State approves 30,000+ guest teachers to tackle school staff shortage

Koppal: The department of school education and literacy has approved the recruitment of 30,337 guest teachers in the first phase for govt lower primary schools across Karnataka, against a shortage of 33,708 teachers for the 2026–27 academic year.In the seven Kalyana Karnataka districts, approval has been granted for 10,507 guest teachers against 11,675 vacant posts, accounting for nearly one-third of the state’s overall teacher shortage.Raichur has been allotted 3,318 guest teachers against 3,687 vacant posts, followed by Yadgir with 2,203 against 2,448, Koppal with 1,469 against 1,632, Kalaburagi with 1,373 against 1,525, Ballari with 1,325 against 1,472, Bidar with 585 against 650, and Vijayanagara with 393 against 437 vacancies.The approval is part of the state govt’s decision to fill nearly 40,000 guest teacher posts in govt schools. According to a circular issued on May 27, appointments are to be made from June 1, with the monthly honorarium fixed at Rs 12,000.Raichur recorded the highest teacher shortage in the state, followed by Yadgir. The largest allocation was made in the combined Belagavi and Chikkodi educational divisions, where 3,170 guest teachers were approved against 3,522 vacancies. Similarly, the combined Karwar and Sirsi educational divisions in Uttara Kannada accounted for 1,641 guest teachers against 1,823 vacant posts.Among other allocations, Bengaluru South was allotted 1,539 guest teachers against 1,710 vacancies, while Dakshina Kannada received 1,138 approvals against 1,265 vacancies. The circular also approved 797 guest teachers against 885 vacancies in Vijayapura, 761 against 846 in Ramanagara, 754 against 838 in Haveri, 715 against 794 in Mysuru, 674 against 749 in Bagalkot, and 612 against 680 in Shivamogga.In Bengaluru Rural, 571 guest teachers were approved against 634 vacancies, while Chitradurga received 520 against 578 posts. Tumakuru accounted for 482 against 536 vacancies, Hassan 456 against 507 posts, and Chamarajanagar 448 against 498 posts.Breaking up the numbers by educational divisions, Karwar was allotted 428 guest teachers and Sirsi 785, while Belagavi received approval for 1,349 teachers and Chikkodi 1,821. Davanagere was allotted 254 guest teachers against 282 vacant posts.Karnataka State Primary School Teachers’ Association president Chandrashekar Nuggali said a letter was submitted to the govt on May 15 seeking alternative arrangements for more than 45,000 vacancies before the reopening of schools. He said the approval for guest teacher recruitment has addressed the association’s demand.Authorities have been instructed to complete the recruitment process immediately and deploy guest teachers in schools from June 1.