Amid teachers’ allegations that government schools are already struggling with staff shortages, the education department has sought 87 more government school teachers for the second phase of Census 2027, requiring them to be relieved from their teaching duties for the assignment.

The directive by the education department was issued on Tuesday, a day after government-school teachers’ unions submitted demand letters to the district education officer (DEO) and deputy commissioner seeking withdrawal of non-academic duties.

The unions have argued that repeated deployment of teachers for administrative assignments is affecting classroom teaching, particularly when schools are already short of staff.

A letter issued by the deputy economic and statistical advisor-cum-census charge officer, Ludhiana, directed the DEO (secondary) to ensure training of 87 teachers from high, middle and senior secondary government schools, from September 21 to 30.

The employees will work as field trainers for the second phase of the census.

The DEO subsequently forwarded the directions to the concerned school heads,

asking them to follow the instructions and relieve the selected employees from their teaching duties.

Dharamjeet Singh Dhillon, district president of the Lecturer Cadre Union, said the union was firmly opposed to non-academic duties but understood the importance of census and election-related work.

“We are strictly against non-academic duties. However, we understand that census and election-related work is important, and we do not oppose that. But if teachers are involved in other non-academic duties and there are no teachers left in schools, how are schools going to relieve more teachers for this duty?” he said.

A government school head, requesting anonymity, said subject teachers were being picked for the assignment while schools were already struggling to manage classes.

“Main subject teachers are being picked up, and we already have no teachers left as mid-term examinations are going on. It is really difficult to manage,” the school head said.

Deputy DEO (secondary) Amandeep Singh said most of the employees sought for the latest assignment had also worked during the first phase of the census.

He said, however, that the department had not submitted any representation to the administration seeking exemption from the deployment after teachers’ unions raised objections to such duties.