High number of vacancies cripple work at Gujarat education department

Of the 67 posts of district education officers and district primary education officers, 34 have been vacant for two years.

The DPEO Botad has the additional charge of DEO Ahmedabad (Rural) — with a distance of more than 100 kms between both the places. Seven districts of Ahmedabad (Rural), Chhota Udepur, Dang, Gir Somnath, Jamnagar, Morbi and Navsari district do not have regular DEOs and DPEOs and are filled by in-charge.

Navsari, Amreli, Dang, Jamnagar, Chhota Udepur and Gir Somnath have only one education inspector post who also have the charge of District Education Officer (DEO).

Adding to the list of vacant posts is 28 of the total 33 Class I posts of HoDs — nearly 85 per cent are lying vacant.

As per the data collated from the education department, these include four posts at Commissioner of Schools, out of the total five sanctioned posts, an equal number of sanctioned and vacant posts at Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board (GSHSEB).

The other vacant posts include: all four sanctioned posts at the Director Primary Education Office, three out of five sanctioned posts at Gujarat Council of Edcational Research and Training (GCERT), all six sanctioned posts at the Samagra Shiksha and all four sanctioned posts at Gujarat Institiute of Educational Technology (GIET), one each of the sanctioned posts at higher education commissioner, Secondary Teachers Training Institute (STTI) and literacy departments.

Thus, out of total 100 Class I posts—34 DEOs, 33 DPEOs and 33 HoDs — 62 are lying vacant, several for over two years now.

“Different MoUs for Schools of Excellence, Gyan Shakti, Gyan Setu, Raksha Shakti, Sanskrit Shakti, PISA based on Rs 10,000 crore loan from the World Bank for improving the quality of education is expected to be announced. But looking at this situation, where 34 out of 67 posts of DEOs and DPEOs who implement all these projects at the ground level are lying vacant and one officer has charge of two to three districts and more than 100 kilometers away, then how these schemes and projects will be implemented),” said one of the education officials.

Going by the state government rules, these total 100 sanctioned posts of 100 Class I officers are filled in the 67:33 ratio i.e. 33 through direct recruitment and 67 through promotions.

The department had filled filled these 33 posts, the last of around eight filled in 2018.

However, as per state government’s rules, if the posts are not filled for a period of three years, these are converted to in-abeyance which are made alive by the Finance Department. At present, 17 of such posts have gone into abeyance.

The delayed process of Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC), awaited since October 2022, for the 45 posts that was given a nod by the Chief Minister in the previous government got stuck due to Model Code of Conduct (MCC).

“Now with the new government, the file is moved again. Already delayed, the government is still stuck in the 17 in-abeyance posts. There has been demands of going forward with the DPC for 45 posts but the government seems unsure causing a delay,” one of the in-charge DEOs stated.

On the other hand, the education inspectors and deputy education officers whose responsibility is to monitor and inspect the quality of education in the district is entangled in administrative work due to the charge of DEOs and DPEOs, the work of improving the quality of schools is hampered.