Rs 87 crore dues pending, Himachal school education board faces grave financial crisis

The financial health of the Himachal Pradesh School Education Board, Dharamsala, has hit a low as around Rs 87 crore is pending with the Directorate of School Education, Shimla, against the publication of textbooks for Class IX and X and question papers for the past three years.

The delay in fund release is likely to disrupt the board’s ability to pay salaries, pension and manage essential academic operations such as the printing of new textbooks.

A senior official said that the annual budget of the board was estimated at Rs 150 crore and more than half of this money was stuck with the Directorate of Education. The monthly expenditure on the payment of salaries, pension and other expenditure was Rs 5 crore.

Education Board Employees’ Union president Sunil Sharma recently stated that the dues were pending for the past three years and the situation had now become critical.

Payments amounting to Rs 23.59 crore for books supplied during the academic year 2023-24 and 2014-25 academic sessions remain unpaid, besides Rs 55 crore for the publication of textbooks meant for the current academic session. Besides, the Education Department was also yet to release Rs 8 crore against question papers for Class III, IV, VIII, IX and XI.

The prolonged delay has directly impacted the board’s financial stability and its ability to maintain smooth functioning. Even payments to teachers handling examination-related work have been delayed, leading to discontent among teaching staff members.

Some teacher unions have reportedly begun refusing examination duties over the non-payment of dues, further intensifying the crisis. The board, responsible for conducting exams and supplying textbooks to government schools in the state, is struggling to meet its monthly expenditure, including the disbursement of staff salaries and pension.

The Board Employees’ Union has issued a warning that if the government fails to release the pending Rs 87 crore soon, it will launch an agitation.

There are 350 employees and 450 pensioners of the board who fear that their salaries and pension may be affected in the coming days as the government has not paid the board''''s dues.

The chairman of the Education Board, Dr Rajesh Kumar, says that he has taken up the issue with the state government and hopes that the payments will be released soon.