Staff crunch forces school to issues ‘no new admissions’ notice
The Statesman | 3 June 2025
A higher secondary school in Barakar, near Asansol, has issued a notification stating that it will not accept new admissions into Class XI for the 2025-26 academic year, due to a shortage of teachers. The announcement has caused considerable concern in the local area.
The school, already struggling with a limited number of teachers, recently lost two more staff members following a Supreme Court verdict, making it even more difficult to manage daily operations, the notification explained.
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Shree Marwari Vidyalaya, located in the Barakar area of the Asansol Sadar sub-division in West Burdwan district, announced that it would be unable to admit new students into Class XI this academic year due to the staffing crisis.
Currently, around 1,200 students are enrolled in the school, which offers instruction in both Hindi and Bengali mediums. The institution requires at least 36 teachers to function effectively but presently has only 12. With two of these teachers set to leave by December as a result of the Supreme Court ruling, the school’s future staffing situation remains uncertain.
The teacher-in-charge of Shree Marwari Vidyalaya stated that the notification has already been submitted to the district inspector of schools and the Higher Secondary Council. The school’s managing committee is expected to convene shortly to seek a resolution.
Students who recently passed the Madhyamik examinations in the Barakar and Kulti areas were shocked by the sudden announcement.
Soumen Laha, the district inspector of schools, commented that there is still time remaining for Class XI admissions and expressed hope that a solution would be found before the deadline.
Local MLA and BJP leader Dr Ajoy Poddar remarked that this situation reflects the broader crisis in the state’s education sector. “My father himself was an alumnus of this school. It is disheartening to see that today, the school is unable to admit students due to a lack of teachers. I am personally shocked by this development and will raise the matter in the next Assembly session,” Dr Poddar stated.
Shree Marwari Vidyalaya is one of the oldest and most reputed secondary and higher secondary schools in the region. This year, the number of students passing the Madhyamik examinations from the school also saw an increase.