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933 Bengal Schools Student-Less: Committee Formed for Land-Building Future, Major Restructuring Eyed
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News18•21-09-2026, 15:25
933 Bengal Schools Student-Less: Committee Formed for Land-Building Future, Major Restructuring Eyed
- •933 primary, upper primary, secondary, and higher secondary schools in Bengal have had no student admissions for 5 to 20 years.
- •School Education Minister Dipak Barman announced a committee to assess the future of land, buildings, and playgrounds of these student-less schools.
- •No decision has been made to hand over any school to the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, nor has any school been identified for it.
- •The state is exploring transferring these properties, currently under the School Education Department, to other government departments as needed.
- •Emphasis is on addressing teacher shortages, with a goal to have teachers in every school by the 2027 academic year after ongoing SSC recruitment.
Key Questions Answered
The state government has formed a committee to assess the future of land, buildings, and playgrounds of schools that have had zero student admissions for years, while exploring alternative public uses or inter-departmental transfers. However, schools will not be closed solely due to low student counts if they are located in remote or low-density areas.
No decision has been made to hand over any school to the Public-Private Partnership model, and not a single institution has been identified for it yet.
School Education Minister Dipak Barman stated that if the ongoing SSC recruitment process finishes on schedule, the department aims to place teachers in every school by the 2027 academic year.
