If teachers and principals are present in schools to lead from the front, the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan could be a huge success. However, for more than 32,000 teachers and principals at state-run and government-aided Gujarati and English medium schools across the state, the drive is unlikely to yield the desired results in the near future.
In response to questions from Congress MLAs, Education Minister Kuber Dindor stated in the state assembly on Wednesday that 29,122 teacher positions and 3,552 principal positions are vacant at various state-run and government-aided Gujarati and English medium schools across the state.
Of the 32,674 vacant posts, 20,678 posts have been vacant at government-run schools, while teachers and principals are yet to be recruited at 11,996 positions in granted schools.
Also, 17,500 appointments are to be made for the post of primary teachers in government schools. While Kutch district has 1,507 vacancies, Dahod has 1,152 posts. Similarly, Banaskantha has 869, Rajkot has 724 and Mahisagar has 692 positions vacant.
No govt English school for class 9-12 in state
According to the education minister, the state has no government secondary and higher secondary English medium schools. According to the data, 32 districts lack English medium schools for grades 9 through 12. In addition, no English medium primary schools have been granted in 31 districts. There are no primary English schools in 14 districts across the state. In 17 districts, there are no English medium schools for students in grades 9-12.