Govt schools have shortage of 45,590 teachers: Karnataka Minister

BEAGAVI: Karnataka has a shortage of 45,590 teachers against the sanctioned post of 1,78,935 for 41,088 government primary schools, state School Education and Literacy Minister Madhu Bangarappa said on Thursday.

In a written reply to the starred question of BJP MLA Harish Poonja, Bangarappa said in the Assembly that there is a shortfall of 12,134 teachers in government high schools. Out of 44,144 sanctioned posts, 32,010 posts were filled.

According to the minister, the state has 5,024 government high schools . "At present, to address the vacancies and for the academic year 2025–2026, 40,000 guest teachers in primary schools and 11,000 guest teachers in high schools—totalling 51,000—have been appointed to overcome the shortage of teachers and to ensure that students’ education is not affected," the minister replied.

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Guest lecturers salary increased by Rs 2,000

Bangarappa said these teachers will start teaching children from the next academic year. In addition, special teachers have been appointed with a view to providing the necessary guidance to students with disabilities, he added.

"There are 41,088 government primary schools in the state, for which 1,78,935 posts have been sanctioned. Of these, 1,33,345 posts have been filled, while 45,590 posts remain vacant. Further, there are 5,024 government high schools in the state, for which 44,144 posts have been sanctioned. Of these, 32,010 posts have been filled and 12,134 posts are vacant," the minister said in his reply to Poonja.

During the discussion, Poonja highlighted that the salary given to the guest lecturers was too less compared to their counterparts, who are permanent staff. To this, the minister said their salaries have been increased by Rs 2,000.

The BJP MLA also highlighted that the cost of eggs and bananas given to the children under the government scheme have gone up from Rs 5 to Rs 7.5 per egg. While the sanctioned amount given by the state government remained the same, the onus has fallen on the school staff to give eggs and bananas to the children every day.

Replying to this, he said a renowned charitable organisation has agreed to provide Rs 1,591 crore to provide eggs to the children in government schools. During the discussion, Poonja also sought to know the truth about the cancer scare associated with egg consumption.

In reply, Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao said there was no need to panic since one company was found using banned antibiotics. According to Rao, in 2024, 147 egg samples were tested, out of which only one had failed.