational, 13 at Preparatory, 14 at
Middle and 21 at Secondary stage as per the UDISE+ 2024-25 report.
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