Outsourcing, rising dropouts and policy failures leave the education system in deep crisis
RAWALPINDI:
The outgoing year 2025 turned out to be extremely disappointing for teachers and educational institutions where the education system in Punjab including Rawalpindi seemed completely paralyzed.
Throughout the year, teachers remained on the streets protesting policies that negatively affected public education.
During 2025, around 5,800 schools and 71 secondary schools were handed over to the private sector, while a program to outsource a total of 10,500 primary schools in three phases continued. Due to privatization and inflation, student dropout rates increased, with nearly 700,000 children leaving schools after outsourcing.
The number of street children in Punjab saw an alarming rise and reached almost 30 million.
The situation is expected to worsen further as rural schools and colleges are also sold, leading to further dropouts. In many public schools, the number of students enrolled has fallen to fewer than 100.
About 14,000 teachers and assistant education officers were not regularized while more than 46,000 surplus teachers were transferred to remote schools away from their homes.
On the pretext of merit-based hiring of school heads, promotions of nearly 25,000 senior post-quota teachers were also blocked.
Despite professional competence and long teaching experience, teachers’ jobs were put in jeopardy by making “teaching licenses” compulsory. From 2026, teachers must pass a test to obtain a teaching license.
A total of 120,000 teaching posts from class 14 to class 20 remain vacant, including 74,000 posts as primary, primary and secondary teachers. Vacancies also include 3,661 class-17 headmasters, 1,173 class-18 officers and nearly 900 class 19 and 20 posts.
Due to the outsourcing policy, the number of educational institutions fell from 52,000 to 38,000. Upgradation of Quran teachers, IT lab supervisors, lab assistants and lab assistants could not be done.
More than 5,000 teachers were issued show cause notices and FIRs were registered against them for refusing to perform duties related to the Socio-Economic Registration Survey.
Nearly 1,500 upgraded afternoon schools were closed due to financial constraints. Around 32 teachers’ organizations and their 61 groups also failed to get their demands accepted during the year.
Teachers and non-teaching staff received no relief, while pensions saw a record reduction.
Due to crowd transfers and politically motivated affiliations, many elementary schools were either left empty or forced to operate with a single teacher.
Leaders of the Punjab SES Teachers Association including Nadeem Iqbal and Muhammad Shafiq Bhalowalia, Punjab Educators Association President Malik Amjad and Punjab Teachers Union General Secretary Rana Liaquat Ali termed 2025 as a year to focus only on introducing policies. They said six policies were implemented but all failed.
They demanded formulation of a national education policy, an end to privatisation, fresh recruitment against vacancies and an end to election, polio and dengue survey duties imposed on teachers.
They warned that until teachers are financially secure and professionally respected, the education system will remain in ruins.
Meanwhile, Punjab Education Minister Rana Sikandar said that due to effective education policies, board exam results in government schools were excellent this year.
He said teachers were provided with scooters, easy loans and laptops, claiming that outsourcing would improve the education system.
