412 headmaster vacancies in Odisha's tribal schools

In Bhubaneswar, the school and mass education minister, Nityananda Gond, revealed that 412 headmaster positions are vacant in schools managed by the ST and SC development department. This department oversees 1,762 schools, mostly located in Mayurbhanj and Koraput, each with 167 schools. Other districts with many schools include Rayagada, Kandhamal, Sundargarh, and Nabarangpur. The schools are facing a significant shortage of teachers, with 3,690 out of 11,676 teaching posts empty. This represents about 31.6% of the total positions. Non-teaching staff is also in short supply, with 2,059 of 13,169 positions unfilled. To improve education for tribal students, the department is considering upgrading 16 tribal residential high schools to include higher secondary options. Minister Gond stated these proposals will be carefully reviewed. Another issue for the department is land encroachment. Twenty-six schools have reported unauthorized occupation of their property. The minister mentioned that revenue authorities have been alerted to help resolve this issue. Anil Pradhan, an education rights activist, stressed the need for immediate action on these challenges. He emphasized the importance of addressing staff shortages and property issues to ensure quality education for tribal students.