BJP-JD(U) govt in Bihar claims it transformed education sector, but state of public schools remains lamentable

Schools across Bihar face an uncertain future as the state government has decided to close down or merge nearly 3000 schools, due to unavailability of land or lack of enough students Editor’s Note: A network of 60 reporters set off across India to test the idea of development as it is experienced on the ground. Schools across Bihar face an uncertain future as the state government has decided to close down or merge nearly 3000 schools, due to unavailability of land or lack of enough students. Amit Kumar, Public Relations Officer for Bihar’s education department said, “The education department has decided to merge schools which don’t have adequate number of students. We have made several requests to education department officials and public representatives for constructing toilets, but nothing has been done.” Referring to the lack of teachers, government sources say that for around 73,000 elementary schools in Bihar, 2.53 lakh teachers’ posts are sanctioned, but nearly 1 lakh posts lie vacant. Shatrughan Prasad Singh, the general secretary of Bihar Secondary School Teacher’s Association said, “There is a severe shortage of science and English teachers at middle and high schools.