In what could bring relief to aspiring teachers in Jammu and Kashmir, the government on Tuesday indicated in the Legislative Assembly that teacher posts frozen in 2018 are likely to be defrozen to enable fresh appointments and further streamline the education system.
The announcement was made by Education Minister Sakina Itoo while replying to a question raised by BJP MLA from Udhampur West, Pawan Gupta, a former minister.
“There are vacancies of teachers in certain areas, and we are currently engaging Cluster Resource Coordinators (CRCs). Teacher posts were frozen in 2018, due to which direct recruitment under SROs or through the Recruitment Board could not be carried out. However, we are making efforts to defreeze these posts so that new teachers can be appointed and quality education is ensured for children,” the Education Minister said.
Gupta argued that since the ban on recruitment was imposed during Governor’s rule, the present government is fully empowered to revoke it, defreeze the posts and initiate recruitment, as education is a subject under the Union Territory government. He claimed that more than 1,800 teacher posts are vacant in Udhampur district alone, adversely affecting academic standards.
Responding to the concerns, Sakina Itoo said the number of vacancies is lower when assessed against the teacher–student ratio and that some posts are being filled through the promotion quota. She added that advertisements have also been issued for the engagement of CRCs and reiterated the government’s commitment to improving education standards.
The minister’s remarks on online classes drew criticism from Gupta, who questioned their feasibility in hilly areas lacking internet connectivity and school principals.
BJP MLA from Udhampur East, R.S. Pathania, raised concerns over the emergence of “single-teacher schools”, saying such a system violates prescribed teacher–student norms and leaves subject-specific teaching gaps.
Sakina clarified that recruitment of teacher posts was frozen by a decision of the State Administrative Council in 2018 and that the government is actively working to defreeze these posts to expedite fresh recruitment. She informed the House that 594 lecturer posts across 27 disciplines have been referred to the JKPSC, while 727 non-teaching posts and 43 MTS posts have been sent to the Finance Department for revival and concurrence.
She said teacher posts had also been frozen during the transition of RRETs and Teacher Grade-II/III to address salary issues of teachers engaged under the SSA scheme.
Providing further details, the minister said that during 2025–26, as many as 258 senior lecturers have been elevated as in-charge principals, 56 PG masters and teachers promoted as in-charge lecturers, and 551 PG masters and teachers appointed as in-charge headmasters. A proposal to place over 500 additional masters as headmasters is currently under process, she added.
Sakina also informed that 80 headmasters have been elevated as in-charge Zonal Education Officers, while in the non-gazetted cadre, 1,170 teachers were promoted as masters in 2025–26.
Focusing on Udhampur district, she said 42 out of 43 principal posts, eight out of 11 ZEO posts, and 243 out of 538 lecturer posts have been filled. Engagement of CRCs and rationalisation of staff is underway to address shortages across schools in the Union Territory, she added.
The minister said the pupil–teacher ratio in Udhampur West constituency stands at 1:16, indicating sufficient staffing as per enrolment. She added that subject-specific teachers, CRCs and online classes are being arranged to enhance academic quality.
Attributing improved performance of the Jammu division in Class 10 and 12 board examinations to government initiatives, Sakina said these measures have resulted in a significant academic improvement, with results surpassing those of previous years. (Agencies)
