After years of vacancies, govt schools to finally get principals

After a prolonged wait, government schools across Haryana are finally set to get regular principals. The state government has promoted 221 teachers — including 218 Post Graduate Teachers (PGTs) and three headmasters — to the post of Principal, bringing long-awaited relief to hundreds of schools functioning without a full-time head.

The Department of Secondary Education issued the promotion orders on November 26, raising hopes in schools where senior lecturers or incharge officials had been handling both administrative and teaching responsibilities for months and, in many cases, years.

Among the promoted teachers, Rohtak district leads with 26 promotions, followed by Hisar (19), Bhiwani (17), Gurugram (16) and Sonepat and Sirsa with 12 each. Karnal and Jind have 11 each, Charkhi Dadri 10, while Panipat, Kaithal and Fatehabad have nine each. Jhajjar, Palwal and Panchkula have eight each, Mahendergarh, Kurukshetra and Yamunanagar seven each, Faridabad five, Ambala and Rewari four each, and Nuh and Chandigarh one each.

The department has sought online preferences from the promoted teachers for placement in 349 schools currently without regular principals. A senior official said Jhajjar tops the list with 40 such schools, followed by Rewari (32), Sonepat (29), Faridabad (25), Bhiwani (24) and Panipat (20). Jind and Mahendergarh have 19 each, Rohtak 18, Gurugram 17, Kaithal 15, Palwal 14, Sirsa 13, Kurukshetra and Charkhi Dadri 12 each, Karnal 11, Hisar 10, Ambala and Yamunanagar nine each, while Panchkula has just one school without a principal.

“Promoted teachers had to submit their preferences till 5 pm on December 1. Candidates must verify their personal details, enter their employee ID, and authenticate their login,” the official said.

The teachers submitted temporary station choices through the MIS portal. Permanent postings will be made later through the general transfer drive under the Teacher Transfer Policy.

Teachers have hailed the move as a significant step towards strengthening school administration and improving academic performance. “The promotion of PGT as principals will help in strengthening the education system across the state as several schools, which have been running without regular heads, will get regular principals soon,” said Umeet Singh, district treasurer of Punjabi Adhyapak and Bhasha Parchar Parsar Society Haryana.

Dr Karnail Singh, a lecturer promoted to Principal, expressed relief after a long wait. “I am happy that the government has released the list of promotions. I have been waiting for my promotion since 2023,” he said, adding that he had already submitted his preferences for temporary posting.

Highlighting the challenges schools have faced without regular heads, Satpal Sindhu, state president of the Haryana School Lecturer Association (HSLA), said: “The absence of regular principals has been impacting administrative and teaching efficiency in many schools across the state. Work such as financial approvals, infrastructure planning, academic supervision, coordination with higher authorities have been handled by in charge officials stretched thin by their own teaching duties. The new joining of the principals will make these teachers burden free, and they can only focus on their teachings.”