Himachal Pradesh Education Minister Thakur Orders Urgent Repairs for 1,411 Disaster-Hit Schools
Monsoon wrecks 1,411 schools; govt races to rebuild.
Himachal Pradesh Education Minister Rohit Thakur declared on Tuesday that reconstructing over 1,411 disaster-ravaged school buildings is the state government’s absolute top priority, with immediate funds released to the housing and urban development authority to kickstart urgent repairs before winter sets in. The devastating monsoon season caused a staggering Rs 126.73 crore in damages across educational institutions statewide.
Presiding over a high-level review meeting of the Education Department, Thakur issued strict directives to expedite all reconstruction and repair works to ensure student safety and uninterrupted learning. He emphasized that no child should suffer due to damaged infrastructure and ordered officials to complete pending projects on a war footing, with regular monitoring to prevent delays.
The minister also mandated deputy directors to conduct frequent academic reviews, particularly focusing on schools with pass percentages below 25 percent. To boost teacher training quality, Bachelor of Education and Diploma in Elementary Education trainees will now be deployed to their native districts for practical teaching, with a cap of five trainees per school to avoid overburdening staff.
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Under the newly introduced Complex School System, students from merged or closed smaller schools are being seamlessly enrolled in nearby larger institutions to optimize resources and enhance educational access. Thakur further instructed swift disciplinary action against any teacher found harassing students and called for a 10-day report to slash non-academic workload, allowing educators to focus on teaching.
With rescue operations still underway in landslide-hit areas, the government’s dual focus on infrastructure restoration and academic reform signals a comprehensive push to shield Himachal’s education system from climate shocks while improving learning outcomes across the hill state.
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