Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): In many government schools, after guest teachers were appointed to vacant positions, surplus permanent teachers were reassigned there within a few days, resulting in guest teachers being removed. In other cases, guest teachers found that positions listed as vacant on the education portal were already filled by regular teachers.
Currently, 33,000 teaching positions in government schools remain unfilled, and 29,000 guest teachers have been invited to address this shortage. Over 210,000 applications were received for these roles. While guest teachers are being appointed to vacant positions, the process of reallocating surplus teachers is also underway.
Initially, guest teachers were asked to fill out choice forms for available positions, followed by counselling sessions for surplus teachers. However, discrepancies have arisen due to the outdated education portal. Recently, a guest teacher, Surveer Prasad Tiwari, chose 50 schools through the portal for a Hindi teaching role at Maharana Pratap Higher Secondary School, Phand Kala, in Bhopal district.
Although he received an appointment order, the principal did not permit him to join, citing the presence of a surplus social science teacher handling Hindi. District education officer N K Ahirwar said that priority was given to choice filling for guest teachers, followed by surplus teacher reallocation, which led to these complications. The portal is being updated to ensure accurate data on vacancies.
Many teachers out of job
B.M. Khan, Executive State President of Azad School Guest Teachers Association, said that many experienced guest teachers, after 15–16 years of service, are now jobless due to surplus teacher adjustments. He suggested prioritizing these experienced guest teachers during the allocation process, calling it a step the government should recognize and support.
