Record 3 lakh applications received for Haryana Teachers Eligibility Test

Ravinder Saini

Rohtak, October 12

A total 3,05,717 applications have been received for the Haryana Teachers Eligibility Test (HTET) this time, which is 1,17,766 is higher than previous year. In all, 1,87,951 applications were received for the test in 2021.

This marks an increase of more than 62 per cent rise as compared to last year in the number of applications for HTET scheduled to be conducted by the Board of School Education Haryana (BSEH) next month.

“The cancellation of equivalency of HTET with the Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET) and the government’s announcement to fill thousands of vacant posts of teachers are believed to be main reasons behind a considerable rise in the number of applications,” said the sources.

The passing of HTET is a mandatory qualification for the jobs of Primary Teacher (PRT), Trained Graduate Teachers (TGT) and Post Graduate Teachers (PGTs) at government schools in the state. This year, 1,49,430 applications for HTET have been received for TGT, 95,493 for PGT and 60,794 for PRT, said sources.

The state government had, in September 2021, decided to give recognition to the CTET at par with HTET while giving a huge relief to a large number of such aspirants who cracked the CTET but could not qualify the HTET.

The decision did not survive for more than a year and the government had, on September 19, withdrawn it with immediate effect stating that now the CTET would not be considered equivalent to the HTET for all intent and purposes for the posts of PRT and TGT in government schools.

At the same time, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar announced to recruit 18,000 teachers at government schools and also stated that the process for the recruitment would be initiated soon. 11,000 teachers among them would be appointed on regular basis while remaining 7,000 teachers would be recruited through Haryana Kaushal Rozgar Nigam.

Rajni, a CTET qualified candidate, said she was not interested in taking HTET after the government made the CTET equivalent to the HTET last year but a U-turn recently taken by the government over the issue forced her to apply for the HTET again. Similar is the situation with Santosh Sharma, Priyanka, Nisha and Neha who have passed the CTET.

Ved Prakash Yadav, Chairman, BSEH, claimed that highest ever number of applications have been received for HTET this time. “It is for the first time when the applications have crossed the figure of three lakh. A considerable number of vacancies of teachers advertised by the state government and cancellation of equivalency of HTET with CTET may be the reasons for it,” Yadav confirmed.

HTET APPLICATIONS

Year          Applications received

2019 ——— 2,61,573

2020 ———2,45,350

2021 ———1,87,951

2022 ———3,05,717