Nishant Saxena

A total of 16,706 government school teachers were found absent during inspections conducted in all 75 districts of Uttar Pradesh.

Over the last three months, three different task forces conducted inspections in all 75 districts of Uttar Pradesh to check the presence of teachers in government schools providing education from Class 1 to 8.  The inspection aimed to ensure that teachers were attending school regularly.

The task forces inspected 3,31,113 schools out of the targeted 3,92,252 schools and noted the absence of 16,706 teachers. In response, the state government has asked district and block education officers, along with the task forces, to ensure that all schools are inspected every month to track progress and review attendance.

According to a letter from the director general school education Vijay Kiran Anand, the maximum number of absent teachers was found in Hardoi where 482 teachers were found absent, followed by 461 absent teachers in Sitapur, and 459 absent teachers in Bahraich. The inspections were conducted by a 12-member team of district-level task forces and an eight-member team of block-level task forces.

The absence of teachers has a significant impact on the learning outcomes of children. When teachers are absent, children may miss important lessons, leading to a decline in academic performance. It is vital that the government takes necessary steps to ensure that teachers are present in schools regularly to provide quality education to children. Additionally, accountability measures should be put in place to ensure that teachers who are regularly absent are held responsible for their actions.